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Isuzu, Toyota Part Ways…Sort Of

August 7, 2018 by admin 4 Comments

Do you remember the Toyota-Isuzu partnership? Probably not, as these two Japanese automakers are at polar opposites in their involvement in the U.S. market.

Indeed, Toyota is one of the top brands in the U.S., while Isuzu hasn’t sold a vehicle here since 2009. Certainly, Toyota dominates in several things, including hybrid technology, but it is weak in a few areas, including diesel engineering, which happens to be one of Isuzu’s strengths.

2017 Fiat 124 Spider. Not Isuzu.
This Fiat 124 Spider is the result of an agreement FCA made with Mazda.

Toyota, Isuzu Forge a Partnership

Thus, in 2006, Toyota and Isuzu signed an agreement to utilize each other’s resources in diesel development, a partnership that made sense at the time. For instance, with fuel prices still high and soon to reach higher still, the original agreement allowed both manufacturers to strengthen their diesel involvement. But as the ensuing years have attested, changes in fuel prices, customer tastes and regulatory concerns have changed things considerably. Diesel demand is down and likely to continue to fall.

So, Toyota did this month what makes perfect sense: it officially dissolved the partnership. Further, Toyota will sell its 50 million shares of Isuzu stock, which gave the company a 5.89-percent stake in Isuzu. Moving forward, the two companies will continue to collaborate on projects feasible to both.

In a press release, Toyota cited the automotive industry’s “sweeping, once-in-a-century changes” as the company’s reason for concentrating on other matters. For instance, the two automakers are likely to continue collaborating on other areas where they are strong. For Isuzu, that would be commercial vehicles. And for Toyota, that’s always been passenger vehicles, this automaker’s mainstay.

2016 Toyota Yaris iA
This Scion iA (now Toyota Yaris iA) is the result of a partnership between Toyota and Mazda.

Toyota and Mazda

Toyota has long collaborated or held stakes in junior Japanese manufacturers, including Mazda, Daihatsu and Subaru. In 2015, Mazda and Toyota announced a partnership whereby Mazda later supplied a vehicle to Toyota based on the Mazda 2. Originally sold as the 2016 Scion iA, this model is currently marketed as the Toyota Yaris iA now that the Scion brand has dissolved.

As for Mazda, the automaker is certain to benefit from Toyota hybrid technology, although as of this writing we haven’t seen such a model in the U.S. market. Toyota might also aid Mazda in all things hydrogen, yet another Toyota strength.

Auto Industry Buzzword: Collaboration

Industry collaboration is growing and will likely expand further as automakers deal with two matters that Toyota described as the “sweeping, once-in-a-century changes.” Specifically, these involve vehicle electrification and autonomy.

In June 2018, General Motors and Honda announced the second component of their earlier agreement, which builds on a joint venture to produce hydrogen fuel cell systems as early as 2020. The latest agreement covers electric-vehicle batteries, which is something GM will supply to Honda, according to Bloomberg. By doing so, GM will lower its own costs as both manufacturers ramp production of electric vehicles.

Waymo Google Chrysler Pacifica
Automakers are also collaborating with tech companies, such as FCA with Waymo.

For Honda, the agreement with GM enables the company to forge a partnership as its chief domestic competitors build their own. We already looked at Toyota’s stake in Japanese manufacturers. Nissan, however, has the most aggressive alliance going as the company has a significant stake in Renault and Renault has a significant stake in Nissan. In 2015, Nissan also purchased a controlling interest in Mitsubishi. The three companies currently form an alliance that sells more vehicles worldwide than any manufacturer.

Other areas of collaboration include GM and Ford working on automatic transmissions for the second time this millennium. In the early 2000s, the two manufacturers partnered to develop the six-speed automatic transmissions which were common in Ford and GM vehicles for more than a decade. Later, the two companies developed new nine- and 10-speed automatic transmissions, which are widely used today.

Getting it Done

So, although Toyota and Isuzu have officially ended their partnership, the collaborations will continue. As with many such efforts, the agreement is usually temporary and is sometimes fluid. As long as both parties see a benefit in working together, then these will continue. After all, lowering costs is the dictum of our day. Finally, consumers will benefit too, as those savings are passed on, making new technologies affordable for most.


See Also — Chrysler, Google Project: Start of Something Big?

Photos copyright the respective manufacturer except for the Fiat 124 Spider, which belongs to Auto Trends Magazine.

Filed Under: Automotive News Tagged With: COLLABORATION, Daihatsu, Ford, GM, HONDA, ISUZU, MAZDA, MITSUBISHI, NISSAN, PARTNERSHIP, Renault, Subaru, Toyota

Toyota and Mazda Collaboration Will Lift Both Automakers

May 14, 2015 by admin 2 Comments

And so it begins. Giant Toyota and wee Mazda announced a collaborative agreement this week that will benefit both companies. The agreement allows each automaker to leverage products and technologies from the other, a partnership that does not include Toyota taking a financial stake in its much smaller competitor.

What the agreement effectively does is to expand an earlier arrangement whereby Mazda is supplying Toyota with a small car based on its Mazda 2 subcompact platform. That vehicle, the 2016 Scion iA, debuts this fall. In exchange, Mazda can now tap Toyota’s plug-in hybrid electric vehicle technology.

