The content of the article:
- Results of 2018
- Ten largest car manufacturers
Leading agencies-providers of economic and financial information have published the results of their research - named the ten largest automakers in the world.
Results of 2018
The annual ratings of the largest automobile concerns are compiled by various analytical agencies based on economic indicators and official annual reports. Among the companies that provided their ratings:
- American agency Bloomberg;
- Focus2Move project;
- AP News;
- BMI Research;
- OICA (International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers).
Sometimes, the summarized information of analysts from different organizations may differ. This is primarily due to the data they use. In this case, to determine the rating of the largest car suppliers to the world market, only the number of cars produced by the concern is taken into account.
It would seem that there should be no discrepancies. But still there are certain nuances. As one of the leading experts of BMI Research, Ms. Baysden, points out, first of all, you should clearly understand what kind of rating is compiled, which cars participate in it and what should be considered a car in general.
So, many ratings do not include heavy car models in their calculations, but the same Volkswagen concern includes not only passenger models, but also heavy vehicles in its economic reports.
As a result, those analytical agencies that do not take into account heavy trucks receive a rating in which Vokswagen falls into second place, behind the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance.
Ten largest car manufacturers
If we take into account all the cars produced during the year, then at the end of 2018 the places in the top ten manufacturers were distributed as follows:
1. Volkswagen AG - 11 million vehicles
Taking into account the full-size transport of the Man / Scania brands, the German carmaker managed to get ahead and take the place of the leader. The German concern producing versatile cars includes more than three hundred service and manufacturing companies. The manufacturer managed to secure the reputation of the safest for its machines.
Several years ago, the concern was involved in a "diesel scandal" when it was accused of deliberately underestimating test levels of emissions into the atmosphere for diesel models. The result was a recall in 2015 of about 500 cars sold in the United States, and parting with a large amount of money ($ 4 billion) that went to cover fines. But even such an unpleasant situation did not affect the reputation of Volkswagen AG in any way, production not only did not stop, but also increased the pace of production.
In 2018, the management of the concern entered into an agreement with Ford to work together on a number of projects, including strategic cooperation. Such a measure allowed both automakers to cut costs, planning to exchange experience and best practices in the production of electric cars and drones.
The headquarters of the concern is located in Wolfsburg.
2. Toyota Motor - 10.59 million vehicles
Toyoda Automatic Loom Works has existed in the automotive market since 1935, "born" with the introduction of the G1 pickup truck. Two years later, the automotive division spun off into an independent group Toyota Motor Company, the first serious development of which was the GA truck, which ousted its “ancestor” G1 from the market.
The volumes of production and sales allow the company to confidently hold the top positions in the rating due to various sales markets. In 2018, the company dropped slightly in terms of sales due to the expansion and successful introduction of the Volkswagen car group into China.
Japanese manufacturers were not upset when they learned the names of rivals bypassed, saying that the volume of assembled cars would not increase, because they primarily advocate maintaining the excellent quality of their cars, not intending to sacrifice it in pursuit of production numbers.
In total, in 2018, on a global scale, the production of Toyota cars increased by 1% compared to last year's results, and slightly less than half of all cars are produced in Japan, the rest are assembled at factories built around the world (in the USA, Europe, Canada, Indonesia, Thailand, Turkey, etc.).
The headquarters of the corporation is located in Tokyo.
3. Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance - 8.457 million vehicles
The France-Japan Alliance, formed in 1999, has proven to be a surprisingly successful strategic conglomerate in the automotive industry.
Starting in the fall of 2016, when the leader of the Asian segment of the car market Renault-Nissan acquired a third of the shares of another Japanese car corporation, Mitsubishi, for $ 2.3 billion, the alliance has become the largest automaker, recognized as the largest car merger in recent years. In addition to his own brands, he also has a part of shares in the AvtoVAZ group and the Chinese company Dongfeng Venucia, concentrating production at his factories. Production is located in Japan, France, India, Brazil and Russia.
There is no common headquarters for the alliance as such. Renault is headquartered in the suburbs of Paris, Nissan is headquartered in Yokohama, and Mitsubishi is headquartered in Tokyo. In terms of sales in 2018, of the three manufacturers of the alliance, Nissan is undoubtedly in the lead, followed by Renault and Mitsubishi, with the greatest demand for cars with CFM architecture, recognized as the main direction of development of the alliance's products until 2022.
Alliance factories are stepping up their production of zero-emission electric vehicles, with an emphasis on the Nissan LEAF and Renault ZOE models.
4. Hyundai-Kia - 7.086 million vehicles
The chronicle of Hyundai has been written since 1947, but the company was first positioned as an automaker in 1967, when it began producing licensed Ford Cortina trucks. A decade later, the public was presented with the first independent development - the Pony runabout.
The Kia brand has existed since 1952although the parent company, originally called Kyungsung Precision Industry and specialized in bicycle parts, was established in 1944. The first technique, namely the three-wheeled small truck Mazda K-360, began to be produced under license from 1962. In 1997, Kia was declared bankrupt and Hyundai acquired it.
