Top 10 Most Efficient U.S. Vehicle Assembly Plants

June 10, 2004; The Associated Press reported the top 10 North American vehicle assembly plants in terms of productivity, according to the Harbour Report, released Thursday by Troy, Mich.-based Harbour Consulting. The figures represent the number of hours needed to build a vehicle:

LISTEN(Audio 03:34) Carlos Ghosn, chief executive of Nissan Motor Co., talks with Bloomberg's Lane Bajardi from Sausalito, California, about the Harbour Consulting study on automakers and the outlook for the sale of its fuel-efficient cars in the U.S. Nissan led the Harbour Consulting study for a 10th straight year with an average 17.3 hours to assemble a vehicle in 2003.

1. Nissan Motor Co., Smyrna, Tenn., (Altima): 15.33.

2. General Motors Corp., Oshawa, Ontario, No. 1: 16.40.

3. GM Oshawa No. 2: 17.03.

4. GM Lansing, Mich., M: 17.96.

5. GM Lansing C: 18.09.

6. Ford Motor Co., Chicago: 18.24.

7. Ford Atlanta: 18.40.

8. Nissan Smyrna (small SUV): 19.08.

9. Nissan Smyrna (Maxima): 19.45.

10. Toyota Motor Corp., Georgetown, Ky., No. 2: 19.50.