Ford and Toyota are to collaborate in the development of hybrid technology for light trucks.
Under the memorandum of understanding, the two companies will bring the best of their independently developed hybrid powertrain technology and knowledge to a new co-developed hybrid system, which will be used in rear-wheel-drive light trucks arriving later in the decade.
Toyota launched the first generation Prius in 1997 and since then has sold 3.3 million hybrid vehicles around the world. Ford has also been developing hybrid technology with the Ford Fusion.
Both companies have been working independently on their own future-generation rear-wheel drive hybrid systems. The two now have committed to collaborate as equal partners on a new hybrid system for light trucks and SUVs.
Ford and Toyota believe that their collaboration will allow them to bring these hybrid technologies to customers sooner and more affordably than either company could have accomplished alone.
