Daimler To Expand EV Partnership With Renault-Nissan
After signing a pact to develop electric cars in April, Daimler has announced that they will expand their alliance with Renault- Nissan, as automakers scramble to bring alternative fuel vehicles to the market.
According to Daimler research chief Thomas Weber, the company’s partnership “will be expanded to include all three partners as far as electric motors, batteries and powertrains are concerned.” The first project will be a collaboration on certain systems contained in the next generation of Smart Fortwo and Renault Twingo superminis.
The deal would see Renault-Nissan help develop two and three cylinder engines as well as electric vehicle technologies, while Mercedes would send the French-Japanese company their highly-lauded diesel engines. Mercedes-Benz is looking to reduce their fleet average CO2 emissions by 2012 and meet even more aggressive targets by 2020.
“We won’t be able to meet the target of 95 grams CO2 in 2020 without electric vehicles with batteries and fuel cells,” Weber said. Vehicles like the SLS AMG E-Cell and their S400 Hybrid are being developed in house as a stopgap measure.
[Source: Automotive News]
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