The 2013 top ten assembly plants in Europe
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- Below are the top ten plants in Europe in 2013:
- 1st: the Volkswagen plant of Wolfsburg (+1.9% compared to 2012) that increased slightly thanks to the Golf VII.
- 2nd: the AvtoVAZ plant of Togliatti (-14.4%) declined due to a decrease in the Russian market.
- 3rd: the Nissan plant of Sunderland (-1.7%) declined slightly (end of life cycle of the Qashqai).
- 4th: the Audi plant of Ingolstadt (+9.3%) benefited from the rise of the Audi A3.
- 5th: the Dacia plant in Pitesti (-10.3%) suffered from the change of generation Logan / Sandero.
- 6th: the PSA plant of Vigo (+36.0%) benefited from rise of the C4 Picasso, C-Elysée and 301.
- 7th: the Skoda plant of Mlada Boleslav (-1.6%) declined slightly in 2013.
- 8th: the Audi plant of Neckarsulm (-14.1%) declined because of a lack of success of the A6, A7, A8, Q5.
- 9th: the Mercedes plant of Sindelfingen (+3.1%) benefited from the new restyled S-Class and E-Class.
- 10th: the Ford plant of Koln (+19.2%) benefited from the restyling of the Fiesta.
- The production of these 10 plants accounted for more than 4.6 million vehicles (passenger cars + LCVs) in 2013, 25% of European production including Turkey, Ukraine and Russia.
Changan is going to implant itself in Iran and Russia
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- The Chinese carmaker, Changan (which has gradually became the leading independent Chinese carmaker in front of Geely, Great Wall, BYD and Chery) plans to assemble vehicles in Iran and Russia, from small collections imported from China (CKD).
- 1/ Iran was chosen by Changan following the announcement of the Iranian authorities to accommodate new manufacturers on their territory. Changan plans to produce 50 000 vehicles per year in Iran. To achieve this goal, Changan has signed an agreement with the Iranian assembler SAIPA (SociétéAnonymeIranienne de Production Automobile, the second largest carmaker in Iran) on the vehicle assembly plant of the Iranian carmaker. SAIPA is the second Iranian manufacturer behind Iran Khodro. It has also worked for the Renault and Kia brands. The first models to be assembled by Changan CKD will be a segment C sedan, the Eado and a segment C SUV, the CS35.
- 2/ Russia was chosen because of the success of Chinese brands on this market (more than 100 000 sales in 2013), also, this market could become the first European market by 2017-2018. Changan plans to produce 100 000 vehicles per year in Russia. Changan has not yet chosen its site of implantation but this plant in Russia could emerge in two years.
- Several Chinese manufacturers are already operating in Russia, such as Lifan, Geely, Great Wall and Haima.
Read more... Changan is going to implant itself in Iran and Russia
Fiat-Chrysler unveils the Jeep Renegade (segment B)
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Read more... Fiat-Chrysler unveils the Jeep Renegade (segment B)
Ford will replace its E Series (LCV) by the Transit
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Read more... Ford will replace its E Series (LCV) by the Transit
Toyota unveils the Aygo its new city car
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- Toyota has unveiled the second generation of its segment A city car, the Aygo, which will be produced as of the summer 2014 in the Toyota-PSA plant of Kolin in the Czech Republic, alongside the new Peugeot 108 and Citroën C1.
- Unlike the small Peugeot, Toyota will not change the name of its vehicle. The new Aygo replaces a model produced at more than 740 000 units between 2005 (launch date) and 2013, slightly less than the Peugeot 107 (790 000 units) and the Citroën C1 (760 000 units), over the same marketing period .
- Like the Peugeot 108 and Citroën C1, the Toyota Aygo will be produced in both a three-door and a five-door version, unlike its direct competitor the new Renault Twingo (only available in five-doors).
- The Aygo (unlike the 108 and C1) will only be available in a petrol version (3 cylinder 1.0 Genuine Toyota engine and 3-cylinder 1.2 Genuine PSA Peugeot-Citroën engine), following the general trend which aims to reduce the share of diesel engines in the segment of small cars (following the new European regulations on gas emissions).
- Inovev expects the production volume to reach nearly 100 000 units per year for the Toyota Aygo (three and five-door versions), a production volume similar to that of the 108 and C1. Let us recall that the Kolin plant has a current capacity of 340 000 vehicles per year.