Symbiotic Task Force

The two companies will establish a joint committee to determine how each automaker can make use of the other’s chief assets. The collaboration will be broad and involve a number of disciplines, including various environmental initiatives and advanced safety technologies.

Toyota President Akio Toyoda and Mazda, President and CEO Masamichi Kogai, held a news conference in Tokyo on Wednesday to announce the accord.

Toyoda pointed to two strong Mazda initiatives that have helped this small car manufacturer succeed in an ultra-competitive global market: its SKYACTIV Technologies and KODO―Soul of Motion design. Both present an enticing edge that Toyota does not have and can most certainly benefit from moving forward.

Said Toyoda, “Mazda has proven that it always thinks of what is coming next for vehicles and technology, while still managing to stay true to its basic carmaking roots. In this way, Mazda very much practices what Toyota holds dear: making ever-better cars.”

Mazda 2 Scion iA collaboration

One of the earlier collaborations between the two automakers
has turned the Mazda 2 into a 2016 Scion iA.

Toyota Saves the Day

Not mentioned by Toyota’s president is that the provision essentially seals Mazda’s fate. Certainly, ever since the Ford Motor Company severed its three-decade relationship with one of Japan’s smaller automakers, the company has lacked the financial resources, especially the economies of scale, it once had.

For example, the earliest Ford Escape and Mazda Tribute models shared the same bones. Although the Tribute’s replacement, the CX-5, is a superior model, the cash outlay for the compact crossover utility vehicle has been enormous.

Quite frankly, Mazda working alone does not have the resources to keep pace with the big guys. But Mazda and Toyota working cooperatively essentially provides the former with a savior. You can now scratch Mazda off your list of vulnerable automakers.

Speaking on behalf of Mazda, Kogoi said, “Toyota is a company that has shown steadfast resolve in acting responsibly on global environmental issues and the future of manufacturing as a whole. I also have tremendous respect for Toyota’s dedication in its pursuit of ever-better cars through ongoing innovation.”

Toyota Mazda collaboration

Toyota will supply Mazda with hybrid technology.
Perhaps a Mazda diesel is in the offing for this Camry.

Hydrogen and Hybrid Technologies

No doubt, Toyota and its 10.2 million per year car building efforts will energize Mazda and its 1.2 million annual output. The two companies are competitors, but the move will enable each one to plug specific product holes.

For Mazda, the company will gain access to Toyota’s hydrogen vehicle technologies and expand its PHEV offerings. It isn’t quite clear how this arrangement will work, but look for a PHEV Mazda CX-5 or Mazda 6 in the future. Most likely both. Rebadging the hydrogen Toyota Mirai as a Mazda doesn’t seem likely, although that chassis might someday power a future Mazda product.

Toyota gains access to Mazda’s SKYACTIV technologies, represented by fuel-efficient gasoline and diesel engines, advanced transmissions and lightweight bodies. Of special interest could be Mazda’s diesel engines, one of the weakest areas for Toyota.

Toyota does have diesel technology, but readying those engines for the American market would be a costly undertaking. Mazda has a twin-turbo 2.2-liter diesel engine in the wings, one that meets both European and US emissions standards. The engine is suitable for the midsize Mazda 6 sedan and might also be made available with the Toyota Camry.

As for the Camry, not everyone wants a hybrid and the Mazda diesel would give Toyota something that does not involve vehicle electrification. And if certain KODO design elements transfer to the Camry and other Toyota models, the world’s largest automaker may suddenly gain a much-need styling edge.

Collaboration Gauntlet Thrown Down

FCA collaboration or suitor

Sergio Marchionne is actively campaigning
to win a suitor for FCA.

The Toyota-Mazda arrangement may prove to be the most comprehensive one amongst automotive manufacturers yet. Beyond outright mergers, acquisitions and stake holding, most relationships today are based on special projects involving complex technologies.

For example, Honda and General Motors are collaborating on hydrogen technology. Mitsubishi and Nissan are working on supplying the former with a midsize sedan for the US market. Daimler, Ford and Renault-Nissan are working on fuel-cell technologies with the first models expected to arrive in 2017. Every manufacturer is working with someone else to share technologies and to mitigate costs.

And beating the drum for ever broadening industry cooperation has been none other than Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) CEO, Sergio Marchionne. Just this week Marchionne met with Tesla and Apple CEOs, raising speculation that a Silicon Valley partnership may be in the offing. Marchionne has made it known that FCA is looking for a suitor. He has also stated that the global market can only support six major players.

In any case, the Toyota-Mazda joint effort will likely encourage other automakers to boost their efforts. Importantly, the timing for Mazda couldn’t be better as the next economic turn down is approaching, what most certainly will shake out some of the weaker players.


See Also — Auto Industry Buzzword: Collaboration

Filed Under: Special Tagged With: AGREEMENT, COLLABORATION, DIESEL ENGINES, hydrogen, MAZDA, MAZDA 2, PARTNERSHIP, PHEV, SERGIO MARCHIONNE, SION IA, SKYACTIV, Toyota, TRANSMISSIONS

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