Well that didn’t take long. Just last week, Fiat Chrysler was hot to get into bed with Renault, but now it says the engagement is off. Let the blame game begin!
According to The Guardian, the proposed marriage foundered because the French government, which owns 15% of Renault shares, wanted assurances that the merger would not lead to the closure of factories in France and the layoff of French workers. The government wanted more time to assess the impact of the deal on French national interests. Not gonna happen, Fiat Chrysler responded, and things went downhill from there.
France’s finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, says the government engaged constructively with all partners in the negotiations but that agreement had not been reached on all the government’s conditions for a deal. “What remained to be obtained was the explicit support of Nissan.” The Japanese automaker also owns 15% of Renault, giving it equal status on the board with the French government.
Le Maire told the press on June 5 there was no need to rush through a deal, saying the government wanted guarantees over Renault jobs, a headquarters in Paris, and corporate governance. “We want to do this merger,” he told BFM TV. For its part, Fiat Chyrsler says it “remains firmly convinced of the compelling, transformational rationale of the proposal.”
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Fiat/Renault Marriage On The Rocks, Subaru Cozies Up To Toyota On Electric Cars
Well that didn’t take long. Just last week, Fiat Chrysler was hot to get into bed with Renault, but now it says the engagement is off. Let the blame game begin!
Toyota, Subaru developing small crossover EV on new platform – Autoblog
TOKYO – Toyota and Subaru announced they will jointly develop a battery-electric crossover on a platform developed for multiple production vehicles. The first crossover built on the platform will be a C-segment vehicle, which will be a small vehicle similar in size to a Toyota RAV4 or Subaru Forester.
Subaru and Toyota will co-develop a new EV platform
Subaru and Toyota will partner to create a brand-new electric vehicle platform, both automakers confirmed Thursday. The Japanese companies will jointly develop a compact SUV on this architecture, a version of which will be sold under both brands.