Renault wants to make cars cheaper by sharing tech

French carmaker Renault is willing to supply technology to other carmakers to help increase the total output of vehicles with shared features that make them cheaper to manufacture, CEO Luca de Meo said on Tuesday.

De Meo, an Italian, told a parliamentary hearing in Rome Renault was not discouraged by its recent failed attempt to co-operate with Germany’s Volkswagen.

“We remain fully open,” he said.

Renault, which has co-operated in specific areas of the market with several of its rivals, including Mercedes and Fiat, last year started discussions with VW on a plan to jointly develop an affordable electric version of the Renault Twingo small car.

But Europe’s largest carmaker walked away from talks after a few months.

De Meo said on Tuesday that sharing technologies — including platforms, the architectures that can underpin several different models — could prove particularly useful in the areas of small cars and commercial vehicles.

“These normally require huge investments for small margins,” he said.

Last week, in a joint appearance with Stellantis chair John Elkann, De Meo said Renault was not making money on some small cars, adding that between 2015 and 2030 regulations will increase the cost of a medium-sized Renault-built car by 20% and for small cars by 40%.

Reuters