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Jeremy Bass30 Jan 2013
NEWS

BMW and Toyota extend multi-tech deal

Two once unlikely bedfellows get to work on a lithium-air battery deal that's set to have profound effects their future products

BMW and Toyota have expanded their technology sharing deal, adding a lithium-air battery project to a raft of existing activities first announced in late 2011.

Since then the pair have been working on a growing portfolio of activities that now includes hydrogen fuel cell, weight reduction and vehicle electrification technologies, as well as architecture and components for a future sports car.

The BMW-Toyota deal now covers lithium-air battery chemistry with energy density “greatly exceeding” that of existing lithium-ion batteries.

This is in addition to agreeing on fundamentals for a complete, tank-to-wheel fuel-cell drivetrain – including fuel cell stack and chemistry, hydrogen storage, motor and battery – which the car-makers expect to have ready 2020.

The lithium-air battery venture includes input to wider industry development of codes and standards for the hydrogen infrastructure essential to the growth of a market for fuel cell vehicles.

It follows the announcement of a joint mid-size sports vehicle platform that will be ready for reveal by early 2014 and is expected to include a belated Toyota Supra successor and, perhaps, a next-generation Z4 for BMW.

Weight reduction technologies such as reinforced composites – a major contributor to the joint sports car project - are sure to spill over into other future products from both brands.

BMW has also signed up to supply Toyota Motor Europe vehicles including the new Corolla/Auris with 1.6- and 2.0-litre diesel engines, starting in 2014.

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Written byJeremy Bass
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