In the first year of the XXI century, the Hyundai-Kia concern collaborated with DaimlerChrysler for several years, and in 2006 the automobile plant in Ulsan (Korea), consisting of five enterprises, was considered the largest automobile plant in the world. In Russia, the concern is known as an active player, occupying one fifth of the Russian car market. Expansion into the Chinese market is underway, the only disappointment is the tension in relations with North Korea, which makes it difficult to sell cars.
The headquarters is located in Seoul, production is established both in South Korea and in Russia, Asia, Europe, and both Americas.
5. General Motors - 6.21 million vehicles
The leading US carmaker ranks fifth in the rankings, although "along the way" it ditched a huge number of legendary brands previously produced under its auspices (Oldsmobile / Holden / Plymouth / Hummer / Pontiac / Saab / Opel / Saturn). In Russia, GM is represented by the Cadillac brand, in the Middle Kingdom - by Buick, and a significant part of Chevrolet and GMC cars are produced exclusively for the US domestic market.
The US trade war with other countries led the corporation to announce at the end of 2018 about the need to lay off 15% of its employees and close seven factories in the US and Canada.
Headquartered in Detroit, manufacturing worldwide.
6. Ford Motor - 5.622 million vehicles
The American company has been known since 1903, and its first car was the Model A petrol stroller. A decade later, the company presented the mankind with the Ford T, considered the first affordable car for everyone.Also, Ford Motor is the first automobile company to put production on the assembly line, sharply reducing the price of a car through the introduction of innovations.
In 2018, the company was going through hard times, which affected a record 11% drop in sales. The company left Russia, and before that it lost influence on iconic brands (Volvo, Land Rover, Mazda), remaining with one sub-brand Lincoln, which produces luxury cars for the domestic market.
Ford decided to create a new subsidiary, Ford Autonomous Vehicles LLC, with a focus on market opportunity analysis and autonomous vehicles. In order to overcome the crisis, the company plans to increase the popularity of its cars in car services, planning by 2020 to update its line of cars and reduce the age of models from 6 years to 3.3.
Headquartered in Dearborn, factories in North and South America, Europe, New Zealand and Australia.
7. Honda Motor - 5.293 million vehicles
The Japanese company was founded in 1948, specializing in motorcycles. The first car was produced in 1963 - the company entered the auto business with the T360 truck and the S500 sports car. The company's economic performance is now showing solid growth, with the Accord sedan, Civic hatchback and CR-V SUV among the world's best-selling vehicles.
Acura's luxury aftermarket brand, known since 1986, has kept the company from becoming a “one-man” manufacturer. The place in the rating is provided by calculating the total production of cars and motor vehicles.
The headquarters of the concern is located in Tokyo. Production is located in Japan, the Americas, Asia.
8. Suzuki - 3.111 million vehicles
The company has been known since 1909, starting its promotion with the production of motorbikes, motorcycles and looms. In 1955, the plant produced the first compact car. Today it is the only independent manufacturer of vehicles. The main "cash desk" of the company is formed thanks to the love of Indians for Maruti Suzuki cars.
The main production is located in Japan, and cloned models are assembled in many countries, offered in showrooms everywhere. A model like the SX4 in Europe goes under the Fiat Sedici brand, the Suzuki Alto is called the Nissan Pixo, and the American Chevrolet Tracker is nothing more than a Suzuki Vitara clone. The strong position in Europe is largely due to the promotion of the Ignis and Baleno models.
The headquarters is located in Hamamatsu.
9. BMW Group - 2.525 million vehicles
The history of BMW began in 1913 with the opening of the Bavarian engine factories. Today the company produces motor vehicles, cars and power units. The British company Rolls-Royce Motor Ltd has been in the company since 1998 as a separate division.
The Germans "laid out" 430 million euros for him. The unprofitableness of the company led to the fact that in 2000 it had to abandon the Land Rover brand, reselling it to the Americans. Mini machines are developed and manufactured by a subsidiary.
The headquarters is in Munich. Assembly - in Europe, Africa, Asia, America.
10. Daimler - 2.299 million vehicles
The transnational auto concern Daimler-Benz AG on the world stage in the period 1998-2007 became known as a joint business of Daimler-Chrysler, but then more than 80% of the shares of the latter were sold. In 2012, the management of the concern liquidated the luxury brand Maybach, keeping only cars of the premium segment Mercedes-Benz and small Smart cars in Daimler's ownership. Since 2009, the company has been producing heavy equipment together with KAMAZ.
The headquarters is in Stuttgart. Passenger cars are produced in Europe, Asia, Africa, America.
Conclusion
The global automakers that have made it to the top have been competing with each other for several years already, changing places, but keeping their positions in the top ten. All of them are faced with challenging tasks for the future - the introduction of strict eco-standards, the transition to the production of hybrids and electric vehicles, and the reduction in the number of employees. The results of the rating are a good start in order to survive the shocks and delight fans with new models.
