The automotive industry designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells motor vehicles, and is one of the world's most important economic sectors by revenue.

The term automotive industry usually does not include industries dedicated to automobiles after delivery to the customer, such as repair shops and motor fuel filling stations.

History

The first practical automobile with a petrol engine was built by Karl Benz in 1885 in Mannheim, Germany. Benz was granted a patent for his automobile on 29 January 1886, and began the first production of automobiles in 1888, after Bertha Benz, his wife, had proved with the first long-distance trip in August 1888 (from Mannheim to Pforzheim and back) that the horseless coach was absolutely suitable for daily use. Since 2008 a Bertha Benz Memorial Route commemorates this event.

Soon after, Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach in Stuttgart in 1889 designed a vehicle from scratch to be an automobile, rather than a horse-drawn carriage fitted with an engine. They also are usually credited as inventors of the first motorcycle, the Daimler Reitwagen, in 1885, but Italy's Enrico Bernardi, of the University of Padua, in 1882, patented a 0.024 horsepower (17.9 W) 122 cc (7.4 cu in) one-cylinder petrol motor, fitting it into his son's tricycle, making it at least a candidate for the first automobile, and first motorcycle;. Bernardi enlarged the tricycle in 1892 to carry two adults.

Until 2005, the U.S.A. was leading the world in total automobile production. In 2006, Japan narrowly passed the U.S. in production and held this rank until 2008. In 2009, China took the top spot with 13.78 million units produced. With 18.3 million units produced 2010, China produced nearly twice the amount of second place Japan (9.6 million units), the U.S. trailed in place 3 with 7.8 million units.

Economy

About 250 million vehicles are in use in the United States. Around the world, there were about 806 million cars and light trucks on the road in 2007, consuming over 260 billion gallons of gasoline and diesel fuel yearly. The automobile is a primary mode of transportation for many developed economies. The Detroit branch of Boston Consulting Group predicts that, by 2014, one-third of world demand will be in the four BRIC markets (Brazil, Russia, India and China). Other potentially powerful automotive markets are Iran and Indonesia. Emerging auto markets already buy more cars than established markets. According to a J.D. Power study, emerging markets accounted for 51 percent of the global light-vehicle sales in 2010. The study expects this trend to accelerate.

World motor vehicle production

By year

Global production of motorvehicles

(cars and commercial vehicles)

By country

« previous year Top 20 motor vehicle producing countries 2010 next year »
Motor vehicle production (units)
Country	1,000,000					2,000,000					3,000,000					4,000,000					5,000,000					6,000,000					7,000,000					8,000,000					9,000,000					10,000,000					11,000,000					12,000,000					13,000,000					14,000,000					15,000,000					16,000,000					17,000,000					18,000,000					19,000,000
China	18,264,667
Japan	9,625,940
United States	7,761,443
Germany	5,905,985
South Korea	4,271,941
Brazil	3,648,358
India	3,536,783
Spain	2,387,900
Mexico	2,345,124
France	2,227,742
Canada	2,071,026
Thailand	1,644,513
Iran	1,599,454
Russia	1,403,244
UK	1,393,463
Turkey	1,097,554
Czech Rep.	1,076,385
Poland	869,736
Italy	857,359
Argentina	716,540
Reference: "Production Statistics". OICA. http://oica.net/category/production-statistics/. Retrieved 2011-04-07.

By manufacturer

Company relationships

It is common for automobile manufacturers to hold stakes in other automobile manufacturers. These ownerships can be explored under the detail for the individual companies.

Notable current relationships include:

• Daimler AG holds a 20% stake in Eicher Motors, a 10.0% stake in KAMAZ, a 10% stake in Tesla Motors, a 6.75% stake in Tata Motors and a 3.1% in the Renault-Nissan Motors alliance. They are in the process of selling back their 40% stake (11% remaining) in McLaren Group. This process will be finalized in 2011.
• Dongfeng Motor Corporation is involved in joint ventures with several companies around the world, including: Honda (Japan), Hyundai (South Korea), Nissan (Japan), Nissan Diesel (Sweden), and PSA Peugeot Citroen (France).
• Fiat holds a 90% stake in Ferrari and a 53.5% stake in Chrysler.
• Ford Motor Company holds a 3% stake in Mazda and an 8.3% share in Aston Martin.
• Geely Automobile holds a 23% stake in Manganese Bronze Holdings.
• General Motors and Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC) have two joint ventures in Shanghai General Motors and SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile.
• Hyundai Kia Automotive Group holds a 38.67% stake in Kia Motors, down from the 51% that it acquired in 1998.
• MAN SE holds a 17.01% voting stake in Scania.
• Porsche Automobil Holding SE has a 50.74% stake in Volkswagen Group. Due to liquidity problems, Volkswagen Group is now in the process of acquiring Porsche.
• Renault and Nissan Motors have an alliance involving two global companies linked by cross-shareholding, with Renault holding 44.3% of Nissan shares, and Nissan holding 15% of (non-voting) Renault shares. The alliance holds a 3.1% share in Daimler AG.
• Renault holds a 25% stake in AvtoVAZ and 20.5% of the voting stakes in Volvo Group.
• Toyota holds a 51% stake in Daihatsu, and 16.5% in Fuji Heavy Industries, parent company of Subaru.
• Volkswagen Group holds a 37.73% stake in Scania (68.6% voting rights), and a 53.7% stake in MAN SE (55.9% voting rights). Volkswagen is integrating Scania, MAN and its own truck division into one division.
• Volkswagen Group has a 49.9% stake in Porsche AG. Volkswagen is in the process of acquiring Porsche, which will be completed in late 2011.
• Volkswagen Group has a 19.9% stake in Suzuki, and Suzuki has a 5% stake in Volkswagen.

