MUNICH -- Daimler and the Renault-Nissan alliance are considering expanding their cooperation to joint manufacturing of compact cars such as the Infiniti Q30 and Mercedes-Benz GLA.
Joint production of Daimler and Nissan vehicles could start as early as next autumn at Nissan's new Mexican factory, Reuters and the Nikkei newspaper reported on Tuesday.
Daimler and Renault today said no decisions have yet been made.
"We have started a feasibility study investigating benefits from development and production of joint components for the next generation of compact cars," Thomas Froehlich, a Daimler spokesman, said. Rachel Konrad, a Renault spokeswoman, said no decision on production in Mexico has been taken.
Nissan's new Mexican factory at Aguascalientes is expected to build the Q30, the first compact car for Nissan's Infiniti brand, which will debut in concept form at the Frankfurt auto show next week. The $2-billion plant will open later this year next to an existing Nissan factory.
Nissan is adding annual capacity of about 50,000 units at its Sunderland plant in England to build the Q30. The Sunderland factory will build the car for European customers while Aguascalientes will produce the model for the U.S. market, Reuters sources said.
The Mercedes GLA compact crossover is one of several Mercedes candidates for future production at Aguascalientes, the sources said. Another is the Mercedes CLA coupe-styled four-door sedan.
