Mercedes-Benz is reportedly in advanced talks with compatriot and rival manufacturer, BMW for the latter to supply four-cylinder petrol engines to the Stuttgart-based brand, German outlet Manager Magazin has reported.
According to Autocar, a source within Mercedes-Benz has said that high-level planning and negotiations have begun for a range of its next-generation petrol powered models to use BMW-supplied engines. The agreement between BMW and Mercedes-Benz is being drawn up as a “strategic step to cut development costs,” according to the British publication.
The new 1.5 litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine that features in the latest CLA, codenamed M252, is developed in-house by Mercedes-Benz in Germany but is produced in China by Horse Powertrain, a joint venture between Geely and Renault.
The consideration of rival equipment is for compatibility reasons, Autocar cited Mercedes-Benz insiders as saying. While the M252 is suited for mild-hybrid electrification where it is paired with an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission that houses an electric motor, it has not been engineered for plug-in hybrid or range-extender EV applications, which is where BMW could potentially come in.
This BMW unit is rumoured to be the B48 2.0 litre turbocharged inline-four, which is widely used in the current BMW and MINI model line-ups. The BMW B48 engine that is manufactured by Steyr in Austria is said to offer a wider scope of application compared to the Mercedes-Benz M252 as the BMW unit is packaged to work with longitudinal and transverse layouts, Autocar wrote.
Should the rumoured arrangement proceed, this will be the first time that the two rival German brands would share an engine. The potential partnership could also extend to production hubs globally for the two manufacturers, and a shared engine production plant in the United States could also help the brands get around tariffs for products imported into the US.
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