Volkswagen Joint Venture with Ford on Van and Pickup Truck Development
Added: 18 February 2019
Volkswagen and Ford are set to join forces with the development of vans and pickup trucks. The official plans for this partnership was announced in January 2019 and the two companies have ambitious proposals ahead. Indeed, they have suggested that in the future they could also develop both electric and self-driving cars together too.
Why Is the Union Happening?
The joint cooperation is said to be a plan to cut the cost for both companies. Demand is also expected to take off for commercial vans and the medium-size pickup. The new deal will mean that designs for both are shared while still ensuring that the two brands have distinct characteristics. However, officially the businesses also suggested that the new development plan would help make sure that they can provide the best value to all their customers and clients, when the deal was officially announced at the Detroit motor show.
How Will the Arrangement Work?
It’s worth noting that the new deal is not a merger. As such, the companies will not own any shares from each other. Instead, it is purely designed to make sure that joint projects can be taken on which will be overseen by a full committee that includes Ford’s boss, Jim Hackett and the chief executive of Volkswagen Herbert Diess.
The deal will see a divide between how pickups and larger commercial vans are created and designed. Ford will take charge of the medium-sized pickups for both companies as well as the larger commercial vans for customers in Europe.
In contrast, Volkswagen will focus their main efforts on building smaller vans.
The two companies also have their sights set on a far greener future. This is crucial as they are both under immense pressure to catch up to the modern age. Companies like Tesla are constantly pushing the boundaries of how environmentally friendly cars can be on the road with a steady focus on electric vehicles.
This is why Volkswagen also made the announcement that they would be investing $800m to produce electric vehicles in the future. Pairing with Ford allows them to make these types of tremendous strides while keeping cost firmly under control. Ultimately this will give both businesses a greater chance at improving profits and staying at the top of the market.
It seems then that customers have the most to gain from the new agreement. Lower cost will surely mean fantastic savings for clients and businesses building up their fleets with Ford and VW vans. As well as this, it seems clear that a primary focus of the new deal is to produce greener cars and keep up with the growing market for this type of vehicle.
It’s difficult to say what the future could hold for this joint venture. But it is certainly an impressive and exciting new development for the car industry as well as all buyers. It could lead to a new boom in developments for both companies and a fresh push for the modern form of the electric car. Contact us today to find out more.