GM and Honda Team Up to Accelerate BEV Output

Paul Myles

TU-Editor

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3rd April 2020

General Motors and Honda have teamed-up in production to boost both companies’ chances of developing the next generation BEVs.

The agreement will see the pair use GM’s global EV platform powered by proprietary Ultium batteries. The exteriors and interiors of the new cars will be exclusively designed by Honda and the platform will be engineered to support Honda’s driving character.

Production of the vehicles will be at GM plants in North America and sales are expected to begin in the 2024 model year in Honda’s United States and Canadian markets. This is an extension of the companies’ ongoing electrification relationship which includes work on fuel cells and the Cruise Origin, an electric, self-driving and shared vehicle, which was revealed in San Francisco earlier this year.

Rick Schostek, executive vice-president of American Honda Motor Company, said: “This collaboration will put together the strength of both companies, while combined scale and manufacturing efficiencies will ultimately provide greater value to customers. This expanded partnership will unlock economies of scale to accelerate our electrification roadmap and advance our industry-leading efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

As part of the agreement to jointly develop electric vehicles, Honda will incorporate GM’s OnStar safety and security services into the two EVs, integrating them with HondaLink. Additionally, Honda plans to make GM’s hands-free advanced driver-assist technology available.

— Paul Myles is a seasoned automotive journalist based in London. Follow him on Twitter @Paulmyles_