Daimler said to be in talks with Ford, Renault-Nissan to share fuel cell technology
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DETROIT -- Daimler has delayed plans to launch a fuel-cell powered variant of its B-class compact car and is now in talks with Renault-Nissan and Ford Motor Co. on sharing the technology and reducing costs, according to a report from Automobilwoche, an affiliate of Automotive News.
Daimler's hydrogen fuel propulsion system is ready for series production but the company believes that it cannot currently sell the B class at a competitive price, so it will delay the car until at least 2017.
In order to achieve higher sales volumes and reduce costs, Daimler is in talks with Renault-Nissan and Ford to achieve a deal that would allow all four automakers to share the technology in its compact cars, according to Automobilwoche sources.
"We are in promising talks with interested companies," a Daimler spokesman said.
Ford spokesman Alan Hall said today: "We don’t comment on speculative reports."
There was no immediate comment today from Renault-Nissan.
Any deal is likely to see Nissan, a current partner of Daimler, extending the use of the German carmaker's B-class underpinnings, which it is currently using in the development of a compact model for its luxury Infiniti brand.
Daimler has already developed a B class electric car, which will it unveiled at the Paris auto show last year ahead of sales in 2014.
You can reach Matthias Krust at mkrust@craincom.de.
