Reports out of Munich are that BMW and Mercedes will be getting very cozy when it comes to cooperation. Earlier this year,
Mercedes said "nein" to some sort of tie-up with BMW, even as
Daimler was eying MINI motors for its upcoming A- and B-Class cars. Unnamed sources, though, have told the
Financial Times Deutschland that BMW and Mercedes are not only looking at cooperating on engines, but they could also be open to developing assemblies like "axles, steering gear or drive systems."
BMW is being driven by the desire to cut costs. One can only assume that Mercedes, for all of its protestations, has the same thing in mind. Every carmaker is coming out with a raft of smaller cars to serve multiple purposes, among them: meet CO2 emissions and CAFE standards, put on a green face on for the public, and, of course, increase volume by selling more inexpensive vehicles.
While we're sure consumers would like to imagine each maker bringing its own technology -- and specifically, intangible brand feel -- to its vehicles, the business case cries out for closer cooperation for economies of scale. We aren't sure yet how BMW and Mercedes will be joining up, but we're pretty sure that they'll be doing so in some substantial way soon enough.
[Source: Bloomberg]
