Global automobile production (passenger cars and utility vehicles) remained stable in 2024
- Details
Global automobile production (passenger cars and utility vehicles) remained stable in 2024
- According to Inovev estimates, the volume of global automotive production (PC+UV) remained stable in 2024 compared to 2023, with a production volume of 91.5 million vehicles (passenger cars, light utility vehicles, heavy and medium utility vehicles and buses), which tends to demonstrate that carmakers continued to destock last year, but less than the previous year, the global automotive market having grown by 1.7% last year.
- Europe and Asia produced fewer vehicles than the previous year. In Asia, the increase recorded in China (+1,115,000 units) could not offset the decline recorded in Japan (-685,000 units), Thailand (-375,000 units), Indonesia (-205,000 units), and Korea (-145,000 units). The two Americas recorded a slight increase (around +1.5%). Finally, the most dynamic region is Russia, which increases from 615,000 units in 2023
to 756,000 in 2024, thereby compensating for the temporary halt in production in Serbia, Ukraine, and Belarus.
But we are still far from returning to the levels reached before 2022.
to 756,000 in 2024, thereby compensating for the temporary halt in production in Serbia, Ukraine, and Belarus.
But we are still far from returning to the levels reached before 2022.
Light Utility Vehicle production in Europe increased by 12% in 2024
- Details
Light Utility Vehicle production in Europe increased by 12% in 2024
- Since 2005, the production volume of light utility vehicles (LUVs) in Europe 30 countries (EU + United Kingdom + Switzerland + Norway) has followed the sales curve of these vehicles on the continent, with a figure close to two million units in 2024, is comparable to the LUV market in Europe (+12.0% compared to 2023).
- We can therefore say that the volume of LUV exports is very close to the volume of imports, mainly from Turkey (Ford Transit, Transit Custom) which remains the country from which Europe imports the most LUVs (200,000 units in 2024) and from Thailand (most pick-ups, i.e. 80,000 units in 2024). Europe therefore exports nearly 300,000 LUVs to other regions of the world, which represents 15% of total European LUV production in 2024.
- Among the carmakers producing LUVs in Europe (there are only seven major LUV carmakers on this continent), the Stellantis group is the clear leader thanks to its Citroën, Peugeot, Opel and Fiat brands, with 40% of total LUV production in Europe in 2024, ahead of Renault (17% of production), Mercedes (12% of production), Volkswagen (11% of production), Ford (8% of production), Toyota (4% of production) and Nissan (3% of production).
- The European countries that produce the most LUVs are France (612,000 units in 2024), ahead of Spain (389,000 units), Poland (300,000 units), Italy (230,000 units), Germany (206,000 units) and England (105,000 units).
Volkswagen has unveiled what will become the ID1 in 2027
- Details
Volkswagen has unveiled what will become the ID1 in 2027
- Volkswagen has unveiled the concept car that will become the ID1 in 2027, the smallest battery electric model in the ID range, which is currently composed of the ID3, ID4, ID5, ID6 (in China only) and ID7.
- The ID1 model will therefore be very close to this concept car. Aesthetically close to the Renault R5 E-Tech launched in the fall of 2024, the 5-door sedan will rather be the competitor of the future Renault Twingo E-Tech planned for 2026 or even of its Dacia version, the launch date of which is not yet known.
- The two carmakers initially considered a partnership to produce their future A-segment electric car, which was known to be difficult to make profitable. But it turned out that too many interests diverged, particularly regarding the future vehicle's platform and the assembly site. Today, the two carmakers find themselves facing off as direct rivals.
- The future Renault Twingo and Volkswagen ID1 will each have their own platform and assembly site: Novo Mesto (Slovenia) for the Twingo and Palmela (Portugal) for the ID1. Their selling price will be similar: around 20,000 euros.
- As a reminder, Volkswagen will launch its B-segment ID2 (meaning larger and more expensive than the ID1: around €25,000) in 2026, with this model to be assembled at the Martorell (Spain) alongside its Skoda Epiq and Cupra Raval derivatives. This ID2 will compete with the Renault R5 E-Tech, Citroën e-C3 and Fiat Grande Panda, while the ID2X will rival the Renault 4 E-Tech.
- The ID1 concept car measures 3.88 m in length, 1.82 m in width, and 1.49 m in height. Compared to the previous A-segment Volkswagen Up, the model is 34 cm longer, 18 cm wider, and equal in height. According to Inovev, the production ID1 could reach a production volume of 90,000 units by 2030, 15,000 more than the ID2.
German carmakers' decline in China
- Details
German carmakers' decline in China
- German carmakers (Volkswagen Mercedes, BMW) entered the Chinese market in the 1980s and 1990s. The Volkswagen group immediately took the leading position over the foreign and Chinese competition. It went as far as producing more than 4 million cars per year, with peak production reaching 2018. From 2019-2020, the context completely changed as the demand for electric cars (as well as supply) began to explode, a consequence of a Chinese strategy aimed at promoting electric vehicles, for which Chinese carmakers (primarily BYD ) where prepared for decades with heavy investments, as well as the American Tesla, which was then ahead of other carmakers in this market.
- Volkswagen's sales declined sharply at that time, dropping from 4 million to 3 million units in two years (between 2019 and 2021). The group managed to resist for two years (between 2021 and 2023), mainly thanks to the strong sales performance of Audi, the group's premium subsidiary. But the year 2024 saw a further decline for the Volkswagen group, to 2.75 million units.
- Independent German premium carmakers Mercedes and BMW managed to make progress through 2023, thanks to their image as makers of prestigious cars, a category in which Chinese carmakers were not yet very present. 2024 saw their first real decline facing the development of Premium Chinese brands.
- Overall, the market share of the Volkswagen, Mercedes and BMW groups has gradually fallen from 20% in 2017 to 16% in 2024, and the coming years are likely to be even more difficult, as Chinese customers increasingly turn to Chinese brands that have made enormous progress over the past ten years.
Toyota wants to enter the Low Speed Electric Vehicle (LSEV) market with the FT-ME
- Details
Toyota wants to enter the Low Speed Electric Vehicle (LSEV) market with the FT-ME
- The world's leading carmaker since 2020, the Toyota group is beginning to take an interest in battery electric motorization. After the Lexus UX, Toyota BZ4X, Lexus RZ and Toyota CHR+, the Japanese carmaker wants to enter the Low Speed Electric Vehicle (LSEV) market (also known as L6/L7-segment quadricycles), a market occupied in Europe in part by the Stellantis group with the Citroën Ami, Fiat Topolino and Opel Rocks. Few major carmakers (such as Volkswagen or Hyundai-Kia) are still interested in this market, which has so far been modest in volume but which could grow with the new constraints linked to the challenges of traffic in urban environments, the prices of cars which have increased significantly in recent years and have made cars unaffordable for part of the population, and increasingly strict CO2 standards, without switching to the "all bicycle" option.
- Since the Twizy, Renault has returned to this market of battery electric cars, with the Mobilize Duo (which replaces the Twizy) sold for 10,000 euros (a Citroën Ami costs 8,000 euros and a Fiat Topolino 9,900 euros). Toyota will have to approach these prices if it wants to develop in this market. The model presented by the Japanese carmaker and named FT-ME measures 2.50 m long, which was the length of the first Smart sold in Europe at the beginning of the 2000s… Like the former Smart Fortwo, the Toyota FT-ME has a tailgate at the rear allowing access to a loading volume behind the seats.
- However, we can question the engine choice. Indeed, if Toyota wants to offer an even more affordable and a ligther model, why not launch such a model in a thermal version that will consume and pollute little, while remaining practical and maneuverable.
Inovev platforms >