Stellantis Korea unlikely to meet sales target amid declining Jeep, Peugeot demand

Stellantis Korea CEO Bang Sil introduces its all new Peugeot 3008 Smart Hybrid SUV in Seoul, July 3. Yonhap

Stellantis Korea continues to lose its brand power amid a steep decline in sales of its two flagship brands — Jeep and Peugeot.

Local customers' increasingly polarized demand for either premium luxury cars or more price-competitive domestic models has contributed to this trend, according to data and industry officials on Tuesday.

This is clouding the carmaker's goal to achieve its earlier target of increasing total sales by up to 30 percent this year by enhancing the identity of the two once-popular brands.

Data from the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association showed the number of newly registered Jeep vehicles came in at 929 during the first half of this year, down 35.4 percent from a year earlier. The figure for Peugeot also dropped 21.4 percent to 449 during the same period.

Industry officials cited the two brands’ weak hybrid lineups as the key reason for their dwindling sales performance here.

Jeep currently offers no hybrid models in the Korean market, while Peugeot has three hybrid options following the latest launch of its 3008 hybrid SUV. However, this has not been enough to attract local consumers as domestic rivals release more diverse hybrid and electric vehicle models at reasonable prices, according to market watchers.

Stellantis Korea expects the 3008 SUV to serve as a key sales driver in the latter half of the year.

“The vehicle was launched with a price tag of some mid-40 million won (from $33,000 to $37,000), but it remains to be seen whether the strategic model will become a savior for the sagging carmaker, as it does not have any striking upsides, compared with cheaper domestic hybrids from Hyundai Motor and Kia,” an industry official said.

Peugeot’s vague brand image to local customers also remains a major hurdle to its sales growth here, according to the official.

“When it comes to the imported vehicle market, Korean customers’ preference for German premium brands is on the steady rise, and they have a tendency to purchase more price-competitive local brands, rather than buying cars with a weak premium identity,” the official added.