World's 20 largest producers of cars; India 6th!

India: 3 million units

India is on course to producing 30 lakh (3 million) cars by March 31, 2011, according to automobile sector analysts, making it the world's sixth largest producer of cars.

Currently, India is the world's seventh largest producer of cars. However, by the end of the current fiscal, India would have sped past Brazil, pushing it to the 7th spot and taking the 6th rank.

Car sales, and thus production, in India have been rising at a fast pace owing to easy access to car loans, the launch of a variety of cars across various price segments, the increasing purchasing power of the Indian population and the growing desire among the masses to own a four-wheeler.

According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, India produced 26.78 lakh (2.678 million) cars from April 2010 to February 2011, and is likely to hit the 3 million mark by the time the financial year ends on March 31.

SIAM had earlier projected that India would be among the world's top six carmakers by 2015.

Click NEXT to find out which are the world's largest producers of automobiles . . . 

1. China: 14 million units

China is the largest vehicle producer of the world.

In November 2009, China became the largest automobile market on earth. In 2009, China manufactured 13,790,994 units of various types of cars, including sedans, sport utility vehicles, multi-purpose vehicles, small cars, buses, trucks, etc.

In 2010, the Chinese manufactured 14 million units of cars.

Close to half of all the vehicles produced in China are by domestic companies like BYD, Geely, Chery, Roewe, Martin Motors, Lifan, etc.

The rest are produced by joint ventures that local firms have with foreign car companies like General Motors, Hyundai, Nissan, Volkswagen, Honda, Toyota, etc.

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2. Japan: 8.93 million units

The Japanese automotive industry is the second largest in the world. The nation produced 8,931,412 units of automobiles in 2010.

However, the country was the world's leading car maker till China overtook it in 2009.

Japan is home to auto giants like Suzuki, Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Isuzu, Kawasaki, etc.

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3. United States: 7.80 million units

In 2010, 7.80 million automobiles were manufactured in the United States of America, making it the world's third largest car producer, behind China and Japan.

America's automobile production is dominated by General Motors, Chrysler and Ford Motor, collectively called the Big Three.

The largest foreign car makers in the United States market are Toyota and Honda.

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4. Germany: 5.77 million units

Germany, with a 2010 car production of 5.77 million units, is the world's fourth largest car maker.

Home to great car firms like Mercedes Benz, Daimler, and BMW, German cars have for long blazed a trail when it comes to quality and build of cars. The extraordinary German auto engineering prowess has wowed the entire world and continues to be the darling of car enthusiasts globally.

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5. South Korea: 3.86 million  units

With a production volume of 3.86 million units in 2010, the automobile industry of South Korea is the fifth largest in the world.

Home to Hyundai, Kia and other auto makers, South Korea produces some of the best cars in the world.

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7. Brazil: 2.88 million units

Brazil is the world's 7th largest producers of cars. It produced 2.88 million cars in 2009.

Car majors like Toyota, GM, Ford, Fiat, Mercedes Benz et cetera began to produce cars in Brazil a long time ago. This has led to foreign companies grabbing the lion's share in the Brazilian auto market, with only Brazilian auto maker Troller making some name for itself.

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8. Spain: 1.91 million units

Spain is the world's 8th largest producer of automobiles. In 2010, it produced 1.91 million cars, accounting for almost 4 per cent of the nation's GDP.

The auto sector in Spain also provides employment to over 9 per cent of the working population, according to Wikipedia.

Some of the Spanish car makers include Abadal, Authi Car Company, Barreiros, Biscuter, Elizalde, Empresa Nacional de Autocamiones S.A., Eucort, Hispano-Suiza, etc. Apart from these, most other top global brands too have a big market in the country.

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9. France: 1.90 million units

France produced 1.90 million  cars in 2010. It is the world's 9th largest car maker.

France's car market is dominated by domestic brands like Renault, Peugeot and Citroen which account for over 60 per cent of the total automobile sales in the country.

France, however, does not have the variety in terms of number of manufacturers like other European nations like German or Spain.

