Stellantis STLA Medium EV platform promises 435-mile range

Stellantis has unveiled the upcoming STLA Medium electric car platform, promising that it will bring the best energy efficiency and range in its class.

The platform is set to underpin several hotly anticipated models through the latter half of the 2020s, including the next Alfa Romeo Giulia and the new 2024 Peugeot 3008.

STLA Medium allows for cars sized between 4.3m and 4.9m long – in the C- and D-segments – with wheelbases between 2.7m and 2.9m.

Models based on the platform will be either front- or four-wheel drive, said Stellantis, the latter using a dual-motor set-up. The firm also added that the platform has “engineered-in flexibility” for propulsion, hinting at it eventually supporting rear-wheel-drive models, should there be sufficient demand for them.

Alfa Romeo, for example, may push to ensure the regular variant of the Giulia remains rear driven to retain the model's sporting character. However, as previously reported by Autocar, the Giulia Quadrifoglio will adopt a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive powertrain with outputs of up to 1000bhp.

Cars based on STLA Medium will be available with power outputs between 215bhp and 382bhp, said Stellantis – but Alfa CEO Jean-Philippe Imparato’s previous comments about a 1000bhp Giulia indicate that the platform has significantly more potential.

Battery packs in STLA Medium cars will be sized up to 98kWh, with larger ‘Performance’ units targeting a range of more than 435 miles. The standard size will yield ranges of more than 310 miles on the WLTP test cycle.

Stellantis also boasts of the platform’s efficiency of 4.4 miles per kWh. For reference, a Volkswagen ID 4 Pure Performance (with a 52kWh battery) is rated at 3.8mpkWh, as are rear-drive variants of the Kia EV6.

These figures may improve as new battery technologies become available. Stellantis said support for future chemistries, including the long-awaited solid-state technology, is built into STLA Medium.

It has also been designed to minimise weight and deliver improved ride and handling compared with the outdated PSA and FCA platforms that underpin much of Stellantis’s current line-up.

STLA Medium will be used by two million cars per year, including the volume-selling Peugeot 3008 and Vauxhall Grandland. Its profile also fits successors to several vehicles in the conglomerate’s current portfolio, such as the Citroën C5 Aircross, DS 7 and Peugeot 508.