A merger between Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Peugeot maker PSA Group is the best way for the two companies to weather the coronavirus crisis, FCA Chairman John Elkann said.

The coronavirus crisis had not delayed plans to finalise the tie-up by the first quarter of next year, Elkann told shareholders at FCA's annual meeting.

"The Covid-19 crisis has further underlined the compelling logic of this merger," he said.

"The excellent rapport that has been established in these months, also at a personal level, with (PSA Chairman) Louis Gallois, (PSA CEO) Carlos Tavares and their teams is strong evidence of our shared vision, determination and purpose," said Elkann.

Tavares told his company's shareholders that he was confident that it would be finalised by the first quarter of 2021 "at the latest", says Automotive News Europe.

FCA CEO Mike Manley said the group was fully aware that the pandemic would be here "for the foreseeable future" but that the carmaker could rely on its portfolio of brands and a solid business plan to cushion its impact.

"These are the great strengths that FCA brings to the merger with PSA," he Manley. "I firmly believe that as the market recovers, as it will, we will return to the positive momentum we were experiencing prior to this horrible pandemic."

The merged PSA-FCA—no new name has been released—will be the fourth-largest automaker by volume in the world. Both companies date back more than a century and bring a number of automotive brands with them including Jeep, Ram, Dodge, Chrysler, Fiat, Maserati, Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Peugeot, Citroen, DS, and Vauxhall-Opel.

But the expectation is some of them will have to go end, as “the stable is too full”.