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10. Mexico: 1.39 million units

Mexico, with a production of 1.39 million cars in 2010, is the 10th largest car maker in the world.

Mexico, a huge car market, has been an attractive investment destination for many global car companies, including BMW, Volkswagen, Chrysler, Fiat, Ford, GM, Jaguar Land Rover, Peugeot Renault, Nissan, Suzuki, Toyota, Honda, Volvo, etc.

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11. Canada: 1.102 million units

Canada, with an annual car production of close to a million and a half, is the world's 11th largest automobile maker. In 2010, it produced 1.102 million cars.

Till a few years ago, Canada was the 7th largest maker of cars, but the extraordinary rise of the automobile market in India, Brazil, etc, has seen the country cede ground to the emerging markets.

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12. Iran: 1.01 million units

In Iran, after oil and gas, the automobile industry is the most vibrant. Iran is the world's 12th largest producer of cars. In 2010, it manufactured 1.01 million units of cars.

The country has many car firms, namely Iran Khodro, Saipa, Bahman Group, Kerman Motors, Kish Khodro, Raniran, Traktorsazi, Shahab Khodro, etc.

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13. The United Kingdom: 1 million units

The United Kingdom is the 13th largest automobile producer in the world. Predominantly export-oriented, the British automotive sector employs close to a million people.

In 2010, the country produced 1 million  cars.

The biggest car makers in Britain include Land Rover, MINI, Nissan, Toyota and Honda.

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14. Czech Republic:  987,600 units

The Czech Republic, with an automobile production of almost a million units in 2010, is the 14th largest car maker in the world. In 2010, it produced 987,600 automobiles.

Some of Czech Republic's car majors are household names, like Skoda, Daewoo Avia, and Tatra. Praga is another Czech brand that is quite popular. Apart from these, the nation has Ford, Volkswagen, Renault, Hyundai, Kia, Fiat, Toyota, BMW, Chevrolet, Tatra, Volvo, Audi, etc all vying for the market.

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15. Thailand: 978,980 units

Thailand produced 978,980 cars in the year 2010. That feat makes it the world's 15th largest manufacturer of cars.

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16. Poland: 869,000 units

The automotive industry in Poland produced 869,000 cars in 2010 making it the world's 16th largest car maker. Car production in Poland fell by about 2 per cent in 2010 as compared to 2009 due to the economic recession.

Poland is also among the world's top nations offering the best localisation conditions for automotive components makers. The country's skilled labour, low costs, etc attract many a foreign investor to this sector.

Car majors like: Toyota, Isuzu, Volkswagen, MAN, Volvo, General Motors, Fiat, etc have a big base in Poland.

The country is a huge manufacturer of auto components that are used by Mercedes, Nissan, Porsche, Citroen, Honda, Peugeot, Volvo, BMW, Rolls-Royce, Lamborghini and Ferrari, etc.

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17. Turkey: 850,000  units

Turkey is home to many a global car major like Fiat, GM, etc.

The country, with a 2010 automobile production of 850,000 cars, is now the world's 17th largest car maker.

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18. Italy: 840,642 units

Italy, one of the global powerhouses of automobiles, is actually the world's 18th largest producer of cars.

It is home to legendary auto companies like Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Maserati, Ferrari, Lamborghini, etc.

In the year 2010, Italy produced 840,642 cars.

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19. Russia: 790,782 units

In 2010, Russia produced 790,782 cars, making it the world's 19th largest producer of automobiles.

However, Russia's home grown car companies like Avtovaz, Gaz, Lada Kalina, Pobeda, Kamaz, ZIL, etc are under huge pressure from foreign carmakers.

Foreign cars now sell more in Russia than domestic brands do.

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20. Belgium: 545,091 units

Belgium produced 545,091 automobiles in 2010, making it the world's 20th largest maker of cars.

Belgium's car sales have seen a steady rise over the last few months. Having first been buffeted by the recessionary winds, the Belgian market, like that in France, Italy and Spain, has shown encouraging signs of robust growth.