SIC 3711 Motor Vehicles and Passenger Car Bodies

Encyclopedia of American Industries | 2005 | Copyright

SIC 3711
MOTOR VEHICLES AND PASSENGER CAR BODIES

This industry classification is comprised of establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing or assembling complete automobiles, trucks, commercial vehicles, and buses, as well as specialty motor vehicles intended for highway use such as ambulances, armored cars, hearses, fire department vehicles, snow plows, and tow trucks. This classification also includes establishments involved in manufacturing passenger car bodies and all types of vehicle chassis. Although some establishments within the industry also manufacture motor vehicle parts, establishments primarily involved in manufacturing motor vehicle parts (other than chassis and passenger car bodies) are classified in SIC 3714: Motor Vehicle Parts and Accessories.

Establishments primarily engaged in the manufacture of truck and bus bodies or in the assembly of completed trucks and buses on purchased chassis are classified in SIC 3713: Truck and Bus Bodies. Establishments primarily engaged in the manufacture of truck trailers are classified in SIC 3715: Truck Trailers. Other motor vehicle classifications include motor homes assembled on purchased chassis (SIC 3716: Motor Homes ), motorcycles (SIC 3751: Motorcycles, Bicycles, and Parts ), off-highway tractors (SIC 3523: Farm Machinery and Equipment ), industrial tractors (SIC 3537: Industrial Trucks, Tractors, Trailers, and Stackers ), combat tanks (SIC 3795: Tanks and Tank Components ), and stamped passenger car body parts (SIC 3465: Automotive Stampings ).

NAICS Code(s)

336111 (Automobile Manufacturing)

336112 (Light Truck and Utility Vehicle Manufacturing)

336120 (Heavy Duty Truck Manufacturing)

336211 (Motor Vehicle Body Manufacturing)

336992 (Military Armored Vehicle, Tank, and Tank Component Manufacturing)

Industry Snapshot

The motor vehicle industry represents one of the largest segments within the U.S. economy and forms the core of the nation's industrial strength. In 2001 an estimated 217 million vehicles were on U.S. roads. General Motors, Ford Motor Co., and DaimlerChrysler AG led the U.S. motor vehicle manufacturing industry, accounting for more than half of industry sales, followed by a number of foreign firms—most notably Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co., and Nissan Motor Co.—that manufacture cars in the United States. Collectively, the industry produced nearly 17.4 million vehicles in 2001.

A number of facts demonstrate the industry's overall importance to the U.S. economy. Based on a study conducted by the University of Michigan and the Center for Automotive Research, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers revealed that the motor vehicle industry is among the nation's leading users of computer chips, textiles, aluminum, copper, steel, iron, lead, plastics, vinyl, and rubber. According to the study, almost seven jobs are created for every worker employed by an automaker. At the retail level, 2001 sales of motor vehicles were approximately $375 billion, or about 3.7 percent of the nation's gross domestic product (GDP)—the broadest measure of the nation's economic output.

Organization and Structure

Nine automakers formed a new trade association named Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. The members were General Motors Corporation and Ford Motor Company of the United States; DaimlerChrysler A.G., BMW A.G., and Volkswagen A.G. of Germany; A.B. Volvo of Sweden; and the Toyota Motor Corporation, the Mazda Motor Corporation, and the Nissan Motor Company of Japan. This organization replaced the American Automobile Manufacturers Association (AAMA), which previously represented only American manufacturers. The goals of the group were to work together on public policy matters of common interest to provide credible industry information and data, and seek consistent global regulatory standards.

Globalization of the automobile industry gave rise to the Alliance, which replaced the AAMA. The AAMA, formerly the Motor Vehicle Manufacturers Association (MVMA), was originally founded as the National Automobile Chamber of Commerce in 1915. Its purpose was to administer the cross licensing of patents, and during the 1930s, the organization established a code of fair competition.

Background and Development

History of the Automobile. The modern automobile was not invented by one person. Many people in many nations contributed the ideas, inventions, and innovations required to assemble useful motor vehicles. Roger Bacon, the thirteenth-century English philosopher and scientist, prophesied its development. Leonardo da Vinci envisioned plans for its construction. Nicholas Joseph Cugnot constructed the first functioning self-propelled unit; Cugnot's vehicle, built in 1769, had three wheels and was powered with a steam engine. The first U.S. patent for a self-propelled vehicle was awarded to Oliver Evans by the state of Maryland in 1787. The newly organized Federal Patent Office awarded its first patent for a self-propelled land carriage to Nathan Read in 1791. By 1891 the country had seen more than 100 renderings of motorized vehicles.

The first internal combustion engine was developed by the Belgian inventor, Etienne Lenoir. He used it to power a car during a demonstration in Paris in 1862. Nicholas Otto, a German inventor, developed a quieter, four-stroke, coal-gas engine in 1878. The first gasoline vehicles were developed in 1885 by two Germans working independently—Karl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler. The world's first motor vehicles built for commercial sale were offered in France by Armand Peugeot in 1889 and Panhard and Levassor in 1890. The French are also credited with coining the term "automobile,"...

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