GM denies link-up with Toyota
General Motors has denied an online report that the US car maker and Japanese giant Toyota are in talks about a possible technology-sharing pact that could result in a quicker, wider offering of petrol-electric hybrid vehicles.
According to the report posted on the Wall Street Journal’s online site, details of the discussions remain fuzzy, but it said GM chairman and chief executive Rick Wagoner was planning to go to Japan this month to meet Toyota officials.
“There is no truth to that whatsoever,” Scott Fosgard, GM’s spokesman for advanced technology, said.
In December, GM and DaimlerChrysler said they were teaming up to develop fuel-saving hybrid engines in hopes of cashing in on an expanding market already dominated by hybrid leaders Toyota and Honda.
GM has been losing sales in the US to Toyota and other Asian rivals and has faced enormous health care and post-retirement liabilities.
