The U.K.'s Guardian explains, "Volkswagen-Porsche has overtaken Toyota to become the world's largest car manufacturer as the German group benefits from state-backed stimulus packages around the globe." VW has "produced 4.4 million vehicles so far this year, outstripping its Japanese rival which has seen four million cars roll off production lines since January."
The news doesn't just push Toyota down a notch. Jalopnik notes that VW has "passed Toyota and GM at the top of the heap." America's largest automaker - the world's largest just three years ago - now sits in third globally
DUH, does the term "CAR MAKER" have any meaning to you? The fact is Toyota has been the number one "brand name" car maker in the US for several years, but GM has been selling more "cars," but they do not have the same brand name on the grill.
GM cars until recently have five different brand names on the grills of the CARS it sells. Since the start of the new GM, it only has two three car brands so it total car sales will surely go down.
GM is still the number one seller of VEHICLES in the US and that includes TRUCKS. Ford is still number two and Toyota is still number three, in total VEHICLE sales in the US. The best selling CAR brand car numbers do not come even close to the top selling TRUCK brand numbers.
The Japanese vehicle manufacture are subsidized by their government as well, and always have been, ever since WWII LOL
I think you're comparing apples and oranges. You're talking about vehicle sales just in the US, while the article is talking about total worldwide sales.
One thing I think is interesting is that there seem to be regional differences in the popularity of different car brands. I live in Oregon, and I actually see quite a few Volkswagens on the road, as well as Honda, Toyota, Lexus, etc.. It seems that import brands are more popular here. I do see quite a few cars here made by GM and Ford, too, but it seems that GM and Ford are more popular in the midwest US.
Prove it to yourself, dummy. Search the US Commerce Department site for the facts. If you do you will discover GM is still the number one seller of VEHICLES in the US, Ford is still number two and Toyota is still number three, in total VEHICLE sales in the US. The best selling CAR brand car numbers do not come even close to the top selling TRUCK brand numbers.
Perhaps but the subject was, GM not #1, and the largest VEHICLE market, not just cars, by far in the US and Toyota and the rest of the Jap cars are not a big sellers Europe. The article was ambiguous in referring to CAR sales in Europe.
to GM which they a least have a hope of getting some of it back, yet they will keep on buying jap and korean cars and contribute to the 68 billion buck a month we send to japan, korea, and china with no hope of getting any of it back. its amazing that people in the USA sing the praises of all things foreign while degrading those of us that try to support the usa whenever we can. Most of the faulty products I have in the house are foreign made. a Kenmore refrigerator made by LG has been a piece of crap it has had five service calls 3 times for the same thing. my old one was made by Frigidare (GM) and lasted 30 years with no problems. Most kitchen items are made off shore and are throw aways. My first flat screen made by LG was a piece of junk failed 2 times one of which took 7 weeks for a part and it was the wrong one. cell phones 2 years tops if nothing else goes the battery goes and has to have a expensive replacement.
Why does it matter if the article mentions Europe or not? This article is talking about the worldwide market. From the article's title ("Volkswagen Steals Toyota's Crown as World's Largest Automaker"), one can surmise that Toyota was the world's largest automaker, but right now VW holds that distinction.
Also, here's an article from a couple years ago that says Toyota overtook GM in global vehicle sales:
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So it seems that what has been said in this newsgroup is accurate. Toyota was #1, but at the moment VW is #1. World-wide, of course.
If you can name some electronics/appliance manufacturers whose products are 100% made in the US, then I would be surprised. As much as I appreciate a quality product, the fact of the matter is that one of the reasons why so many of those brands are popular in the US is because their products are cheap (not necessarily high in quality). Also, many American companies contract companies in other countries to build their products, likely because it's cheaper to do business that way. That's capitalism for you - one of the founding principles of the US.
In car sales that is correct, but the auto manufacturers also sell light trucks. The largest market for light trucks is in the US, where the domestic rule and nearly 50% of the vehicles sold in the US are light trucks, where they make most of their money. VW and Toyota sell mostly small and midget cars around the world, that have a much lower makeup, and in a class where GM generally does not compete.
Most of the folks around today were not around to remember the days when one could buy an American made major appliance, when the got married, and have it till they died.
I have a deep freezer in my home in the Pocono Mountains, because I only go there a weeks our of the year. It was my mothers, purchased after the war. My kids keep telling me to get a new one because the are more "efficient." I say to them, you mean like two we have replaced at home since you were born? LOL
When I was in retail, we loved the people who bought our Toyotas, because we could always get a lot more profit on the sale as well as a higher shop rate for maintenance and make more on parts, than our domestic brands, because the buyer though the Toyotas were "better."
When I owned my fleet service business, we serviced Toyota owned by some of the minor fleets. Our records proved that the overall repair rates were no better than average and they cost the fleet more to buy and were a lot more expensive to repair, when they did need to be repaired, and all vehicles at some point NEED to be repaired.
Some of the fleet owners switched to Fords when we compared the repair histories for them but some still wanted to buy Toyotas because they still believed the were better, go figure LOL
That is correct that the way capitalism works. If the government forces up your costs and reduces your economies of scale, you must re-price you product or service to stay in business. If you can not do that for the service you provide then you must raise your price or reduce you work force or the benefits receives.
If it is your product you can reduce your quality or your price. Reducing your quality will cost you customers. Reducing your price will reduce the profits you need to sustain your business. Ether one will send your customers to the importer, who does not have to deal with all of the US government mandates and does not have nearly your costs for your materials and labor.
The answer becomes simple, join the importer and take advantage of foreign laws and labor costs for some of your materials or move your entire production off shore completely.
If the BO and the Dims actually do some of the things they are proposing, like nation health care and that goofy carbon tax, you can bet the farm that manufacturing will flee this county in mass, because manufacturers know that the greed American consumer will buy anything from foreign countries, if they think they can save a dollar. Even those foreign companies like Toyota, that now only assemble their products her in the US, will leave as well, to escape the inevitable higher taxes, inflation and interest rates coming in the US because of our ever growing nation debt.
God bless America if these lo>> Mike these people are happy with their jap cars let them be. They
Okay, but I'm not really sure what you're getting at. VW and Toyota may sell mostly small and midget cars, but they apparently sell more of those world-wide than the light truck makers sell in the US. I had the impression that the article was talking about the world-wide market, not the US market.
The article said world-wide auto market, read cars. If trucks were included Toyota would be number one, way above VW. As to which particular vehicle is number one, in the US and world wide, it is the Ford F150 and has been for over thirty years.
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