 |
| SEAT cars are still made, but now owned by VW |
Spain is the 9th largest car market in the world and second largest in Europe. The country has a long history with car production, since 1953 when SEAT and Renault both started to make cars there. In the 1960's Citroën, Chrysler and BMC (Authi) opened plants. The 1970's saw the end of Authi but Ford came along.
In the 1980's GM and VW joined car production in Spain, while Chrysler changed to Peugeot. Mercedes came along in the 1990's. Nissan and Mazda arrived and disappeared in the 2000's. Nissan and Audi cars became part of the car making landscape in the 2010's.
Looking at the chart below production for cars as discussed above. Added to that is commercial vehicle production. Between the two it shows a successful industry.
| Year | Vehicle | Car | CV | % CV | |
| 1955 | 14,300 | 14,300 | ? | ||
| 1960 | 58,200 | 42,500 | 15,700 | 27.0% | |
| 1965 | 220,700 | 144,500 | 76,200 | 34.5% | |
| 1970 | 539,100 | 450,400 | 88,700 | 16.5% | |
| 1975 | 814,100 | 696,100 | 118,000 | 14.5% | |
| 1980 | 1,181,300 | 1,028,800 | 152,500 | 12.9% | |
| 1985 | 1,317,600 | 1,130,100 | 187,500 | 14.2% | |
| 1990 | 2,053,300 | 1,679,300 | 374,000 | 18.2% | |
| 1995 | 2,333,800 | 1,958,800 | 375,000 | 16.1% | |
| 2000 | 3,032,900 | 2,366,400 | 666,500 | 22.0% | |
| 2005 | 2,752,500 | 2,098,200 | 654,300 | 23.8% | |
| 2010 | 2,388,700 | 1,913,500 | 475,200 | 19.9% | |
| 2014 | 2,402,900 | 1,898,300 | 504,600 | 21.0% |
Summary: For a country that doesn't have a national car maker, it has survived very well. It is down on the peak years a decade ago, but is still doing well. Lower wages and an environment conducive to doing business in Spain is keeping the car industry healthy.
No comments