Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/788859
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 19 FEBRUARY 2017 Motoring V WHEN you finally get your chance to ride in the autono- mous crowd-sourced taxi service Uber, you may find yourself clambering into a Mercedes-Benz. That's because Daimler, which owns Mercedes, an- nounced this week that it will use Uber's immense network to deploy its own robocars. The idea of the part- nership is apparently for Uber to deploy self-driving technology manufactured by Daimler amongst its fleet. "Auto manufacturers like Daimler are crucial to our strategy because Uber has no experience making cars – and in fact, making cars is really hard. This became very clear to me after I visited an auto manufacturing plant and saw how much effort goes into design- ing, testing and building cars," stated Uber CEO Travis Kalanick in a recent interview. "That's why instead of build- ing them ourselves, we want to partner with the best auto manu- facturers in the world. We can combine Uber's global ridesharing network with the world-class ve- hicles of companies like Daimler, so that Uber riders can have a great experience getting around their cities." The Verge provides more: "This partnership is different from the Uber has with Volvo, in which the ride-hailing company and the Swedish automaker collaborated together on retrofitting a fleet of XC90 SUVs with Uber's autono- mous technology. These self-driv- ing cars, most likely Mercedes- Benz sedans, will be owned and operated by Daimler, but used to pick up and drop off passengers on Uber's network." If all of this is sounding familiar right now, it's because rumours of an Uber/Daimler partnership first started surfacing early last year, when a German publication claimed that Uber had agreed to purchase 100,000 Mercedes S-Class sedans. This rumour was never verified, but there was ap- parently at least some truth to it. Kalanick said that he and Dieter Zetsche debated the future of transportation in 2016 but seem- ingly before becoming partners. "I've been personally impressed with Daimler – whose company mantra is 'The Best or Noth- ing' –and with the leadership of Dieter Zetsche, who had a friendly debate with me about the future of mobility and the auto industry last year in Berlin. Dieter said then that Daimler and Uber could be 'frenemies' in fact, we turned out to be great partners." Uber partners with Daimler to make self-driving Mercedes Uber is partnering with Daimler on self-driving cars following arrangement with Volvo Daimler refocusing Smart brand on EVs only for US, Canada DAIMLER AG will stop selling gasoline-powered Smart cars in the US and Canada later this year, converting the microcar brand to an electric vehicle-only endeavour. The move reflects falling sales for the two-seat Smart ForTwo as low gasoline prices have fueled demand for SUVs and crossovers. Officials from Mercedes-Benz USA, which oversees Smart's sales, told US dealers about the decision this week. "Developments within the micro-car segment present some challenges for the current Smart product portfolio," Dietmar Exler, CEO of Mercedes- Benz USA, told dealers. "Therefore, with the launch of the fourth-generation Smart ForTwo electric drive this summer, the Smart lineup will consist exclusively of the zero- emissions Smart electric- drive coupe and cabrio in the US and Canada." The change is only applicable for the US and Canadian markets, Exler's letter said. The gasoline-powered Smart ForTwo coupe and convertible will be discontinued after the 2017 model year. The current plan is to stop production for North America in April with sales con- tinuing until all units are sold, Mercedes- Benz spokesman Rob Moran said. A redesigned version of the gasoline-powered coupe went on sale in late 2015, with the redesigned convert- ible following in 2016. Smart sales have fallen steadily since reaching 10,453 vehicles in 2014. The brand sold 6,211 vehicles in the US in 2016. Though the 2017 model coupe went on sale in early December, Smart still has 2016 models in dealer inventory. It is running a special promotion leasing 2016 coupes for $89 a month. Moran didn't provide annual vol- ume expected for the electric-drive models. At their high point in 2014, electric vehicles accounted for 25% of the brand's annual sales, Moran said. Smart has 85 dealers in the US, down from a peak of 93 in 2014. It's unclear whether that number will go down with the transition to electric only, Moran said. Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche with the redesigned line of Smart Forfour electric vehicles at the Paris Motor Show