Top vehicle manufacturing groups (by volume)

The table below shows the world's largest motor vehicle manufacturing groups, along with the marques produced by each one. The table is ranked by 2010 end of year production figures from the International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (OICA) for the parent group, and then alphabetically by marque. Joint ventures are not reflected in this table. Production figures of joint ventures are typically included in OICA rankings, which can become a source of controversy.

Marque	Country of origin	Ownership	Markets
1. Toyota Motor Corporation ( Japan)
Daihatsu		Subsidiary	Global, except North America and Australia
Hino		Subsidiary	Asia Pacific, North America and South America
Lexus		Division	Global
Scion		Division	North America
Toyota		Division	Global
2. General Motors Company ( United States)
Buick		Division	North America, China, Israel, Taiwan
Cadillac		Division	North America, Europe, Asia, Middle East, Africa
Chevrolet		Division	Global, except Australia, New Zealand
GMC		Division	North America, Middle East
Holden		Subsidiary	Australia, New Zealand
Opel		Subsidiary	Global, except North America, United Kingdom, Australasia
Vauxhall		Subsidiary	United Kingdom
3. Volkswagen Group AG ( Germany)
Audi		Subsidiary	Global
Bentley		Subsidiary	Global
Bugatti		Subsidiary	Global
Lamborghini		Subsidiary	Global
Scania		Subsidiary	Global
SEAT		Subsidiary	Europe, South America, North Africa, Middle East
Škoda		Subsidiary	Global, except North America, Japan and South Africa
Volkswagen		Subsidiary	Global
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles		Subsidiary	Global
4. Hyundai Kia Automotive Group ( South Korea)
Hyundai		Division	Global
Kia		Division	Global, except Mexico
5. Ford Motor Company ( United States)
Ford		Division	Global
Lincoln		Division	North America, Middle East, Japan, South Korea
6. Nissan ( Japan)
Infiniti		Division	Global, except Japan, South America and Africa
Nissan		Division	Global
7. Honda Motor Company ( Japan)
Acura		Division	North America, China
Honda		Division	Global
8. PSA Peugeot Citroën S.A. ( France)
Citroën		Subsidiary	Global, except North America, South Asia
Peugeot		Subsidiary	Global, except North America, South Asia
9. Suzuki Motor Corporation ( Japan)
Maruti Suzuki		Subsidiary	India, Middle East, South America
Suzuki		Division	Global
10. Renault ( France)
Dacia		Subsidiary	Europe, Latin America, Africa, Asia, except Japan
Renault		Division	Global, except North America, South Korea
Renault Samsung		Subsidiary	South America, Asia, except Japan and China
11. Fiat S.p.A. ( Italy)
Abarth		Subsidiary	Global, except North America
Alfa Romeo		Subsidiary	Global
Ferrari		Subsidiary	Global
Fiat		Subsidiary	Global
Fiat Professional		Subsidiary	Global, except North America and Japan
Lancia		Subsidiary	Europe (except UK and Republic of Ireland) and Japan
Maserati		Subsidiary	Global
12. Daimler AG ( Germany)
Freightliner		Division	North America, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand
Master		Subsidiary	Pakistan
Maybach		Division	Global
Mercedes-Benz		Division	Global
Mitsubishi Fuso		Subsidiary	Global
Orion		Subsidiary	North America
Setra		Subsidiary	Europe
Smart		Division	North America, Europe, Japan, South East Asia, South Africa
Thomas Built		Subsidiary	North America
Western Star		Subsidiary	North America, Australia, New Zealand
13. Chrysler Group, LLC ( United States)
Chrysler		Division	Global
Dodge		Division	Global
Jeep		Division	Global
Ram		Division	North America
14. BMW AG ( Germany)
BMW		Division	Global
MINI		Division	Global
Rolls-Royce		Subsidiary	Global
15. Mazda Motor Corporation ( Japan)
Mazda		Division	Global
16. Mitsubishi Motors Corporation ( Japan)
Mitsubishi		Division	Global
17. Chana Automobile Company, Ltd ( People's Republic of China)
Chana		Division	China, South Africa, Europe
18. Tata Motors, Ltd ( India)
Hispano		Subsidiary	Europe
