GM execs to reportedly meet with Toyota regarding hybrid sharing
2010 Toyota Prius – Click above for high-res image gallery
Rumors that General Motors may get access to Toyota's proprietary hybrid technology just won't go away. Today, Bloomberg cites two unnamed sources in reports that Toyota President Akio Toyoda and GM chief Fritz Henderson will meet this August in Michigan to discuss the possibility of a GM-badged version of the Toyota Prius hybrid hatchback.
For the record, both General Motors and Toyota have repeatedly denied that any such talks have taken place in the past and have said it's unlikely that they ever will in the future. Many of these rumors indicate that the two automakers are considering building the Prius together at the New United Motor Manufacturing Incorporated (NUMMI) joint venture in California, but GM has today announced that its involvement in NUMMI is over.
It remains a possibility that Toyota will fully take over the reigns at NUMMI to finally build the Prius in America, but even if that's the case, it's extremely unlikely that General Motors will have anything to do with the project in light of its own massive undertaking of readying the Chevrolet Volt for the market in 2011.
Gallery: Review: 2010 Toyota Prius
[Source: Bloomberg]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Sea Urchin 5:33PM (6/29/2009)
Why???????????????
GMs mild hybrids and two mode hybrids are far more superior to Toyota, that is why GM sold millio........Oh i am sorry, GM's hybrids were some of the worst sellers out there.
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Taglane 5:36PM (6/29/2009)
What the hell was your comment about.
GTFO Fail Urchin.
Sea Urchin 6:42PM (6/29/2009)
Let's cut the sarcasm. What i mean to say was that GM was preaching the anti Prius systems, GM was preaching "less costly" mild hybrids and ethanol, and both FAILED. Both bombed to badly, plus Congress is subsidizing ethanol in USA without the subsidies GM would have sold even less.
Tool 10:22PM (6/29/2009)
Not sure why Toyota would allow a GM-badged version of the Prius. Why would you give away the crown jewels?
And secondly, if the Chevy Volt is supposed to be such a game changer, why would GM want to sell it alongside a Chevy Prius? Wouldn't that cannibalize sales and dilute the marketing message of the Volt?
Rebadging never really works. Consumers are too smart for this.
Jei 9:42AM (6/30/2009)
That was funny, SeaUrchin. You almost had me....until you got to "millio"
But honestly, GM would benefit from getting permission to use Toyota's Synergy Hybrid powertrain. In contrast, Toyota's larger cars, trucks, & SUVs would benefit from GM's 2-mode hybrid transmission. I would be nice to see a Sequoia or a 4Runner with better fuel consumption ratings and to see a thriftier fuel sipper Cobalt or Malibu would go a long way for positive marketing.
Taglane 5:35PM (6/29/2009)
Wasn't the Divorce JUST final?
GM. I swear to god if you do it.... Well yeah I'm still buying a Camaro. But still, if you do this....i dunno.
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Tyler 5:58PM (6/29/2009)
I ain't buyin' no hybrid camaro. Call me a romantic, but I want my power generated during the combustion of monkey-fighting dinosuars
jinsei888 5:51PM (6/29/2009)
this, friends, is called "irony"
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Conspriacy theory 5:57PM (6/29/2009)
Who really gives a defecation, discharge, dung, excrement, excretion, feces, flux, manure, stool, waste, BM, crap, fecal matter, feculence, go to the bathroom, number two ????????? Really what's the big mystery Automotive companies share (and/or steal) tech all the time.
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gerrrg 6:02PM (6/29/2009)
It would be an open admission by GM, that their mild hybrid technology sucks wind, and that Toyota's technology is the real leader. That's why this would be big.
jpm100 6:03PM (6/29/2009)
They wouldn't have to talk to Toyota for that reason. They'd just have to read the original TRW patents.
zamafir 9:00PM (6/29/2009)
reading patents tends not to help when you have no money R&D or produce, licensing technology does. it's not that hard.
Suzie 6:08PM (6/29/2009)
The only thing Toyota hybrid technology would be useful for is filling the gap in affordabiltity until the Voltec stuff becomes more practical. The Voltec stuff is far and away better than any Prius junk.
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Gary 7:00PM (6/29/2009)
Yes.
wvuquentin 8:34PM (6/29/2009)
Clearly correct; since we have 10 solid years of Voltec data showing that it significantly decreases the amount of fuel you will use. Wait..... no one has seen it run in generator mode yet...
Suzie 8:37PM (6/29/2009)
Given that most people wouldn't even need to use it in generator mode, you are correct. Good job.
tankd0g 3:15AM (6/30/2009)
Oh yes, that must be why GM is begging to pay Toyota for the privilege of selling their technology for them. what color is that cool-aid post bankruptcy anyway?
MoonRover 6:33PM (6/29/2009)
This is not going to happen, GM and everyone else has been burned by Toyota and scars are still there. Toyota has never seen a patent it couldn't and wouldn't sidestep. If GM would allow it, they would be advertising their claim to the Volt technology within days of a sharing partnership. Toyota*has*no*shame.
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xtasi 7:06PM (6/29/2009)
GM has more hybrid options, mild hybrid (similar to Honda's IMA), two mode hybrid (similar to Toyota's Synergy drive), electric with ICE range extender (no one else has this, I don't think). Why would GM need Toyota?
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Luis 8:57AM (6/30/2009)
Yeah, and that's why they fail. Because they cannot stick to and fully develop and support a system. Having 3 different versions of everything is not the way to run a business.