Driverless cars in 5 yrs - Marchionne

(ANSA) - New York, May 6 - The first driverless cars could hit the roads in five years, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) CEO Sergio Marchionne said Friday. He said he was more optimistic about them after FCA started working with Google on one. FCA and Google are close to reaching a deal to create driverless cars, media reports said earlier this week. The agreement between Marchionne and the head of the Google Car project, John Krafcik, is set to be announced imminently, according to the reports.
    The Wall Street Journal daily reported on the planned deal in recent days, but Marchionne declined to comment while attending a presentation in Turin. FCA is set to create 100 prototypes for Google by the end of the year, according to the reports. The driverless car is reported to be a version of the Chrysler brand Pacifica minivan presented at the Detroit auto show in January.
    Marchionne said Friday that the fleet of 100 Chrysler Pacifica minivans would look "physically different" after Google installs its sensors and self-driving technology, the Detroit Free Press reported. "I think we offered the Pacifica because it was the most suitable," the article quoted Marchionne as saying. "The electric architecture of the Pacifica is strong enough to hold all of the technology Google wanted".
    "It would be incredibly naive on my part to think that I am the only guy on the planet talking to Google," he went on to say. "If Google calls you, you normally answer".