• Abstract and Figures
• Public Full-text

Annual Report 2010 THANK YOU. Every year the automobile industry generates a turnover of 263,140 billion euros and is one of the biggest training providers in the country. It puts more than 20 billion euros annually into research and development, applies for ten patents a day, making Germany the “Land of Ideas”. Our automobiles are an expression of the inventive spirit, of striving for perfec- tion, of a sense of responsibility, of capability, and of passion. German automobile innovations are at home all over the world, as is our greatest invention: The automobile itself. This success has many faces. Around 710,000 people work in the German automobile sector, in research and development, in production, in manage- ment and administration, or in sales and marketing. Without them, we would not be what we are today, the most successful and most innovative automobile nation in the world. It is our pleasure to present some of these amazing, dedi- cated, and successful people here. And to all of them, we say: Thank you. www.vda.de www.unsere-autos.de Annual Report 2010 7 Foreword What an extraordinary year we have just experienced. The world has been through the most serious economic crisis in decades. The gross domestic product of a great many industrialized countries, including Germany, shrank to an extent never previously witnessed. The global demand for cars fell by four percent and, in the commercial vehicle sector, demand was even more seriously affected. The German automotive industry – a major source of exports – was not immune to the effects of the global slump. Over the year as a whole, motor car export figures fell by 17 percent, while commercial vehicle exports fell by as much as 57 percent. Sales figures for the industry as a whole dropped by a total of 20 percent. The VDA annual report for 2010 does much more than simply document the economic shockwaves of the year gone by. It also provides evidence that German automobile manufacturers, together with their suppliers and companies that produce trailers and superstructures for the commercial vehicle sector, rose valiantly to the challenges which they faced – and overcame them. Showing a high degree of flexibility, they quickly adjusted their production levels in line with the declining demand and made full use of the options available to them under flexible working hours arrangements and by extending short-time working. This allowed them to keep stocks at optimum levels and to retain their core workforce as much as they possibly could. The fact that they succeeded so well with these measures is testament to the effectiveness of the sector. At the same time, manufacturers continued to build up their positions in important growth markets — especially in China and the US. We have seen a remarkable three- fold increase in our motor car sales figures in China within a four-year period. And we have added a further 80 percent in the first quarter of 2010 as compared to previous year. Growth in these external markets has helped to cushion the difficulties in our domestic market. Policies introduced by the German federal government have also played their part in stabilizing matters; one thinks, for example, of the introduction of a CO2 element in vehicle tax, of the extension of short-time working arrangements and of the scrappage incentive scheme. The new federal government has also pronounced itself in favor of measures to promote environmentally friendly mobility on the public highway and will refrain from introducing new burdens on drivers and the road haulage sector. This will include a push towards innovation in commercial vehicle design and liberalization in the long-distance bus market; the federal government has also rejected the introduction of a car toll and has decided against increasing truck tolls. These signals send out exactly the right message: that there is no point in exacerbating the situation in which the automotive industry – Germany’s key sector – finds itself, given that there are still significant after-effects of this major crisis to be overcome. We have confidence in the ability of national governments, the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank to create a firm basis with regard to the stability of the euro and European public finances. Stable financial markets are an absolute prerequisite for a successful industrial sector. This annual report also makes it strikingly clear that our manufacturers and suppliers have long since committed themselves to responding to the environmental imperative. This can be seen in the increasing levels of investment in research and development – up by more than 4 percent in 2009 to approximately 21 billion euros. A major part of this investment goes towards environmentally friendly technology. The fruits of these labors are easy to see. German brands now offer more than 140 models with fuel consumption better than 5 liters per 100 kilometer or 56.5 mpg; they lead the field FOREWORD 8 with their range of cars equipped with near-zero-emission Euro 6 engines; and, according to the German Federal Motor Transport Authority, the average CO2 consumption of our newly registered cars is now better than that of our competitors across all ten vehicle segments, from subcompact cars up to large-capacity vans. And Germany is the first country to produce premium production vehicles with high- performance lithium ion batteries. As the home of the automobile, Germany will play a decisive role in the race to pro- vide the mobility solutions of the future – with super-efficient internal combustion engines, with up-to-date biofuels, with hybrid technology, and with battery-powered as well as fuel-cell-powered electrical drives. Further measures to reduce fuel consumption levels in both cars and commercial vehicles can be expected soon. The German automotive industry supports the declared intention of the federal government to make Germany the lead market in electromobility by 2020. Our manufacturers and suppliers are working actively inside committees of the “National Platform for Electromobility,” which began its work in May 2010. It is pleasing to note that global automobile markets are now showing a gradual upward trend. Exports have been increasing since the fourth quarter of 2009, and growth prospects in the commercial vehicles sector are now also somewhat healthier. The industry will use the IAA Commercial Vehicles trade fair in September to highlight the important role played by lorries, transporters, buses and special-purpose vehicles within society, the economy and for consumers. One need only think of fire engines and rescue vehicles to illustrate this point. And it is also worth considering the impor- tance in macroeconomic terms of transport and logistics not just for Germany but also for Europe and the wider world. IAA Commercial Vehicles has expanded its position as the most important mobility trade fair in the world and will prove this once again in Hanover this September. The German automotive industry sets the standards for fuel efficiency, safety, quality, comfort and design. And those who work within the industry have levels of expertise unparalleled anywhere else in the world. The levels of knowledge and awareness within the industry convince me that our manufacturers and suppliers will emerge stronger out of the global financial and economic crisis and will continue to lead the field at a global level in the decade ahead. With best regards, Matthias Wissmann President, German Association of the Automotive Industry 9 Contents Foreword 7 Facts, Figures and Data about the Automotive Industry 13 The German Auto Industry Makes it Through an Endurance Test 14 Numbers and Data – an Overview 22 The State of the Automotive Business 25 Developments for Trailers and Bodies 43 The State of the Auto Supplier Industry 50 General Conditions for the Automotive Industry 59 The Coalition Treaty as the Basis for Transport Policy 60 Tax Policy of the New German Government 62 The Increasing Influence of the EU on Motor Manufacturing 68 National and European Climate Protection and Environment Policy 70 EU Air Purity and Noise-reduction Policy 82 Emissions Trading Directive in the EU 85 The EU Energy Taxation Directive 86 European Transport Policy 88 The EU Labeling Directive and Advertising 91 General Conditions of International Automotive Markets 92 The Development of Energy Prices 97 Climate and Environmental Protection in the Automotive Industry 99 The German Automotive Industry as “Front-runner” in Climate Protection 100 Spark-ignition Petrol Engines and Diesel Engines 103 The Electric Car: Option for Sustainable Individual Mobility 111 Fuels: The Role of Renewable Sources of Energy 120 Hydrogen, Fuel Cells, Natural Gas and Biofuels: Important Components of the Fuel Strategy 122 Environmental Protection in Engine Development and Vehicle Production 125 Noise, CO2 and Exhaust Emissions: Status of the Technology, Preview of Future Developments 128 CONTENTS 10 Safety and Technology 137 A Road-safety Summary for Germany and Europe 138 The EU General Safety Regulation 140 Accident Statistics – Influencing Parameters and Successes of Vehicle Safety 146 Innovative Driving Dynamics to Enhance Safety 150 The New EU Type Approval 151 Developments in Vehicle Safety 156 Standardization to Ensure the Safe Functioning of Vehicles 158 Quality Management 165 Logistics 177 The Situation of Logistics in the Automotive Industry 178 The VDA Logistics Congress 2010 179 The VDA Logistics Award 180 Events and Committees 181 Transport

Load more

  242

Copy Link