- AB Volvo has just joined the Chinese carmaker Dongfeng. The Swedish manufacturer of trucks formed a joint venture in China with the heavyweights division of the Chinese group, 55% owned by Dongfeng and 45% by Volvo.

- Daimler Trucks, which was number 1 for several years in the category of trucks, must thus face a very strong competition. It now faces the Volkswagen Group (with MAN and Scania) and Volvo AB (with Dongfeng).

- In 2012, AB Volvo produced 180,000 trucks, while Dongfeng produced 186,000. Daimler Trucks assembled 436,000 commercial vehicles, including 236,000 trucks and 200,000 light commercial vehicles (Sprinter and Vito). Volvo AB, which does not produce light commercial vehicles, will therefore become through its partnership with Dongfeng the worlds number one in front of Daimler Trucks . Let us recall that the OICA defines the trucks as a vehicle of more than 3.5 tons.

- Daimler Trucks are also facing competition from the Volkswagen group. That will create an alliance in the field of trucks with its subsidiaries MAN and Scania. The entire group wishes to take the lead on Daimler in the commercial vehicle market by 2020.

- China is the land where the three major truck manufacturers will compete. In fact, China is the largest market for this type of vehicle. Last year, 636,000 trucks were sold in China (more than the U.S. and European markets combined), nearly 30% by Dongfeng, the Chinese market leader.

 Data source: File #101 - Worldwide production detailed by models

- Before the reunification of Germany in October 1990, the eastern region grouped under the name GDR (German Democratic Republic) had two auto plants: one located in Zwickau (a former Auto Union factory before 1945) that made the Trabant (100,000 units per year from 1958 to 1990) and the other located in Eisenach (a former BMW factory before 1945) that made the Wartburg (50 000 copies per year from 1966 to 1990).

- In 1990 the Zwickau plant was taken over by Volkswagen (to manufacture the Golf) and the Eisenach plant was taken over by Opel (to manufacture the Astra and Corsa),the former owners (Auto Union and BMW ) did not wish to take over these sites.

- BMW returned however in 2004 to this region to build a plant in Leipzig.

- Volkswagen built a factory in Dresden in 2001 and Porsche built one in Leipzig in 2002.

- Today, the eastern part of Germany, which enjoys lower costs than in the western part, has five factories whose overall production capacity reached 700,000 vehicles per year (against 200 000 in 1990).

- Last year, these five plants produced 593,000 vehicles (against 603,000 in 2011).

 Data source: File #101 - Worldwide production detailed by models

- As noted previously (see: The Australian production has dropped by half since 2004), the Australian production is doomed to disappear in the medium term.

- Ford has confirmed this forecast by announcing this week that it would close permanently in October 2016 its two plants in Australia.

- Local production is no longer viable, said the manufacturer, who invoked the high production costs, the strength of the Australian dollar, a very diverse market resulting in the low volume per model as well as the losses that Ford has had in the country.

- The carmaker produces vehicles in Broadmeadows (in the state of Melbourne) and engines in Geelong (in the state of Victoria). Ford, who produced its first vehicle in Australia in 1925, will stay present the country as an importer.

- The vehicle the most produced by Ford was the Falcon that has been seeing  a dramatic drop in sales for a dozen years, as its competitor at GM (Holden) the Commodore.

- In Australia only three carmakers are still present (GM, Ford, Toyota), Mitsubishi stopped its production in 2008.

 Data source: File #101 - Worldwide production detailed by models

 Data source: File #101 - Worldwide production detailed by models