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GM and Honda are forming an alliance to share EV tech, combustion engines, vehicle platforms



Honda and GM are moving ever closer together. The two automotive goliaths signed a memorandum of understanding today toward establishing an alliance in North America. Earlier this year, it was announced that Honda would be borrowing GM’s EV technology to build two electric cars sold under the Honda name in the U.S. Today’s move looks like it has the potential to cement the two companies even closer.

As of now, the proposed alliance would have the two collaborating on electric powertrain tech, internal combustion engines, vehicle platforms, connected services (infotainment technology), purchasing and general R&D. Honda and GM would collaborate in certain vehicle segments, already expressing intentions to share common vehicle platforms.

By partnering like this, both Honda and GM intend to save money in development, make greater investments in next-generation technologies and leverage scale for purchasing, logistics and other facets of business. The announcement digs a little deeper into technology, too. Honda and GM intend to collaborate on electrical architecture systems, 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,” says Seiji Kuraishi, executive vice president of Honda Motor Co. “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. In this way, Honda will continue making steady progress in solidifying our existing business by realizing strong products, strong manufacturing capability and a strong business structure.”

Mark Reuss, president of General Motors added: "This alliance will help both companies accelerate investment in future mobility innovation by freeing up additional resources. Given our strong track record of collaboration, the companies would realize significant synergies in the development of today's vehicle portfolio.”

Discussions between the two are scheduled to begin immediately, and engineering work will commence in early 2021. We have many questions about what this alliance will result in on dealer lots, but there are few answers for the time being. Honda is still planning to offer those two electric vehicles based on GM architecture by 2024, but what comes next is still unknown.

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