FCA will avoid EU CO2 fines in 2019, 2020, CEO says

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Mike Manley said the automaker will not have to pay fines for failing to comply with tougher European CO2 regulations in 2019 and 2020.

FCA will be compliant because of a regulatory credit deal with Tesla, the forthcoming debuts of plug-in hybrid versions of the Jeep Compass, Renegade and Wrangler, as well as the addition of an all-new full-electric Fiat 500 and the arrival of more efficient combustion engines, the executive said.

“This year we’ll continue to roll out improved traditional engine technologies including our new GSE three-cylinder and four-cylinder gasoline engines,” Manley told analysts during a conference call to discuss FCA’s second-quarter financial results.

The GSE 1.0- and 1.3-liter GSE gasoline engines are produced in Bielsko Biala, Poland, and are currently offered on the Fiat 500X small crossover and the Renegade. Additional production of the engines is scheduled to start at FCA’s plant in Termoli, Italy, next year.

In 2020, FCA will launch a battery-powered Fiat 500 and the plug-in hybrid Jeeps.

Manley said that with those launches electrified vehicles would account for about 5 percent of FCA's European sales mix.

These vehicles, combined with the rollout of mild hybrid versions of models such as the Fiat 500 and the Jeep Renegade, and the benefits that FCA will get from pooling its result with those of Tesla have left Manley very confident.