The American Auto Industry : A Comparative International Study

The Model T Ford was known in every household as the “affordable auto” and Henry Ford set out on a dream to make the Model T a item in every driveway across America and be able to sell them by the multitude (Goss, 2014). However, this dream was not an easy feat for those who wanted the Model T. Henry Ford had to figure out a way to get the automobile to a more affordable and reasonable price that all Americans could handle. With the cost of a Model T in the early 1900’s being $850, approximately $21,000 in today’s market, Henry Ford had to figure out more ways to make the delectable vehicle even more cheaper (Goss, 2014). When Ford first made the Model T in 1908, he had the concept of a cheap car that was attainable to everyone with a very basic, sturdy structure with no additional options from the factory or even the choice of color (Science Odyssey, 1998). After still not being able to fit the cheaper bill that was needed, even after stripping the model to its basic bones, Henry Ford knew that he must find other ways to cut the cost of the Model T to make it more

The automobile industry made owning an automobile more available to the public. Factories began producing cars in higher numbers than one craftsman would ever be able to. “The first automotive production on a commercial scale began in France in 1980, but the United States in the 1900’s became equal to the European automobile factories. The Europeans used engineering and handcraft methods, while the U.S. had plants that used the assembly line” (The History). Frank Duryea of Springfield, Massachusetts developed the first gasoline powered automobile in the United States, and over the next twenty years 8 million cars were manufactured and sold (Clayton 501). On the other hand, Henry Ford’s first working gasoline engine was completed at the end of 1843, and “by 1896, he had completed his first horseless carriage, the Quadricycle, so called because the chassis of the four- horsepower vehicle was a buggy frame mounted on four bicycle wheels” (Curley 165). Ford revolutionized factory production with his assembly line methods (Curly 163). The assembly line remained hard on laborers, required them to perform routinely repetitive tasks for hours on end. To retain workers, Henry Ford paid workers five dollars a day, and employees only work eight hour days. Mass production techniques rapidly increased worker productivity and output, allowing more cars to be made and to sell for less money. By the 1920’s, the number of registered vehicles rose over fifteen million, because of Henry Ford’s assembly line, which made manufacturing automobiles more time efficient and less costly, making automobiles less expensive. In 1929, Ford, who was one of Thomas Edison’s greatest admirers, asked him to design a battery for a self-starter, to be introduced on the Model T, which was Ford’s car for the common man (Curley 139). At the time of his death in 1947, Henry Ford’s

the Model T to producing the Model A. During the 1950 and 60s Chrysler took over

Chapter 6, “The Burden of History: Expectations Past and Imperfect” from Kirsch’s book, The Electric Vehicle and the Burden of History, focuses on the problem of automobiles in the modern day. Kirsch states that internal combustion engines release greenhouse gasses, which harm the environment. Each individual contributes to air pollution

States and much of the world. Owning a vehicle is almost a necessity in modern society.

Given the current economic climate, I think the automotive industry is going to be faced with a multitude of economic challenges in the next five years. As an oligopoly market, the auto industry is highly dependent on strategic decision-making, and the demand for dynamic innovation and supply at decreased-cost levels. Competition, possibilities of turning substitutes into compliments, and shifts toward higher demand in services are seemingly leading factors that face the current automotive industry in the immediate future. But first, we should not ignore the political forces at play within the market.

Several factors have affected how the American auto industry now positions itself on the world market, and big changes have been made to reflect this new direction. The introduction of new technologies in vehicles, the growing market for cars in new developing markets, the impact of the industry on the environment, legislative responses and demands, as well as the increased expectations from consumers, are some of the factors. More international cars are being designed, manufactured and bought by American consumers and exported to foreign markets today than those exclusively manufactured by American companies, redefining the American auto industry, while having a positive impact on its economy. International brands accounted for 45% of total sales in the U.S. in 2013 and have now risen to 59% of the market, and continue to grow. While the amount of American cars has decreased in the local U.S. market share to international ones, the increase of foreign car production on U.S. soil has had the effect of creating new jobs for Americans both in the auto industry as well as in related new industries. The industry has seen huge growth numbers in the last few years with more growth expected.

The availability of space makes it easy for American towns to plan parking lots. In Europe is not so easy. Towns are century’s old, ancient buildings are under the protection of the Minister of Art, the space available is little and most towns are car free; you can park the car outside the town and you can either walk all the way to the center or take a nice bus or tram or subway. Moreover, in Europe we pay for parking and most jobs places do not have parking available. Here parking is free and crossing through the USA I found very few toll roads, let’s not forget also the gas price that here is ¼ of what we used to pay in Europe. All these factors make it almost natural for Americans to be the most car dependent on the

The auto industry has been around long before I was born. Automobiles have become a necessity in American culture. “With the invention of the automobile and the mass production techniques of Henry Ford, which made the machine affordable, the American economy has been transformed by this key element in its prosperity.” (Davis, 2014) Being able to transport quickly from one destination to another is a great convenience. Almost every working family living in the United States owns at least one vehicle.

With the recovery of economy, the world’s automobile industry has been growing steadily over the past few years. According to Bloomberg, the US automobile sales climbed from its depth 10.4 million in 2009 to over 15.6 million in 2013. Furthermore, industry analysts predict that the sales will

A recent article posted on www.driving.ca, (LeBlanc, 2016), showed that of the top ten selling vehicles in the world for 2015, only three were American. Those three vehicles were the Ford F-Series (3rd place with 920,172 sold), the Ford Focus (4th place, with 826,221 sold), and the Chevrolet Silverado (9th place with 669,683 vehicles sold). As Hanne Keiling pointed out in her article on www.zebra.com (Keiling,2015), part of the challenge American car manufacturers face is a perception of

In 1903, Henry Ford did not know he was about to revolutionize the automobile world when he opened the Ford Motor Company in the suburb of Dearborn Michigan. After opening Ford Motor Company, Henry Ford saw several ways to improve the auto industry through a series of inventions and visions. In 1903 cars were a luxury item, and only the rich and well-off were able to afford them. Henry Ford had a different vision, he saw the potential that the automobile market held, if, he could create an automobile that could be affordable to the everyday American at the time. The everyday Americans were the ones who did not have a lot of money and weren’t able to afford the “luxuries” in life, they were the American’s who were just trying to keep ends tied and food on the table for their families. (“Henry Ford Changes the World”, 2003) Envisioning a world where cars were affordable for everyone, led to the birth of Ford Motor Company’s star child; The Model T. Henry Ford did something that was unheard of in 1903, he created an automobile that was lightweight, able to be operated by anyone with ease, there was no training or special skills needed to operate the Model T, and as an added bonus it had a great fuel economy! The model T got 25 miles to a gallon, but most importantly it was reasonably priced for the everyday American at a whopping $825.00. The price and features of the Model T made Henry Ford one of the most popular men and company in the country and put Ford Motor Company on

Investopedia, the American auto industry has struggled to keep U.S market shares higher than they were

Over the years, the U. S. auto industry's market has been experiencing fluctuations due to many reasons including: price, quality and foreign competition. General Motors Corporation (GM) which had been the leading car and truck manufacturer had been experiencing declining market share and facing stiff competition from both U.S manufacturers and foreign imports such as the Asian auto producers that included Toyota, Honda and Nissan. The main reason for increased foreign competition was that foreign cars were more fuel efficient, smaller, less expensive, and often more reliable than their American counterparts.

The financial crisis starting in 2008 and the following recession hit hard the US auto sector. Traditional car makers had to realise that substantial changes were needed in order to maintain their strong position in the