PLATFORM SHARING EXPLAINED
Platform sharing is something that we have been seeing in the Indian auto industry a lot, specially quite recently. Is it really required? Is it good or bad? Is it an attempt at doing something revolutionary or it’s just a money-making strategy to make profits? Today I am throwing some light on these questions and will try to answer them.
So, what is platform sharing? Platform sharing is basically a method of developing a product where different products and the brand attached share the same components (e.g. engine, transmission, frame etc.). Platform sharing is important because it helps in reducing cost, it makes the product development process more efficient and also enables another manufacturer to use the platform created by some other manufacturer that has proven to be a success in the market, to gain more profit. It is kind of like copying some other manufacturer’s homework, but not entirely. Platform sharing is usually possible only when there is a mutual agreement between the two or more manufacturers- One is the manufacturer who created that platform, and the other is the manufacturer that is using the platform to create their own product, which bears quite a lot of resemblance with the original product because of platform sharing, but has its own differences. Platform sharing is legal, but it can be illegal if designs are just copied without any agreement and the company whose design is copied can sue the company that is copying the design. A good example of that is Chinese Knockoffs like the Lifan 320(which is the knockoff of a Mini Cooper) and Ford, who got in some trouble with Bentley when they released the Lincoln Continental Concept in 2016 New York Auto Show which looked quite similar to a Bentley. Platform sharing can also happen between two or more models made by the same manufacturer (e.g. engine or chassis or gearbox can be shared etc.).
Good examples of platform sharing in India are-Nissan Magnite and Renault Kiger, Renault Duster and Nissan Terrano, Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos, Toyota Glanza and Maruti Suzuki Baleno, Volkswagen Virtus and Skoda Slavia and many more.
Platform sharing is gaining a lot of popularity quite recently in India, as I said before. Personally, I think that companies can do it to gain more profit but I don’t like the idea of platform sharing. If it’ s between two different models in the same company then it’ s okay but if a car is just copied from another manufacturer and the badge is changed then I think that this is a complete lack of creativity from the manufacturer and it shows that they do not want to take any extra effort to make amazing new products and gain fan-following for being so unique and awesome and, cool!
