Facts about the automobile industry

Driving safe and sustainable mobility

• Europe’s cars, vans, trucks and buses are the cleanest, safest and quietest in the world.
• Europe leads the way in clean production, with decreasing quantities of water and energy used to manufacture a vehicle, and much less CO2 and waste produced in the process.

Moving people

• Cars and buses provide freedom and mobility for all, providing us with direct access to education, health and employment.

Delivering the goods

• Trucks and vans deliver the goods and services we take for granted in our daily lives, carrying 76.7% of freight transported over land and delivering 14.7 billion tonnes of goods per year.

Serving the community

• Many of our essential public services – such as postal, waste and emergency services – are delivered by cars, trucks and vans.

Powering economic growth

• The turnover generated by the automotive sector represents 7% of the EU’s total GDP.
• The automobile industry has ripple effects throughout the economy, supporting a vast supply chain and generating an array of business services.

Creating skilled jobs

• 14.6 million Europeans work in the auto industry (directly and indirectly), accounting for 6.7% of all EU jobs.
• 11.5% of EU manufacturing jobs – some 3.7 million – are in the automotive sector.

Manufacturing in Europe

• Vehicle manufacturing is a strategic industry in the EU, where 18.5 million cars, vans, trucks and buses are manufactured per year.
• Automobile manufacturers operate some 226 vehicle assembly and production plants in the European Union.

Exporting worldwide

• The European auto industry is a global player, delivering quality ‘Made in Europe’ products around the world, and generating a €74 billion trade surplus for the EU.

Generating government revenue

• Motor vehicles account for €440.4 billion in taxes in major European markets.

Spurring innovation

• The automotive sector is the EU’s number one investor in R&D, responsible for 29% of total spending.
• EU automotive investment in R&D has increased by 6.1% to reach €60.9 billion annually.
• Europe leads the world in patents for self-driving vehicles, accounting for 33.3% of all applications.