Automotive industry in Turkey
Encyclopedia
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
plays an important role in the manufacturing sector of the Turkish economy
Economy of Turkey
The economy of Turkey is defined as an emerging market economy by the IMF and is largely developed, making Turkey one of the world's newly industrialized countries. The country is among the world's leading producers of agricultural products; textiles; motor vehicles, ships and other transportation...
. The companies operating in the Turkish automotive sector are mainly located in the Marmara Region
Marmara Region
The Marmara Region , with a surface area of 67.000 km², is the smallest but most densely populated of the seven geographical regions of Turkey...
. In 2008 Turkey produced 1,147,110 motor vehicles, ranking as the 6th largest producer in Europe and the 15th largest producer in the world.
History
In 1959 the OtosanOtosan
Otosan is a Turkish automotive production company, which is a joint venture between Ford Motor Company and Koç Holding...
factory was established in Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
to produce the models of the Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
under licence in Turkey.
In 1961 the Devrim
Devrim
- Automotive Industry Congress :On 15 May 1961, the Otomotiv Endüstri Kongresi was opened by President Cemal Gürsel. In his inaugural speech, he said:...
sedan was manufactured at the Tülomsaş factory in Eskişehir
Eskisehir
Eskişehir is a city in northwestern Turkey and the capital of the Eskişehir Province. According to the 2009 census, the population of the city is 631,905. The city is located on the banks of the Porsuk River, 792 m above sea level, where it overlooks the fertile Phrygian Valley. In the nearby...
. It was the first indigenously designed and produced Turkish automobile.
In 1964 the Austin
Austin Motor Company
The Austin Motor Company was a British manufacturer of automobiles. The company was founded in 1905 and merged in 1952 into the British Motor Corporation Ltd. The marque Austin was used until 1987...
and Morris
Morris Motor Company
The Morris Motor Company was a British car manufacturing company. After the incorporation of the company into larger corporations, the Morris name remained in use as a marque until 1984 when British Leyland's Austin Rover Group decided to concentrate on the more popular Austin marque...
vehicles of the British Motor Corporation
British Motor Corporation
The British Motor Corporation, or commonly known as BMC was a vehicle manufacturer from United Kingdom, formed by the merger of the Austin Motor Company and the Nuffield Organisation in 1952...
began to be produced under licence at the BMC factory
BMC (Turkey)
BMC is one of the largest commercial vehicle manufacturers in Turkey.It was formed in 1964 by Ergün Özakat in partnership with the British Motor Corporation in İzmir....
in İzmir
Izmir
Izmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
. The BMC brand was later fully acquired by Turkey's Çukurova Group in 1989, which currently produces all BMC models in the world.
In 1966 Anadol
Anadol
Anadol was Turkey's first domestic mass-production passenger vehicle, and the second Turkish car after the ill-fated Devrim sedan of 1961.Anadol cars and pick-ups were manufactured by Otosan Otomobil Sanayii in Istanbul between 1966 and 1991....
became the first mass-produced Turkish automobile brand. All Anadol models were produced by the Otosan factory in Istanbul.
In 1968 the Tofaş
Tofas
Tofaş is a Turkish automaker, based in Bursa, Turkey, where also a plant of the company is located. It builds Fiat models under license and also some locally-designed vehicles...
factory was opened in Bursa for producing Fiat
Fiat
FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...
models under licence.
In 1969 the Oyak-Renault
Oyak-Renault
Oyak Renault Otomobil Fabrikaları A.Ş. is a Turkish automotive manufacturer located in Bursa. It is co-owned by Oyak and Renault. Oyak owns 49% and Renault owns 51% of the company....
factory was established in Bursa for producing Renault
Renault
Renault S.A. is a French automaker producing cars, vans, and in the past, autorail vehicles, trucks, tractors, vans and also buses/coaches. Its alliance with Nissan makes it the world's third largest automaker...
models.
