The VW Group and Ford will jointly develop commercial vehicles and have "identified other potential cooperation", CEO Herbert Diess has confirmed at its annual board meeting press conference.
Rumours of a VW and Ford tie-in have been circulating since the start of the month, with speculation that the brands will also develop electric vehicles together. Diess today confirmed the joint development of commercial vehicles is "core to the alliance", and went on to say that bosses had "identified other potential cooperation with Ford outside of commercial vehicles".
However, Diess denies the relationshp will extend to a rumoured full merger with Ford, claiming "that was never the objective of our talks".
At today's conference, Diess also revealed the Group has increased its five-year investment into electric vehicles, autonomous and connected technology from €34bn to €44bn, around a third of the car maker's total expenditure for the period. Of that sum, €30bn will be put into electric mobility, including everything from platform and powertrain development to infrastructure investment.
He also sees "few reasons" why the majority of car buyers won't be going electric by 2020, claiming "for those who drive less than 30,000km a year, electric will be their first choice".
Also discussed were plans to improve production efficiency, essential in the cost-cutting aftermath of Dieselgate, by 30% by 2025.
VW Works council head Bernd Osterloh discussed the brand's desire to be "part of battery manufacturing close to where the cars are produced". Diess added that it "doesn't make sense" to spread EV production across Europe. VW's current trio of dedicated electric vehicle plants across Germany is claimed to be the largest network of EV production across Europe.
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Jeremy
Makes sense
Ford must be able to produce Turkish Transits so much cheaper than VW can produce German Transporters!
RCT V
What will be left of the Ford Company
After this further dismemberment, divestiture, what will be left of the Ford Company, with which many of us are familiar?
From 1986, Iveco S.p.A. held a 52% stake in Iveco Ford Truck Ltd, a joint venture (and effectively a merger) with Ford of Europe’s truck division.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iveco?fbclid=IwAR1xYj78taOfpySuOsg_3NaBQmH1aOYad4NhypJW30zbm3zBoynrZOXS1As
The original New Holland Machine Company, was founded in 1895 . . . It was acquired by Ford Motor Company in 1986, and then by FiatAgri in 1991.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Holland_Agriculture
Ford recently announced (2018), that it is to discontinue production of (conventional) saloons and estate cars (wagons), and that it will simply concentrate on the production of SUVs and “Utility” (pick-up) vehicles, in the future.
And now this announcement of a “merger” with VW of their “Panel Van” production!
https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/vw-confirms-joint-development-ford-denies-merger
LP in Brighton
"Few reasons why car buyers won't be going electric by 2020"
Is this a typo? Seems just a tad optimistic especially since VW currently offer very few electrified cars today, let alone fully electric ones. I suspect that he meant by 2030.
LP in Brighton
"Few reasons why car buyers won't be going electric by 2020"
Is this a typo? Seems just a tad optimistic especially since VW currently offer very few electrified cars today, let alone fully electric ones. I suspect that he meant by 2030.
LP in Brighton
"Few reasons why car buyers won't be going electric by 2020"
Is this a typo? Seems just a tad optimistic especially since VW currently offer very few electrified cars today, let alone fully electric ones. I suspect that he meant by 2030.
Ski Kid
I can think of many reasons why they won't go electric by 2020
1) Price electric vehicled are a lot more expensive ,perhaps when the solid state arrives prices may be similar to .ic.e. that will not occur much before 2026 say about 8 years time.
2) range anxiety until solid state can crack 700 miles range and reduce the weight burden.
3) electricity -where will it all come from ? as I understand it if we all turned on the lights or chargers in this case all the older inefficient coal and oil powerstations are switched on by the grid.I think at a certain level electric will be more polluting due to this ,never mind the manufacture of battery packs.
4) depreciation possibly due to technology is savage.
5) The cost of duty and vat lost on i.c.e. compared to electric is potentialy tens of billions a year just for the Uk.This will become a thorny subject increasingly each year. Should you pay £30 to£100 duty each time you charge your car? dependant on size.
I like the idea of elecrtic in the longer term say ten years, but certainly not now.
EdBalls
More....
......Volkswagen "spin".
Amazes me how much Pro-VW articles are being published to make VW Group appear the nice, concerned, customer-focussed, eco-friendly company it most certainly is not.
Shame on you Autocar for publishing this never-ending tripe - or are you concerned they will drop the adverts in your magazine.....and stop your jollies at their expense.
jagdavey
Ford makes a record 13% on every Transit
VW only make 4.5 % profit margin on new cars, whereas Ford makes a whopping 13 % on building vans in Turkey!!!
VW want to convert 3 of their many factories in Germany to produce electric vehicles & one of those is the Transporter factory in Hannover, & want to shift T7 production to the Ford plant in Turkey.
The only problem is with Ford co-operating with VW on the design & development of commercial vehicles is what will happen to Dunton, UK where they are currently developed??? Also this could be a repeat of what happened with GM getting out of Europe!!!!
frankjames
gooood https://www.google
gooood https://www.google.com
ChristopherMills
Such joint development will
Such joint development will give rise to new innovation as I read about it on EduZaurus.com. This will let both companies get access to the technology of each other resulting in better products.
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