Big Stellantis EV platform to deliver Hellcat V8 performance and 800km range

Stellantis says its most advanced electric vehicle architecture to date, the STLA Large platform that was confirmed as one of four EV chassis announced in 2021, will provide its biggest and most expensive models with a range of more than 800km and offer supercharged Hellcat V8-humbling levels of performance.

The new architecture is related to the current STLA Medium platform but has been designed specifically for vehicles measuring between 4764mm and 5126mm long with wheelbases varying from 2870mm to 3075mm.

Despite being created for EVs, STLA Large has the flexibility to accommodate hybrid powertrains in front-, rear- and all-wheel drive configurations.

Battery packs will vary in size from 85kWh to 118kWh, with the most efficient models offering the maximum 800km of range, however, bigger and more advanced power packs are expected to follow.

Set to make its debut under the recently teased Jeep Wagoneer S, the American fastback SUV will be followed by an Italian-built flagship Alfa Romeo SUV in the coming years.

STLA Large will replace the Giorgio platform that currently underpins the Alfa Romeo Giulia and Stelvio, with smaller Stellantis EV platforms to form the basis of the next Giulia and the MiTo-replacing Brennero small SUV.

Stellantis brands Alfa Romeo and Maserati plan to go all-EV by 2025, followed by Fiat by 2030. EVs from fellow European brands under the Stellantis umbrella, Peugeot and Citroen, will also ride on STLA platforms.

In the US, the advanced STLA Large platform will also star under the incoming Dodge Charger Daytona muscle car, which is forecast to pump out as much as 660kW (more than the 594kW Challenger Hellcat) and deliver 0-100km/h acceleration in less than 3.0 seconds.

The system will be offered in both 400V and 800V version, with the latter set to offer DC fast-charging capabilities of up to 270kW.

Helping with packaging, Stellantis has produced compact three-in-one electric drive modules – which bundle the motor, power inverter and transmission into one casing – that engineers say have been developed to be upgraded over their lifespan, gradually producing more power via over-the-air updates.

New chassis tech developed to be compatible with the platform include traction-boosting limited-slip differentials set for both high-performance on-road and off-road applications.

The ultimate example of the latter will be the upcoming Jeep Recon, which is set to be ‘trail-rated’ by its creators – Jeep’s stamp of approval given to its most capable off-roaders, suggesting it will likely lead the EV segment for traction, ground clearance, wading, suspension articulation and general off-road capability.

That said, the platform can only accommodate tyres up to 33-inch in diameter, meaning the Recon and its future cousins will miss out on the largest 37-inch rubber favoured by the most extreme 4x4s, however, maximum ground clearance will still be a handy 288mm.

Apart from Jeep and Dodge, among the 14 brands now controlled by Stellantis are RAM, Chrysler, Abarth, DS, Lancia, Opel and Vauxhall.

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