Other global automotive manufacturers such as Toyota, Honda
Honda
is a Japanese public multinational corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles.Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, as well as the world's largest manufacturer of internal combustion engines measured by volume, producing more than...
, Opel
Opel
Adam Opel AG, generally shortened to Opel, is a German automobile company founded by Adam Opel in 1862. Opel has been building automobiles since 1899, and became an Aktiengesellschaft in 1929...
, Hyundai
Hyundai
Hyundai ) is a global conglomerate company, part of the Korean chaebol, that was founded in South Korea by one of the most famous businessmen in Korean history: Chung Ju-yung...
, Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG...
and MAN AG
MAN AG
MAN SE , formerly MAN AG, is a mechanical engineering company and parent company of the MAN Group. MAN SE is based in Munich, in the German State of Bavaria. Its primary output is for the automotive industry, particularly heavy trucks...
produce automobiles, vans, buses and trucks in their Turkish factories. There are also a number of Turkish bus and truck brands, such as BMC
BMC (Turkey)
BMC is one of the largest commercial vehicle manufacturers in Turkey.It was formed in 1964 by Ergün Özakat in partnership with the British Motor Corporation in İzmir....
, Otokar
Otokar
Otokar, a sub-division of Koç Holding, is a Turkish manufacturer of buses and military vehicles headquartered in Sakarya, Turkey.-History:Otokar began business in 1963 as Turkey's first intercity bus manufacturing company under the license of Magirus Deutz of Istanbul. Otokar was noted for...
and TEMSA
TEMSA
Temsa Global is a coach, bus and light truck manufacturer located in Adana, Turkey. The company is part of the Sabanci Group, a large Turkish industrial and commercial conglomerate...
.
By 2004, Turkey was exporting 518,000 vehicles a year, mostly to the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
member states.
In 2006, the European Investment Bank
European Investment Bank
The European Investment Bank is the European Union's long-term lending institution established in 1958 under the Treaty of Rome. A policy-driven bank, the EIB supports the EU’s priority objectives, especially European integration and the development of economically weak regions...
loaned Tofaş €175 million to jointly develop and produce with PSA Peugeot Citroën and Fiat Auto small commercial vehicles for the European market. The loan, part-financing for total investments estimated at €400 million, was intended to result in an important expansion of the company's production capabilities and create around 5,000 new jobs. The vehicles will be produced at the manufacturing plant of Tofaş in Bursa with an additional, initial, annual capacity of 135.000 cars, due to roll off the assembly line in late 2007.
Like in many countries, the car manufacturing industry has been significantly affected by the global financial crisis. In March 2009, Turkey's Automotive Industry Association (OSD) said the automotive production fell by 63% on year in the first two months of 2009, as exports dropped by 61.6% in the same period.
Production
Turkey produced 1,124,982 motor vehicleMotor vehicle
A motor vehicle or road vehicle is a self-propelled wheeled vehicle that does not operate on rails, such as trains or trolleys. The vehicle propulsion is provided by an engine or motor, usually by an internal combustion engine, or an electric motor, or some combination of the two, such as hybrid...
s in 2010, ranking as the 7th largest automotive producer in Europe; behind Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
(5,819,614), France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
(3,174,260), Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
(2,770,435), the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
(1,648,388), Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
(1,508,358) and Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
(1,211,594), respectively.
In 2008 Turkey produced 1,147,110 motor vehicles, ranking as the 6th largest producer in Europe (behind the United Kingdom and above Italy) and the 15th largest producer in the world.
The combined capacity of the 6 companies producing passenger car
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
s stood at 726,000 units per year in 2002, reaching 991,621 units per year in 2006. In 2002, Fiat/Tofaş had 34% of this capacity, Oyak/Renault 31%, Hyundai/Assan and Toyota 14% each, Honda 4%, and Ford/Otosan 3%.
With a cluster of car-makers and parts suppliers, the Turkish automotive sector has become an integral part of the global network of production bases, exporting over $22,944,000,000 worth of motor vehicles and components in 2008.