Nissan and Daimler have announced plans to build Mercedes-Benz four-cylinder gasoline motors at Nissan’s Decherd, Tennessee engine factory starting in 2014. The move marks the latest expansion of the companies’ 2010 agreement to cooperate on vehicle and powertrain technologies.
“This is the newest milestone in our pragmatic collaboration and our most significant project outside of Europe so far,†said Renault- Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn. “Localized capacity reduces exposure to foreign exchange rates while rapidly enabling a good business development in North America – a win-win for the Alliance and Daimler.â€
The Mercedes engine to be built in Tennessee could be either the brand’s 2.0-liter turbo four or the upcoming 1.8-liter turbo unit (or both). The former, which is used in the C-Class, makes 201 horsepower and 229 lb-ft of torque, while power output for the latter has not been revealed but is expected to be somewhere in the 210 to 230 horsepower range. Infiniti will use one or both of the four-cylinder mills in its upcoming Mercedes-based front-wheel-drive compact premium car.
Mercedes-Benz, meanwhile, will build the next C-Class on American soil at the brand’s Tuscaloosa, Alabama plant in 2014; sending engines over from neighboring Tennessee figures to be much more cost-effective than shipping them in from Europe. There will be plenty of engines to go around, too: Mercedes and Nissan stated that the Tennessee factory will have the capacity to churn out 250,000 engines every year “once full ramp-up is achieved.”
The engine production plan is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the collaboration between Nissan and Daimler. Besides the aforementioned Mercedes-based Infiniti compact, the companies are working together on a new small car that will form the basis of a smart forfour successor as well as the next Renault Twingo. In the future, Mercedes will also supply Nissan and Infiniti with more four- and six-cylinder gasoline and diesel engines as well as automatic gearboxes. Finally, the companies will work together on a light commercial vehicle that will make use of Nissan/Renault diesel motors.
References
1.’Nissan and Daimler…’ view
2.’Nissan to build…’ view
