Mercedes-Benz and BMW have spent decades as rivals. Now the conversations between the two car manufacturers suggest that Mercedes could soon buy four-cylinder engines from a report by a report by BMW Manager Magazin And from BMW now unconfirmed.
Mercedes’ fights arrange a rethink
At the end of July, Ola Källenius, CEO von Mercedes, reported weak financial results. The margins in the car business rose to 3.2 percent in the second quarter, and sales in the first year of the year went back to 900,000 units since 2020. Källenius informed his management team that cost reduction measures will not help if the right products are missing.
One of the problems are engines. Mercedes needs more combustion units for plug-in hybrid than originally planned. Previously, the company in Geely in China had turned to get four -cylinder at lower costs. But in key markets like the USA, the use of Chinese engines has become politically difficult. That is why Mercedes is now supposed to examine the cooperation with BMW. We contacted BMW AG to get a comment.
How the cooperation could work
Accordingly Manager MagazinKällenius raised the idea with the BMW CEO Oliver Zipse for the first time almost a year ago. Since then, technical teams under the direction of Markus Schäfer (Mercedes board member) and Joachim Post (BMW board member for F&A) have allegedly worked on details. In the plan, BMW Supply Engines for Mercedes was able to produce with the production of the BMW plant in Steyr, Austria from 2027. This factory built more than a million engines in 2024.
The first step would concentrate on the four-cylinder petrol engine from BMW, although diesel units and other drive train components could follow. Insiders say that joint production in the USA is also considered to avoid tariffs.
A shift of the Mercedes engine strategy
For Mercedes, the deal would mark a significant change in the change of direction. Källenius had long spoken of eradding combustion engines, but the company is now pursuing a more flexible approach. For BMW, the advantages are clear: safe production volumes, additional income and an increase in the reputation if even the main competitor BMW engines selects.
BMW already delivers applications for a wide range of cabins. Smaller companies such as Morgan and Ineos use BMW engines, but also higher brands such as Land Rover, Range Rover and Toyota. Adding Mercedes to this list would be a different kind of milestone. The supply of engines to a direct rival would ensure that Steyr secured the business and the global reputation of BMW for Motordesign.
Open questions about scope and timing
Just how far the cooperation could go is still uncertain. The current discussions seem to be concentrated on the B48 four-cylinder B48 of BMW, but the B47 diesel could follow. Which Mercedes models are the first to preserve the BMW current, and when remains unclear. It is expected that these details will appear in the coming months if the negotiations actually apply.
We will update the article with BMW’s answer to our request.
[Source: Manager-Magazin]
