The Best and Worst Auto Brand Collaborations That Automotive Maintenance Technicians Should Know

If you love cars, becoming an automotive maintenance technician is a great career choice. Not only do you get to spend your days tinkering with and fixing vehicles, but you’re likely to encounter some pretty impressive cars and trucks. Some of those cars might even have been the result of a collaboration between car brands.

Bringing together the strengths from two different car brands, these collaborations were able to create cars unlike anything else on the market. However, not all automotive collaborations end well. Sometimes a marriage of two brands just isn’t meant to be.

Read on to learn more about cars that were born from collaboration.

Automotive Maintenance Technicians May Work On a Car by Toyota and Subaru

They say two heads are better than one, and that’s what Toyota and Subaru took advantage of when they joined forces to create not one, but two vehicles. The two brands brought their talents together to create the Subaru BRZ and Scion FR-S, which are nearly identical except for several small differences. The FR-S, which was under Toyota’s Scion brand, is returning to Toyota’s main brand this year as the Toyota 86.

Since their conception, the BRZ and FR-S have remained very similar to each other. The 2016 models have the same mechanical traits, fuel economy, braking, handling, and seating, with only small differences in the quality of the interior finishing, warranty, and additional add-ons. While neither were ever top sellers, many an automotive maintenance technician can agree that both cars offered great performance. In many ways, the collaboration can be considered a success.

Ford and Harley-Davidson Created a Truck That’s Sure to Impress Automotive Maintenance Technicians

A Ford F-150 is a far cry from a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, but somehow the two brands were a match made in heaven. The Ford Harley-Davidson F-150 combines the power and capabilities of Ford’s famous truck series with the finishing and style of a Harley Davidson. The collaboration resulted in a souped-up truck for vehicle owners who want the experience of an F-150, combined with the edginess of a motorcycle.

The Harley-Davidson F-150 has its fair share of Harley logos and is finished with a speciality exterior paint job, as well as massive 22-inch alloy wheels. The suspension is lower than what auto mechanics may expect to find in a traditional pickup truck or another F-series vehicle, and the truck has a louder exhaust, a testament to the loud rumble of a motorcycle’s engine. The interior of the vehicle also draws inspiration from the motorcycle brand with snakeskin leather seats.

While the collaboration ended in 2012, it’s safe to say it was a success as Ford sold about 750,000 Harley-Davidson F-150s. With well over a quarter of a million Harley-Davidson F-150s on the road, you may even get to repair one after your auto mechanic training program.

Tesla and Toyota Partnered Up, But It Wasn’t Exactly a Match Made in Heaven

If Tesla and Toyota teaming up seems like an unlikely partnership, that’s because it is. The two companies came together to work on the second generation of the completely electric Toyota RAV4. Unfortunately, the vehicle’s exorbitant price tag of about $50,000 was too much for the average Toyota buyer. And as if that wasn’t enough bad news, in 2015 all 2,500 Rav4 EVs created through the collaboration were recalled due to defective Tesla software. However, that’s not the only element that caused the partnership to dissolve. Even before the recall, Tesla and Toyota parted ways.

The two companies have very different strategic directions. Toyota sees fuel cell technology in its future, while Tesla is committed to its all-electric business model. It seems like the two companies just couldn’t reconcile their differences and make the collaboration work. However, the brands are in good standing, and there have even been statements affirming that the two could collaborate again in the future.

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