30 June 2017

UK Engine Production By Manufacturer : 2015-16

The new JLR engine plant in Wolverhampton, UK

UK engine production is one of the few recent success stories in manufacturing. From the nation that brought the world the industrial revolution that is a sad indictment. Under-investment, poor labour relations, a high currency value and little loyalty from the public all played their part. It suits some manufacturers to make engines in the UK so the numbers aren't bad.

Ford is the main producer, turning to engines after it ceased all car making there. Numbers were down in 2016, but these things are cyclical anyway. It still made just over half of the total.

Nissan and Honda numbers were slightly up but their share was slightly down. BMW and Toyota were up on both counts. JLR has returned to engine manufacturing for the first time since 2005.

This year engines made for cars manufactured locally were up 32%, while those exported dropped 6%. That still means 55% are sent offshore as they are, but that is lower than it has been for some time.

Summary: The value that engine manufacturing brings to a country is less than car assembly. Still, in a nation that has too long neglected its manufacturing history this is a positive. They are not record figures but, rather, solid ones.

The figures below are in thousands, so three zeros need to be added.

Data source: SMMT.


Maker/Yr 2016 2015 +/-

Ford 1,441 1,607 -10.3%

56.6% 67.8%

Nissan 265 251 5.6%

10.4% 10.6%

BMW 257 171 50.3%

10.1% 7.2%

Toyota 240 204 17.6%

9.4% 8.6%

JLR 201 -

7.9% 0.0%

Honda 132 125 5.6%

5.2% 5.3%

Bentley 13 11 18.2%

0.5% 0.5%

Summary

Local 1,125 852 32.0%

% 44.2% 36.0%

Export 1,421 1,517 -6.3%

% 55.8% 64.0%

Total 2,546 2,348 8.4%

27 June 2017

Citroën Germany Sales (Model) : 2010-2016


Between 2000 to 2009, Citroën sales in Germany increased from 50,000 to 100,000. Leading the way was the tiny C1 model, introduced in 2006 and by 2009, over 22,000 sales were achieved for that model. Citroën's total market share was up to 2.9%. Things were looking good but change was in the wind.

In 2010, the DS brand was spun off as a premium alternative to Citroën. Sales in Germany fell 23%, Citroën sales slumped 37% (32% including DS) and market share dropped to 2.2% (2.4%). The top seller in the range, the C1 dropped 51% but with the market so weak, nothing went well. Sales continued downward as total German sales started to pick up. The range of models on offer was reduced as smaller selling ones were culled. Bigger sellers also suffered as it appears that the brand moved toward a more profitable pricing structure.

In 2014, things improved slightly and leveled off. The current situation is 1.5% of the total sales which is not large for what is a mainstream brand. What surprised me is that out of all this emerged a van as the leading selling model. It's sold as the Multispace.

Summary: Car buyers in Germany are strongly in favour with brands associated with the country in some way. On top of that, this is a price sensitive country and that is something this brand isn't interested in selling on. Due to factors such as these, Citroën has settled down as a fringe brand in the German market.

MODEL/YEAR 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
BERLINGO 11,824 11,112 11,182 9,944 9,109 9,520 10,722
C4 12,252 16,420 12,687 10,657 12,977 10,603 10,565
C3 16,619 11,742 10,315 7,608 9,922 6,689 8,446
C1 10,805 9,098 7,463 4,903 5,029 7,965 7,355
C4 CACTUS - - - - 1,981 6,272 5,550
JUMPER 745 850 1,039 1,220 1,517 2,116 3,634
C5 7,219 5,542 4,487 2,935 2,242 1,609 1,509
JUMPY 853 952 1,188 1,111 1,393 1,176 556
C-ELYSEE - - - - - - 275
C8 747 629 405 286 105 - -
NEMO 748 407 241 149 35 - -
C-ZERO - 200 454 276 - - -
C-CROSSER 1,072 507 256 - - - -
C6 105 69 134 - - - -
C2 388 - - - - - -
OTHER 28 38 97 116 50 26 114
TOTAL 63,405 57,566 49,948 39,205 44,360 45,976 48,726
SHARE 2.2% 1.8% 1.6% 1.3% 1.5% 1.4% 1.5%

Data source: KBA.

23 June 2017

Toyota UK Sales 2010-16 (by model)


Toyota had a good decade previously in the UK, yet it's share slipped during the six years of this period under discussion. To find the problem isn't obvious at first. Only the medium large Avensis model fell substantially. However, the overall market in the UK was very strong for sales and while Toyota didn't lose sales, they didn't grow fully with the market.

I think Toyota was simply not aggressive enough. Discounting to buy share isn't smart and that wasn't what they did. Increasing your share of the pie is best achieved through product. The new C-HR arrived late 2016 and that has styling that was clearly aimed at the likes of the Nissan Juke. Nissan did it right with that model so why not take a leaf out of their book?

Summary: Japanese car companies have become far too conservative for European tastes. Toyota is starting to wake up from its dozed state and is looking at producing a more exciting range. That will work for sure, if they can hold their nerve. Fortune favours the brave.

Mod/Yr 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Yaris 21,965 17,861 29,974 31,153 31,160 33,196 30,402
Aygo 13,601 14,231 16,049 16,262 20,620 24,543 23,386
Auris 12,718 11,469 9,876 16,215 19,109 18,951 16,528
Rav4 5,196 4,686 4,030 7,174 7,580 6,905 8,562
Prius 10,537 6,513 4,716 2,793 2,443 3,361 5,311
Avensis 11,276 8,164 8,632 5,384 5,208 5,236 5,133
Verso 4,290 4,944 3,613 3,720 3,477 3,624 3,840
Prius + - - 827 1,108 818 1,144 1,184
L Cruiser 1,421 999 836 540 787 745 751
GT86 - - 1,435 1,772 1,042 775 681
C-HR - - - - - - 509
Prius P In 21 3 428 509 379 270 96
Mirai - - - - - 4 8
L Crus V8 456 606 784 556 470 298 1
iQ 4,468 2,869 2,675 1,464 920 10 -
Urb Cruis 1,464 1,236 679 3 - - -
Total 87,413 73,581 84,554 88,653 94,013 99,062 96,392
Share 4.3% 3.8% 4.1% 3.9% 3.8% 3.7% 3.6%

Data source: Toyota UK. A big thanks for them in being so generous with their data. It would be nice if others were too. The publicity doesn't do any harm either.

To go to the first in the series, simply click here.