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FCA withdraws its offer to merge with Renault

UPDATE: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles released a statement confirming that it has withdrawn its merger offer, saying "it has become clear that the political conditions in France do not currently exist for such a combination to proceed successfully." The full statement can be read below our original story, which continues below. Fiat Chrysler has withdrawn its $35 billion merger offer for Renault, the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday. A source said that FCA had informed Renault it had withdrawn the offer after Renault's board of directors failed to reach a decision on the merger during a meeting that ran late into the night Wednesday. Instead, the board granted the French government's request to postpone its vote. The government wanted time to persuade Renault's reticent alliance partner Nissan. Renault's board issued a press release that said simply that it was "unable to take a decision due to the request expressed by the representatives of the French State to postpone the vote to a later Council." WSJ reported that Nissan's two members on Renault's board were balking, while the rest of the board favored the merger. The French government wouldn't it back the deal unless Nissan agreed to maintain its role in the Renault-Nissan alliance, sources said. Nissan had received little advance warning of the merger proposal and was balking. Apparently the French government thought Nissan could be brought around if given more time. "We should take our time to make sure that things are done well," French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told French television on Wednesday. When the French requested a delay and Renault's board granted it, FCA withdrew. The French state, which owns 15% of Renault, had also been seeking more influence over the merged company, firmer job guarantees and improved terms for Renault shareholders in return for blessing the $35 billion tie-up. The merger would have created the world's third-biggest automaker with combined sales of 8.7 million vehicles per year, and was intended to cut costs as the parties develop electric and autonomous vehicles. Read Fiat Chrysler Automobile's full statement below: FCA withdraws merger proposal to Groupe Renault June 5, 2019 , London - IMPORTANT NOTICE The Board of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. ("FCA") (NYSE: FCAU / MTA: FCA), meeting this evening under the Chairmanship of John Elkann, has resolved to withdraw with immediate effect its merger proposal made to Groupe Renault.

Mitsubishi e-Evolution concept EV has AI that can teach you to drive better

Following a teaser last month, Mitsubishi has revealed additional details, and a couple more images of the e-Evolution concept. The new teasers show a car with a pretty wild profile. The windshield is incredibly long and raked, and it generally has an angular, wedge-like shape. It's also an extremely cab-forward design, which is possible because it is fully electric, and there isn't an engine up front to take up lots of space. That's bad news for anyone hoping Mitsubishi might just hybridize a high-strung turbo engine. But it is still all-wheel drive, courtesy of a trio of electric motors. There's one motor up front for the front wheels, and a pair at the back for the rear wheels. These rear motors can apply different amounts of power for torque vectoring. The e-Evolution also has a unique feature in its artificial intelligence ( AI) system. Mitsubishi didn't go deep into the details of how it works, but by using many sensors, the AI can adjust how the car drives and reacts based on road conditions, traffic, and driver preferences. It can make you a better driver by silently assisting you, but it can also make you a better driver by teaching you. Apparently it can assess your driving skills and advise you on how to improve. Hopefully the e-Evolution, or whatever production model takes inspiration from it, will be fun enough to drive that you will want to improve your skills. The e-Evolution will be on display at the Tokyo Motor Show. It will only be on display for one of the press days, so if you happen to be able to get to the show then, make sure you catch it. For everyone else, stay tuned to Autoblog for more photos and info when it's fully revealed. Related Video:

FCA-Renault merger faces tall odds delivering on cost-cutting promises

FRANKFURT/DETROIT — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Renault promise huge savings from a mega-merger, but such combinations face tall odds because of the industry's long product cycles and problems translating deal blueprints into real world success, industry veterans told Reuters. BMW's 1994 purchase of Rover, and Daimler's 1998 merger with Chrysler both made sense on paper. The companies promised to hike profits by combining vehicle platforms and engine families. Both combinations proved unworkable in reality, and were unwound. Renault and Nissan, which have been in an alliance since 1999 designed to share vehicle components, have only managed to use common vehicle platforms in 35% of Nissan's products despite an original target of 70%, according to Morgan Stanley. FCA and Renault have raised the stakes for themselves by ruling out plant closures. That increases the pressure to achieve more than $5 billion in promised annual savings from pooling procurement and research investments. The two companies have yet to fill in many of the blanks in the merger plan put forward by Fiat Chrysler. Renault's board is expected to act soon to accept the proposal, but that would lead only to a memorandum of understanding to pursue detailed operational and financial plans. A final deal and the legal combination of the two companies could take months to complete if all goes well. Pressure to cut automotive pollution is driving the latest round of consolidation. Automakers are looking at multibillion-dollar bills to develop electric and hybrid cars and cleaner internal combustion engines. Fiat Chrysler and Renault are betting they can design common electric vehicle systems, then sell more of them through their respective brands and dealer networks, cutting the cost per car. Developing all-new electric vehicles can bring more opportunities to share costs from the outset, industry experts said. "With the emergence of connected, autonomous, electric and shared vehicles, carmakers face immediate investments, so new opportunities for sharing costs have emerged," said Elmar Kades, managing director at Alix Partners. However, most electric vehicles lose money. This is a challenge for city car brands in Europe in particular. Both Renault and Fiat rely heavily on this segment for sales.