The working relationship between Volkswagen and Ford is close to being finalised. The venture was first announced in January 2019 with the two brands agreeing to co-develop a future double-cab bakkie.
Automotive News reports that Volkswagen group is also keen to share knowledge around future electric mobility, as well as autonomous capabilities. According to group CEO, Herbert Diess, the talks with Ford are progressing well and are close to being finalised.
Volkswagen is hopeful that this new venture will allow the brand to increase scaleablity, particularly within the improtant US market while saving deveolpment costs. “Without a strong presence in the US, still our weakest region, global trade conflicts risk putting us in a dire situation,” Diess said. “Today we are a company that’s strongly influenced by China. We need a counterweight in the USA.”
Recently, the Chinese market has returned somewhat of a downturn for the Volkswagen Group with rising trade tensions and even stricter rules around emissions. With the afromentioned deal, VW will likely co-finance with Ford’s affiliate company, Argo AI.
