Mercedes meets Renault

Mercedes-Benz and Renault have announced a joint research and development venture aimed at creating a new modular car platform and two engine designs for use in new Smart and Renault city car models.

According to Autoindustry magazine, the platform will be based on an existing Mercedes prototype rear drive chassis. It will be used in future models of the Smart Fortwo and Forfour in 2013-14 as well as upcoming Renault entry level vehicles.

The new engine designs will be optimised for the rear-drive platform and will include a six-speed manual gearbox or a seven-speed double-clutch transmission.

Future plans include a range of sub-1.8 litre four cylinder petrol and diesel engines for use in future models of the Forfour, Twingo, Clio, Modus, Mégane and Scenic.

Earlier this month, a senior Renault executive spoke about the company’s plans to restore its fortunes in the UK after its market share declined to just 2.5 per cent.

Jerome Stoll, Renault’s Executive Vice President for Sales and Marketing, told BusinessCar magazine: "Our brand and activity has slightly declined, and not only because of the market but because of some performance issues, and we have to try and restore the efficiency of the system and try and catch a higher market share in this region."

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