Es geht wieder die Nachricht, dass Honda und Nissan zusammenarbeiten wollen. Diese beiden scheinen immer neue Dinge ausprobieren zu wollen.

Recently, according to informed sources, Honda and Nissan are in talks to share advanced general basic software for vehicle control, aiming to accelerate their catch - up with Chinese and American competitors.

Currently, the global automotive market is witnessing increasingly fierce competition in software - defined vehicles (SDV). Against this backdrop, the two automakers plan to launch models equipped with new software in the next five years. Since the development and operation of SDV rely on a vast amount of data, the cooperation model can bring significant advantages to both sides in accelerating the R & D process and reducing costs.

Currently, American electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla and some Chinese automakers have taken the lead in the SDV field. In this competitive landscape, the software cooperation talks between Honda and Nissan represent the latest move by the two automakers to explore joint operations.

It is worth mentioning that in February this year, the merger talks between the two companies ended after Nissan refused to become a wholly - owned subsidiary of Honda.

In addition, informed sources previously revealed that in other potential cooperation areas, the talks for Nissan to supply Honda with pick - up trucks manufactured in the United States are in the final stage. The two automakers are also exploring the possibility of sharing chips, engines, and other auto parts.

In fact, since agreeing to initiate a feasibility study on a strategic partnership in March 2024, the two sides have been seeking cooperation in the fields of electric vehicle software development and battery charging services. However, Honda earlier said that it would start launching electric vehicle models equipped with self - developed software in 2026.

The Main Root Cause Lies in the United States

Facing the leading edge of competitors in the electric vehicle field and the continuous increase in US tariffs, Honda and Nissan, the two automakers, are focusing on the "brain" of next - generation vehicles - software. They hope to cut costs and maintain their competitiveness through layout in this field. Shifting to software R & D is one of the important measures for them to address a series of financial and strategic dilemmas.

Nissan is currently under considerable financial pressure. The company has raised $4.5 billion by issuing US dollar and euro bonds to refinance a series of maturing debts, including 700 billion yen in debt due this fiscal year. Reuters also recently reported that Nissan has asked suppliers to delay payments to save cash.

In terms of product planning, Nissan has also made adjustments, postponing the launch of key electric vehicles in the North American market. The production plans for two electric SUVs (one under the Nissan brand and the other under its luxury brand Infiniti) have been postponed from 2028 to 2029. In addition, to cope with the 25% tariff imposed by Washington on Japanese - imported cars, Nissan has removed two electric vehicles from its US product line and stopped shipments to Canada.

Honda is also facing a challenging environment. Against the backdrop of increasing trade pressure, to remain competitive, this Japanese automaker cut its export prices to the US by 19.4% in June, the largest decline in at least eight years. However, thanks to the strong demand for light trucks and hybrid vehicles, Honda's sales in the US increased by 7.3% in May, performing relatively well in this turmoil.

Despite their different situations, as traditional automotive hardware gradually gives way to software - defined systems, both Honda and Nissan believe that cooperation is the only way to remain relevant in the market. It is reported that the two companies hope that their next - generation vehicles can be like smartphones, with functions added or upgraded through simple updates, and the software platform they plan to share will help achieve this goal.

The core purpose is to reduce costs, gain control of valuable vehicle data, and ultimately launch paid features or subscription services, similar to today's app - store model.

Notably, this is not the first time the two companies have explored cooperation. In February this year, the merger talks between the two ended after Nissan refused to become a subsidiary of Honda. Since agreeing to initiate a feasibility study on a strategic partnership in March 2024, they have been evaluating potential cooperation in software development and electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

In other potential cooperation areas, according to the proposed strategic agreement, Nissan may start producing pick - up trucks for Honda at its US factory. For Honda, this can enrich its vehicle lineup in the US (currently it has a limited share in the pick - up truck market) and reduce the financial impact of new tariffs.

For Nissan, it is expected to increase factory utilization (currently the factory utilization rate is still below the break - even level) and help offset the decline in sales due to the lack of competitive hybrid models. Currently, the two companies are discussing this potential cooperation.

The US market is crucial for these two automakers, despite the recent pressure brought by the US tariff hikes on Japanese - imported cars. It is estimated that by the fiscal year 2025, these tariffs will reduce Honda's operating profit by 650 billion yen and Nissan's operating profit by up to 450 billion yen. Therefore, the manufacturing agreement between the two companies is expected to improve their profitability.

But It's Also a Global Trend

At the end of last year, Honda and Nissan held talks on promoting business integration, planning to form the world's third - largest automotive group. However, due to difficulties in coordination during the talks, the negotiations were ultimately cancelled, and the two sides have decided not to restart the talks on business integration. Instead, they plan to achieve tangible results first in the SDV field, which is defined as the "core of cooperation".

In fact, regardless of whether they discuss integration, the two companies have never stopped discussing cooperation. The media pointed out: "This cooperation has made further progress after clarifying the core issue of generalizing the underlying software."

Actually, both Honda and Nissan have a key shortcoming: their electric vehicle software stacks lag behind those of Tesla, as well as Chinese automakers such as BYD and NIO. Through resource integration, the two companies hope to accelerate the development of a unified operating system (OS) for electric vehicles, thereby significantly reducing R & D costs and speeding up the launch of functions such as autonomous driving and over - the - air updates.

This synergy is of great significance. Chinese automakers have established a leading position in the electric vehicle software field through large - scale investment and data - driven innovation. The operating system jointly developed by Honda and Nissan is expected to create a level playing field, especially in the US market, where consumers' attention to cutting - edge technological functions is constantly increasing.

The cooperation between Honda and Nissan is not only to save costs but also a strategic move to cope with the industry's upheaval. They plan to unite through shared production and software innovation, aiming to regain market share in the US and compete with the growing electric vehicle competitors.

SDV is characterized by improving vehicle performance or functions through software updates on the Internet, rather than relying on existing engines or hardware. The underlying software, as the "brain" of the vehicle, is the core technology that determines the competitiveness of next - generation intelligent vehicles. Whether they can successfully develop this software and ensure price advantages is crucial for gaining an advantageous position in the market competition.

In terms of infrastructure software development, Honda conducts independent research using its experience in developing the robot "ASIMO", and Nissan has also been working on self - developed software.

Behind Honda and Nissan's choice to cooperate lies a sense of crisis about "data initiative". In the next - generation automotive market, not only autonomous driving functions but also functions related to in - car experience such as voice control have become key competitive points. The realization of these functions depends on the collection of a large amount of data, and using the underlying software developed by other companies may limit their own data utilization efficiency.

Currently, the focus of competition in the automotive industry is rapidly shifting from traditional hardware to software. According to the Canadian research company Presidence Research, the SDV market is expected to grow to $301 billion by 2034, about seven times that of 2023.

In this field, Tesla, as a leader, has installed self - developed software in its vehicles and has resolved about 40% of recall issues through software updates alone. In China, technology companies such as Huawei are also leading the wave of software innovation.

On the other hand, traditional automakers generally have problems such as weak basic software development capabilities, a shortage of professional talents, and limited self - development strength. Therefore, cooperation has become an inevitable trend.

In fact, the alliance centered on infrastructure software is spreading rapidly in the automotive industry. Toyota and Mazda have launched a joint development project, and last month, 11 European automotive and auto - parts manufacturers also reached an agreement to jointly carry out software R & D.

This article is from the WeChat public account "Automobile Commune" (ID: iAUTO2010), author: Yang Jing, published by 36Kr with authorization.