Ward's Reports Estimated North American Vehicle Production - December 9, 2005

SOUTHFIELD, Mich., Dec. 9, 2005 -- Vehicle production this week in the U.S., Canada and Mexico is expected to hit an estimated 359,631 units, up 1.6 percent from the 354,118 cars and trucks built last week, according to WardsAuto.com.

Including this week's estimates, calendar year North American output now totals 15,725,797 vehicles, up 0.6 percent from like-2004's pace.

In the U.S., automakers are expected to produce 255,992 vehicles this week, up 3.4 percent from the 247,636 cars and trucks built last week. To date, calendar 2005 U.S. vehicle output totals an estimated 11,522,621 units, down 0.3 percent compared to the 11,558,607 vehicles built in like-2004.

This week's Canadian vehicle production is estimated at 62,339, a decrease of 2.3 percent from the 63,801 units assembled last week. Estimated calendar 2005 Canadian vehicle production now stands at 2,582,625 units, down 0.7 percent compared to the 2,601,206 vehicles produced in like-2004.

Of the cars and trucks slated for production this week in the U.S., General Motors Corp. accounted for 27.5 percent; Ford Motor Co., 23.4 percent; Chrysler of DaimlerChrysler, 13.6 percent; Honda of America Mfg. Inc., 7.7 percent; Toyota Motor Mfg. Inc., 6.8 percent; Nissan Motor Mfg. Corp., 6.6 percent; New United Motor Mfg. Inc., 3.8 percent; AutoAlliance International Inc., 2.3 percent; Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc., 1.0 percent; BMW of North America Inc., 1.0 percent; Mitsubishi Motor Mfg. of America Inc., 0.9 percent; Mercedes-Benz U.S. of DaimlerChrysler, 0.9 percent; and other manufacturers, 4.5 percent.

                     NORTH AMERICA FACTORY PRODUCTION
        This Week   Last Week   Same Week   To Date    To Date  Pct. Change
        Estimated    Revised    Last Year     2005      2004   2005 vs. 2004
  U.S.
  Cars     91,807     94,555     102,527   4,176,365   4,112,783     1.5
  Trucks  164,185    153,081     184,967   7,346,256   7,445,824    -1.3
  TOTAL   255,992    247,636     287,494  11,522,621  11,558,607    -0.3
  Canada
  Cars     33,330     34,854      30,571   1,294,388   1,276,209     1.4
  Trucks   29,009     28,947      28,436   1,288,237   1,324,997    -2.8
  TOTAL    62,339     63,801      59,007   2,582,625   2,601,206    -0.7
  Mexico
  Cars     18,602     20,793      15,044     813,779     730,969    11.3
  Trucks   22,698     21,888      18,113     806,772     742,105     8.7
  TOTAL    41,300     42,681      33,157   1,620,551   1,473,074    10.0
  U.S.\Canada\Mexico
  Cars    143,739    150,202     148,142   6,284,532   6,119,961     2.7
  Trucks  215,892    203,916     231,516   9,441,265   9,512,926    -0.8
  GRAND   359,631    354,118     379,658  15,725,797  15,632,887     0.6
  TOTAL

  Note: All figures include medium- and heavy-duty truck production.

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