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TOKYO — Nissan Motor Co. and Renault SA plan to share more parts and more suppliers.

Nissan and Renault plan to double the volume of each auto part used in their cars over the next five years, to squeeze new cost cuts from joint purchasing.

The push for common parts will require tighter cooperation between the engineering teams of the two alliance partners, to simplify component designs. The two automakers also will favor suppliers that can service both companies.

"Probably we have 20 or 30 different types of alternators or starters we use at Nissan, and if we can reduce it from 20 to 10, then we can discuss with Renault," says Yasuhiro Yamauchi, general manager of the Renault-Nissan Purchasing Organization. "And if they have 20 and can reduce it to 10, then we discuss how we can commonize those 10."

By next March, the companies will define the new component strategy, outlining joint engineering specifications for parts and identifying suppliers.

The first standardization targets likely will be smaller parts such as alternators, starters or wiper systems, Yamauchi said. The most difficult components to share will be styling-specific ones, such as cockpit components and seats.

The new policy means more pressure on parts makers that make many sales to one of the alliance partners and few to the other, Yamauchi said. The alliance wants suppliers to have a better balance of business between Renault and Nissan.

"There are many suppliers that have very unbalanced turnover. That means we do not 100 percent utilize the scale merit," Yamauchi said. "So we have many things to do."

Robert Bosch GmbH, Calsonic Kansei Corp. and Delphi Corp. are among the most balanced suppliers, he said. Yamauchi declined to identify companies at the other end of the spectrum, but they likely would include those that supply only Nissan's North American plants.

The Renault-Nissan Purchasing Organization helps both companies cut costs through economies of scale. After seven years of operation, it has expanded to cover more than 90 percent of the purchasing by both companies.