Asian brands continue to take market share
According to latest figures, the Japenese and Korean carmakers are steadily squeezing the life out of their European competitors. After years of re-organisations, quality improvements and revitalised model ranges, the European's should be in good shape. Yet evidence suggests that once again they are losing out to Asian car manufacturers in their home markets.
In the past, quality and inefficiency were the key area's as to why the Europeans lost out to the Asian's, although these have now been addressed, a quick look at the profits of Toyota, Hyundai, Nissan and Honda appear to dwarf those of their western competitors.
Ironically, the car companies that are now being accused of under-pricing are American: both GM and Ford are selling cars to US consumers at the discounted price they sell to their employees. The result? GM lost $1.5bn in the last three months alone.
In the last five years, Asian brands have added 5 percentage points to their UK market share, that's 100,000 + units per year. Although European brands have enjoyed a period of record sales, these have shrank slightly in comparison. However Asian brands don't always paint a rosy picture as Proton and Perodua are testiment to that. Similarly Subaru and Mitsubishi (globally) are struggling to make headway.
But the overall picture is one of success as Asian manufacturers now use their financial muscle to develop cars, on the back of their reputations for dependability, and add a European style and flair. Take the Toyota Yaris for example, for years European journalists and consultants had been trying to explain that worthy and dull was never going to succeed once the Europeans sorted their cost and quality problems.
Toyota also took that on board and turned the heat up even more as the Yaris increased Toyota's supermini sales from 10,000 a year in the late nineties to more than 35,000 by 2004. Now Toyota wants to do even more. Its committed to increasing European sales from 900,000 per year to 1.2 million by 2010 - and Toyota never missed a published target yet.
A couple of weeks ago, however, a Toyota executive said it could meet that target by 2008 and go on to 2 million sales by 2015. If Toyota did achieve that, it would account for all the expected growth in the total European market.
Growth has been consistent - between 1-1.5% every year since 2001 - model related. For Japenese and Korean brands, the attitude of the consumer seems to have been: "Ok we trust the brand, now give us the products." Radically improved designs like the Hyundai Getz and Mazda 6 have made a huge impact.
With growth also coming from Kia, Honda, Nissan and Hyundai, mainstream European brands could spend the next 10 years in decline.
In the past, quality and inefficiency were the key area's as to why the Europeans lost out to the Asian's, although these have now been addressed, a quick look at the profits of Toyota, Hyundai, Nissan and Honda appear to dwarf those of their western competitors.
Ironically, the car companies that are now being accused of under-pricing are American: both GM and Ford are selling cars to US consumers at the discounted price they sell to their employees. The result? GM lost $1.5bn in the last three months alone.
In the last five years, Asian brands have added 5 percentage points to their UK market share, that's 100,000 + units per year. Although European brands have enjoyed a period of record sales, these have shrank slightly in comparison. However Asian brands don't always paint a rosy picture as Proton and Perodua are testiment to that. Similarly Subaru and Mitsubishi (globally) are struggling to make headway.
But the overall picture is one of success as Asian manufacturers now use their financial muscle to develop cars, on the back of their reputations for dependability, and add a European style and flair. Take the Toyota Yaris for example, for years European journalists and consultants had been trying to explain that worthy and dull was never going to succeed once the Europeans sorted their cost and quality problems.
Toyota also took that on board and turned the heat up even more as the Yaris increased Toyota's supermini sales from 10,000 a year in the late nineties to more than 35,000 by 2004. Now Toyota wants to do even more. Its committed to increasing European sales from 900,000 per year to 1.2 million by 2010 - and Toyota never missed a published target yet.
A couple of weeks ago, however, a Toyota executive said it could meet that target by 2008 and go on to 2 million sales by 2015. If Toyota did achieve that, it would account for all the expected growth in the total European market.
Growth has been consistent - between 1-1.5% every year since 2001 - model related. For Japenese and Korean brands, the attitude of the consumer seems to have been: "Ok we trust the brand, now give us the products." Radically improved designs like the Hyundai Getz and Mazda 6 have made a huge impact.
With growth also coming from Kia, Honda, Nissan and Hyundai, mainstream European brands could spend the next 10 years in decline.
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