Jaguar		Subsidiary	Global
Land Rover		Subsidiary	Global
Tata		Division	Global, except North America
Tata Daewoo		Subsidiary	South Korea
19. First Automotive Group Corporation ( People's Republic of China)
Besturn		Division	China
Freewind		Subsidiary	China
Haima		Subsidiary	China
Hongqi		Division	China
Jiaxing		Subsidiary	China
Vita		Subsidiary	China
Xiali		Subsidiary	China
20. Geely Automobile ( People's Republic of China)
Geely		Division	China, Russia, North Africa
Maple		Division	China
Volvo (Cars)		Subsidiary	Global
21. Chery Automobile Company, Ltd ( People's Republic of China)
Chery		Division	China, Africa, South East Asia, Russia
Riich		Division	China
Rely		Division	China
22. Fuji Heavy Industries, Ltd ( Japan)
Subaru		Division	Global
23. Dongfeng Motor Corporation ( People's Republic of China)
Dongfeng		Division	China
24. Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corporation, Ltd ( People's Republic of China)
BAW		Division	China
Foton		Subsidiary	China
25. OAO AvtoVAZ ( Russia)
Lada		Division	Global, except North America and Portugal
VAZ		Division	Russia
26. BYD Auto ( People's Republic of China)
BYD		Division	China, Russia
27. Isuzu Motors, Ltd ( Japan)
Isuzu		Division	Global, except North America
28. Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Company, Ltd ( People's Republic of China)
JAC		Division	China
29. Brilliance China Automotive Holding, Ltd ( People's Republic of China)
Brilliance		Division	China, North Africa
Jinbei		Subsidiary	China
30. Great Wall Motor Company, Ltd ( People's Republic of China)
Great Wall		Division	China, South Africa, Russia, North Africa, Australia
Litex Motors		Subsidiary	Europe
31. Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation ( People's Republic of China)
MG		Subsidiary	United Kingdom, Chile, Argentina, China
Roewe		Division	China
Soyat		Division	China
Yuejin		Division	China
32. Mahindra & Mahindra, Ltd ( India)
Mahindra		Division	India, South East Asia, Europe, North Africa, North America
SsangYong**		Subsidiary	Global
33. Hafei Motor ( China)
Hafei		Subsidiary	China
34. AB Volvo ( Sweden)
Mack		Subsidiary	Global
Nissan Diesel		Subsidiary	Global
NovaBus		Subsidiary	North America
Prevost		Subsidiary	North America
Renault (trucks)		Subsidiary	Global, except Japan
Volvo (trucks)		Division	Global
35. Jiangxi Changhe Automobile ( China)
Changhe		Division	China
36. Qingling Motors Company Ltd. ( China)
Qingling		Division	China
37. Proton Holdings, Bhd ( Malaysia)
Proton		Division	Asia Pacific (except Japan and South Africa), United Kingdom, Middle East
Lotus		Subsidiary	Global
38. Hunan Jiangnan Automobile ( People's Republic of China)
Jiangnan		Division	China
39. MAN SE ( Germany)
MAN SE		Division	Europe
40. Chongqing Lifan Automobile Company, Ltd ( People's Republic of China)
Lifan		Division	China
41. Fujian Motor Industry Group Company ( People's Republic of China)
Soueast		Division	China
42. Kuozui Motors, Ltd ( Taiwan)
Kuozui		Subsidiary	Taiwan
43. Shandong Kaima ( China)
Kaima		Division	China
Jubao		Division	China
Aofeng		Division	China
44. Porsche ( Germany)
Porsche		Subsidiary	Global
45. Chenzhou Gonow Nanyan Chifeng Vehicle ( People's Republic of China)
Gonow		Division	China
46. Ziyang Nanjun Automobile Co., Ltd. ( People's Republic of China)
Nanjun		Division	China
47. Rongcheng Huatai Motor ( People's Republic of China)
Huatai		Division	China

Notes

* Porsche Automobil Holding SE has a 50.7 percent share in the Volkswagen Group. However, Volkswagen Group will acquire Porsche AG, the automotive manufacturer under a new "Integrated Automotive Group". This merger/acquisition is expected to be fully completed in mid-2011.

** SsangYong Motor Company was acquired by India's Mahindra & Mahindra Limited in February 2011.

Minor automotive manufacturers

There are many automobile manufacturers other than the major global companies. They are mostly regional or operating in niche markets.

See also