More PSA/Fiat weirdness.

Kinja'd!!! "not for canada - australian in disguise" (for-canada)
11/01/2019 at 17:20 • Filed to: Van weirdness

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This is the Opel/Vauxhall Combo E. It’s based on PSA’s Citroen Berlingo/Peugeot Rifter vans. It replaced the Fiat Doblo-based Combo in 2018, shortly after PSA bought Opel. That’s all well and good.

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This is the Opel/Vauxhall Vivaro. It also replaces a non-PSA van sold by Opel, this time the Renault Trafic-based Vivaro. It’s based on the Citroen Jumpy/Peugeot Expert platform. That is, also, all well and good.

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However. Here’s where things get complicated. This is the Opel/Vauxhall Movano. It’s not based on a PSA platform. It’s based on the Renault Master. Which means that PSA sell a van made by their largest competitor, Renault. Not only that, but they have a suitable replacement just waiting to be rebadged like the Combo and Vivaro.

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The Citroen Relay/Peugeot Boxer. Also known as the Fiat Ducato and Ram ProMaster. Fiat and PSA have worked together making vans since the 1980s, and now since they’ll share common ownership, will likely continue to make vans together. Yet, the Movano remains. How hard is it to slap an Opel/Vauxhall badge on a Ducato/Boxer/Relay and call it a day? Apparently quite hard.

My only assumption is that PSA are waiting until the next generation Ducato/Boxer/Relay to come out to release a new Movano. The current Ducato is quite old, having been introduced in 2006, and despite a facelift in 2014, it looks quite dated compared to stuff like the new Sprinter, Crafter, and Transit. Meanwhile the other two vans (the Berlingo/Rifter and Jumpy/Expert) were updated relatively recently. Either way, this situation just goes to show how big of a clusterfuck badge engineering can result in. Two companies merge or one company buys another, and suddenly a competitor is selling it’s biggest rival’s van with no real replacement in sight.


DISCUSSION (2)


Kinja'd!!! MultiplaOrgasms > not for canada - australian in disguise
11/01/2019 at 19:38

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For one, the Movano is a better product than the PSA equivalent.


Kinja'd!!! Svend > not for canada - australian in disguise
11/01/2019 at 20:48

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The Combo and Vivaro are quite recent ventures with PSA though still years prior to PSA purchase.

The Movano is quite a long standing thing, but shouldn’t be an issue.

I mean they turned the new Vauxhall/Opel Corsa around mid development and swapped a GM platform for a PSA platform.

So PSA are likely to ride out the contract and then rebadge. PSA will be unlikely to end the contract early, especially as the Movano is built in France.