Japanese automobile industry

Japan is the world's largest automobile manufacturer and exporter by number of vehicles manufactured in a year, and has three of the world's ten largest automobile manufacturers. In addition to its large automobile industry, Japan also is the home to manufacturers of other types of vehicles, like powersports vehicle manufacturers Kawasaki and Yamaha, and heavy equipment manufacturers Kubota, Komatsu, and Hitachi Heavy Industries. It is home to automakers such as Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Suzuki, Mitsubishi, Mazda, Subaru, etc.

History

1900s to 1950s

The Japanese automotive industry began in 1902, with limited production of small (12 horsepower) vehicles by a number of companies on a trial basis. However, Japanese companies were unable to compete against imported cars (mostly from the United States), especially after the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake. Ford and General Motors established subsidiaries in Japan at the start of the Shōwa period, and assembled trucks and cars from imported parts. In 1929, 16,000 vehicles were imported into Japan, as opposed to only 1,000 produced by Japanese domestic companies. Cars and imported fuel were expensive for the ordinary Japanese citizen, so buses were popular. In 1923, there were about 100,000 automobiles in the country (around 65,000 cars, 35,000 trucks). The majority of these cars were taxis.

The "zaibatsu" were involved in joint ventures to produce and sell cars in Japan under license in the middle to late 1910s. The companies went about this by either designing their own trucks (the market for passenger vehicles in Japan at the time was small), or partnering with a European brand to produce and sell their cars in Japan under license. Such examples of this are the forerunner of Isuzu partnering with Wolseley Motor Company (UK), and the Mitsubishi Model A, which was based upon the Fiat Tipo 3. From 1935, increasingly restrictive import duties help protect new Japanese manufacturers, such as Nissan, Toyota, and Hino Motors. The demand for domestic trucks was greatly increased by the Japanese buildup to war before World War II.

However, outside of the major cities, the road system of the Empire of Japan was limited. The unfavorable topography of Japan favored the development of transport by sea, and motor transport had a low priority to the government as opposed to the railroad system.

During the Korean War (1950–1953), the United States government commissioned Japanese automobile manufacturers to produce army trucks. This was advantageous due to Japan's proximity to Korea, and the United States had close ties to Japan because the country was still under Allied occupation since the end of World War II. These army truck commissions led to enormous growth in Japan's auto industry, leading to the boom of Japanese cars during the 1960s.

From its beginnings, nearly all of the Japanese automakers were associated with "zaibatsu", or later "keiretsu". In the post-war period, these large companies had close ties with the government, who urged them to absorb all of the smaller car makers into large brands that could be marketed internationally. Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. was a prime example, taking control of Prince Motor Company and many other smaller companies to form a large brand. Mitsubishi Motors was a part of a large "keiretsu" as well. However, one of the lone exceptions of the time was Honda. The company was formed as a tiny firm, and had (and still has) experienced no major takeovers or mergers.

During the massive expansion of many Japanese companies after WWII, many of the automakers sought to expand into other markets, mainly the U.S. In 1957, the first Japanese car to be imported to the United States was the Toyota Crown, followed by the 1958 Datsun 1000(PL210).

1960s to today

During the 1960s, Japanese automakers launched a bevy of new "kei cars" in their domestic market. These tiny automobiles usually featured very small engines (from 360cc to 600cc) to keep taxes much lower than larger cars. The average person in Japan was now able to afford an automobile, which boosted sales dramatically and jumpstarted the auto industry toward becoming what it is today. The first of this new era, actually launched in 1958, was the Subaru 360. It was known as the "Lady Beetle", comparing its significance to the Volkswagen Beetle in Germany. Other significant models were the Mitsubishi 500, Mazda Carol, and the Honda N360.

Rapidly increasing domestic demand and the expansion of Japanese car companies into foreign markets in the 1970s further accelerated growth. Automobile production in Japan continued to increase rapidly after the 1970s, as Mitsubishi (as Dodge vehicles) and Honda began selling their vehicles in the US. Even more brands came to America and abroad during the 1970s, and by the 1980s, the Japanese manufacturers were gaining a major foothold in the US and world markets.

With Japanese manufacturers producing very affordable, reliable, and popular cars throughout the 1990s, Japan became the largest car producing nation in the world in 2000. However, its market share has decreased slightly in recent years, mainly due to new competition from China and India and a shift in the focus of Japanese government policies. Nevertheless, Japan's car industry continues to flourish, and in the first quarter of 2008 Toyota surpassed American General Motors to become the world's largest car manufacturer. [ [http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/24/business/worldbusiness/24auto.html?_r=1&ref=business&oref=slogin G.M. Says Toyota Has Lead in Global Sales Race - New York Times ] ]

Timeline of the Japanese car industry

*1907 - Hatsudoki Seizo Co., Ltd. established
*1911 - Kwaishinsha Motorcar Works established
*1917 - Mitsubishi Motors 1st car
*1918 - Isuzu 1st car
*1924 -1927 Otomo
*1931 - Mazda Mazdago - by Toyo Kogyo corp, later Mazda
*1935 - Toyota 1st car
*1937 - Suzuki 1st prototypes
*1952-1966 Prince Motor Company (integrated into Nissan)
*1954 - Subaru 1st car
*1963 - Honda 1st car
*1967 - Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA) is founded
*1986 - Acura is launched in the US by Honda
*1989 - Lexus is launched in the US by Toyota
*1989 - Infiniti is launched in the US by Nissan
*2003 - Scion is launched by Toyota

Manufacturers in 2005

During 2005 Japan manufactured 10,799,299 motor vehicles. The 12 following makers have their factories in Japan.

Toyota

uzuki

Mitsubishi

Daimler-Chrysler

UD Nissan Diesel

References

Further reading

*cite book |title=Car Wars: The Untold Story |year=1984 |author=Robert Sobel |publisher=E. P. Dutton |id=ISBN 0-525-24289-9