Google and FCA unveil autonomous Chrysler Pacifica Hybrids for Waymo to test

Self-driving cars are becoming increasingly refined. The major manufacturers are working to have their own models with proprietary technology, each based on their own elements and developments. In addition, other technology companies are working to get ahead in this area and offer their own solutions to this challenge. And Google is one of them. Although it has had its own projects, a few days ago it announced that it was leaving that race and had signed an agreement with FCA to collaborate with them and move forward jointly.

Furthermore, Google has spun off the development of these systems from the company and transferred them to the newly created Waymo, which will be in charge of them from now on, to keep advancing this development. So the engineers at Waymo have met with those at FCA to prepare a common strategy, which has borne fruit in the form of the new Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid, which has received modifications to be able to accept autonomous driving systems.

These changes have taken place in the chassis, where the powertrain, the electrical systems and the structural systems of the minivan have been modified to obtain the maximum performance from all of them. Waymo’s tests, the company created by Google, will for the time being be based on this model, although if an agreement between both companies exists, there could be other models serving as testing grounds for experimentation.

In addition, to improve collaboration, both companies have joined their laboratories in a single location, in Michigan. There they have worked to have the first prototype assembled in just six months, with the aim of steadily strengthening the collaboration between the two companies. The tests have been carried out on the test tracks that both companies have in Michigan and Arizona, in addition to those Waymo has in California.

The collaboration agreement between these two companies reflects what is happening with others. An automotive company that provides the foundation, which is the vehicles, and a technology company that contributes its developments to advance with a different and more efficient perspective. We have seen this with Volvo and Uber, but it will become more common in the coming years.