Mahindra will develop and supply a low-displacement petrol engine to Ford India for use in its present and future vehicles, starting 2020
Mahindra & Mahindra will develop and supply a low-displacement petrol engine to Ford India for use in the latter's present and future vehicles, starting 2020.
The companies have signed two definitive agreements on engine sharing and connected car solutions.
The agreements are a result of the strategic alliance between the two companies, first announced in September last year and followed up with five memoranda of understanding in March 2018.
To be sure, Ford does have its own petrol engines. Only last year, the company unveiled an all-new 1.5 litre, 3-cylinder petrol engine that was subsequently introduced in the new EcoSport.
On the other hand, Mahindra, which has been known for its heavy diesel engines, started developing petrol engines of its own only four years ago.
The first petrol-fired engine launched by Mahindra was in the KUV100 in 2016. At the time, M&M had said it is investing Rs 1,000 crore on developing four petrol engines (1.2 litre, 1.5 litre, 1.6 litre and 2.2 litre).
Upgrading Bharat Stage-IV (BS-IV) engines to BS-VI level is proving to be a costly affair for all manufacturers. To keep costs low, companies are going in for sharing of engines.
Thus far, Tata Motors has signed a deal to source a new BS-VI ready 2.0 litre diesel engine from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles India (FCA) for the upcoming SUV Harrier.
Similarly, FCA will also supply the same engine to SAIC-backed MG Motors India. Ford will be able to keep costs low by outsourcing the engine development process to Mahindra.
Connected car solutions
Building on their intent to co-develop a suite of connected car solutions, Mahindra and Ford also announced joint development of a telematics control unit.
Once developed, the connected vehicle solution will be deployed across both Mahindra and Ford vehicles.
The unit uses GPS and other software to provide the driver and occupants safer, real-time drive routes and even auto dials numbers in case of an emergency.
"We are confident to meet customer expectations by working together on a number of joint development areas. Going forward we will continue to identify the synergies that exist between the two companies," said Pawan Goenka, Managing Director, Mahindra and Mahindra.
Jim Farley, Executive Vice President and President of Global Markets at Ford, said: "With our collaboration in powertrain and connected car solutions, we will deliver an affordable portfolio."
In a joint statement, the two companies also said that they will continue to make progress on the remaining MoUs. This includes leveraging their respective strengths on product development for India and emerging markets, including co-development of compact SUVs and electric vehicles.
