Two automotive powerhouses, Ford and Toyota, announced today that they’ll be joining forces and sharing responsibility, 50-50, on the development of a new RWD hybrid system for SUVs and pickup trucks.
The system will be built on a new platform (not an existing architecture) and will allow both companies to calibrate its performance levels to match their respective needs when it gets deployed on a large scale “later this decade.”
With this collaboration, the two automakers hope tomarket thesetechnologiesmore quickly andmake them more affordablethan everfor buyers, something they can't achieve workingon their own.
We’ll certainly follow the developments with interest, as the Ford Fusion’s system has really proven itself, that the Prius has become a benchmark in the hybrid segment, and that Ford is no stranger to the SUV and pickup market.
The agreement, of which we got wind of today, won’t limit itself to engines as Ford and Toyota will use their partnership to share information on their respective infotainment systems as well.
The system will be built on a new platform (not an existing architecture) and will allow both companies to calibrate its performance levels to match their respective needs when it gets deployed on a large scale “later this decade.”
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| Derrick Kuzak, Ford group vice president, Global Product Development, (left) and Takeshi Uchiyamada, Toyota executive vice president, Research & Development, sign a Memorandum of of Understanding to collaborate on a new rear-wheel-drive hybrid system for light trucks and SUVs, and to collaborate on development of next-generation standards for in-car telematics. (Photo: Ford) |
With this collaboration, the two automakers hope tomarket thesetechnologiesmore quickly andmake them more affordablethan everfor buyers, something they can't achieve workingon their own.
We’ll certainly follow the developments with interest, as the Ford Fusion’s system has really proven itself, that the Prius has become a benchmark in the hybrid segment, and that Ford is no stranger to the SUV and pickup market.
The agreement, of which we got wind of today, won’t limit itself to engines as Ford and Toyota will use their partnership to share information on their respective infotainment systems as well.