Mahindra and Ford had signed five non-binding MOUs in March this year. The Indo-American duo hopes to come to a final decision on some of these agreements in October.
In an interview with The Economic Times recently, Dr Pawan Goenka, MD, Mahindra & Mahindra talked about the progress on its jointly developed products with Ford. He reiterated that the company had announced “five things, mid-size SUV, EV on Ford platform, Mahindra engines on Ford platform, mobility and connectivity.”
“We are progressing on all five, none of this yet is signed as a definitive agreement. We are close on a couple of them and hopefully, we will have the decision next month.”
Below is a clear list of what the five non-binding MOUs cover:
- Connected vehicle projects
- Battery Electric Vehicle
- Product development of C-SUV
- Product development of B-SUV
- Powertrains
Announcing the next step in their collaboration in March, Mahindra and Ford had said that they “will leverage their strengths in the utility vehicle space to co-develop a midsize sports utility vehicle (C-SUV).” They also “agreed to evaluate co-development of a compact SUV and electric vehicle and electric vehicle.”
Also Read: Ford whittling down platforms to just 5 with JV models programed for India & China
The co-developed B-SUV for Ford could emerge as the next-gen Ford EcoSport. The Blue Oval’s C-SUV, based of the chassis of the next-gen Mahindra XUV500, could arrive as the model cheaper than the Ford Kuga, competing directly with the Jeep Compass and the next-gen Hyundai Tucson.
About its first electric car in India, reports say that it will launch a battery-powered variant of the export-spec Ford Aspire. GST levied on EVs doesn’t vary based on the dimensions, and so, it will use the longer model (only exported from India currently as the Ka+ sedan) to offer more value for money and distinguish the EV.
[Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com]
