Daimler and Renault-Nissan announce further details of the joint venture in Mexico to jointly build a production unit, COMPAS, and develop models.
As announced a year ago, the Daimler and Renault-Nissan groups agreed to a joint venture to build a factory in Mexico, called COMPAS (Cooperation Manufacturing Plant Aguascalientes), from which the first details are now emerging.
According to a statement from both brands, this factory will produce the next generation of compact models from Mercedes-Benz and Infiniti (Nissan's luxury division). Infiniti production will start in 2017, while Mercedes-Benz is only expected to start in 2018.
Daimler and Nissan-Renault refuse to announce yet which models will be produced at COMPAS, in any case, the models built at COMPAS will be developed in partnership. "Despite the sharing of components, the models will be quite different from each other, as they will have a different design, different driving feeling and different specifications", according to a statement from the brands.
One of these models could be the 4th generation of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class, which should reach the market in 2018 and which currently uses Renault-Nissan component versions in some versions. COMPAS will have an annual production capacity of around 230,000 units, a number that could increase if demand justifies it.
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