General Motors Corp. and Honda Motor Co. have a memorandum of understanding to establish an "automotive alliance" in the North American market, including plans to co-develop a range of vehicles to be individually branded by each partner. Other areas of cooperation could include purchasing, R&D, and connected services.
According to their announcement, GM and Honda would work to share vehicle platforms, including both electric and internal combustion propulsion systems. Co-development planning discussions will begin immediately, and engineering work will begin in 2021.
"This alliance will help both companies accelerate investment in future mobility innovation by freeing up additional resources," stated GM president Mark Reuss. "Given our strong track record of collaboration, the companies would realize significant synergies in the development of today's vehicle portfolio."
Earlier this year GM and Honda agreed to jointly develop two EVs to be branded by Honda, based on the General Motors' EV platform and powered by its Ultium battery technology.
The two automakers have been partners in selected projects over more than 20 years, including their recent collaboration fuel cell and battery technologies and production, and the Cruise Origin autonomous vehicle.
Beyond the new vehicle technologies, GM and Honda will work to coordinate materials purchasing, logistics services, and localization activities, to create cost efficiencies by leveraging respective scale, insights, and best practices.
And, the two organizations will explore combining R&D related to advanced technology areas, including electrical architecture, advanced driver assist systems, infotainment, connectivity and vehicle-to-everything communication.
"Through this new alliance with GM, we can achieve substantial cost efficiencies in North America that will enable us to invest in future mobility technology, while maintaining our own distinct and competitive product offerings," stated Seiji Kuraishi, EVP of Honda Motor Co. Ltd.
"Combining the strengths of each company, and by carefully determining what we will do on our own and what we will do in collaboration, we will strive to build a win-win relationship to create new value for our customers," Kuraishi continued.
The new alliance will be governed by a joint committee comprised of senior executives from both GM and Honda.
