Top 20 Car Brands In Brazil
The car market is a growing sector in Brazil, as credit has become more available for consumers who want to buy a car. In this article, we will take a look at the top 20 most popular car brands in Brazil.
Brazilian Car Industry
The average car price in Brazil is very high compared to prices in North America and many countries in Europe. However, the easy access to credit through loans managed by banks has boostedthe sector in Brazil.
Even though the country has the largest car industry in Latin America, Brazil still relies on imports. It is no coincidence that 7 of the 20 biggest importers in Brazil belong to the car business.
The interest in cars and access to loans makes the country the 4th best-selling car nation. These factors make the industry dynamic, as car companies have the desire to bring products and factories to Brazil.
Top 20 Car Brands in Brazil
The following ranking is based entirely on the revenue and production rates of 2014.
1. FIAT
FIAT has only one factory in Betim, MG, which is responsible for all production in Brazil. FIAT has the highest volume of sales in the country and in 2014, four out of 10 of sold cars were from FIAT´s production: Palio, Strada, Uno and Siena.
2. Chevrolet
The company has the widest variety of “flex” automobiles in the market and Brazil ranks third in terms of the brand’s sales volume worldwide, only behind US and China.
3. Volkswagen
Volkswagen has four factories in Brazil (three in the state of São Paulo and one in the state of Paraná) and focuses on design and safety to target Brazilian consumers. In 2014, Volkswagen sold 576.626 units in Brazil.
4. Ford
The company has 4 factories in Brazil, one in the state of Bahia and three in the state of São Paulo. Recently the brand developed the new Fiesta in an attempt to renew the brand, an extremely successful project that won the approval of Brazilian consumers.
5. Hyundai
Hyundai recently built a production facility in Piracicaba, SP, which is responsible for the production of the model HB20. This model was the first Hyundai car made in Brazil and quickly became the 6th most sold car in the country.
6. Renault
The company has one factory in Brazil, which is located in the state of Paraná, in the city of São José dos Pinhais. The french brand has recently developed a partnership with the Japanese brand Nissan. Renault’s factory in Brazil has also started to manufacture Nissan’s cars
7. Toyota
Toyota has the highest level of customer approval in Brazil. In the mid-size Sedan category, the Toyota Corolla was the most sold car in Brazil in 2014.
The brand has recently built its first factory in Brazil, assembling the models Etios and Corolla. This factory is located in Porto Feliz, São Paulo state.
8. Honda
The brand has two factories in Brazil, one located in the Amazonas and other in the state of São Paulo. Honda´s main business is not cars, despite the position it occupies in the Brazilian car market. The brands main businesses are boat engines and motorcycles. The best-selling motorcycle in 2014 was the Honda CG 150, with approximately 350.000 units sold.
9. Nissan
Nissan and Renault have recently developed a partnership in order to gain market share in the sector of electric cars in Brazil. Nissan focuses on design to target Brazilian consumers. The company has two factories in the country, one in the state of Paraná and one in the state of Rio de Janeiro.
10. Mitsubishi
The Pajero TR4 is the best performer in Mitsubishi’s car sales in Brazil. This model is produced at the Mitsubishi factory in the state of Goiás, which is dedicated to manufacturing jeeps.
11.Citröen
The French company strongly focuses on customer service to target Brazilian consumers. In 2014, its site in Brazil won many prizes for its efficiency and customer support. Citröen shares a factory with Peugeot, located in Porto Real.
12. Peugeot
With only one factory in Brazil in Porto Real - RJ, Peugeot’s best-selling car in Brazil was the Peugeot 206, which was produced between 2001 and 2008 and sold 300.000 units.
13. Kia
Kia has recently been sold to the Hyundai Group, therefore Hyundai and Kia´s cars in Brazil have similar structures. Kia does not have a factory in Brazil, mostly because of bureaucracy and costs.
14. Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is the most commonly sold brand in the Brazilian luxury car sector. The company also produces trucks, buses, cars and engines. The brand is one of the few that has 3 factories in Brazil. One of them has recently been built for production of the Class C model.
15. BMW
BMW focuses on experience and security to attend to the Brazilian market. The brand produces engines and has a large production of motorcycles. BMW built it’s first facility in Brazil in 2014 which is located in the region of Santa Catarina. In 2014, BMW sold 1307 units in Brazil.
16. Audi
With only one factory located in Paraná, Audi targets the luxury car market in Brazil.
17. Chery
Among the Chinese brands, Chery’s cars are the most sold in Brazil, surpassing their direct competitor JAC Motors. Its factory, inaugurated in 2014 is located in Jacareí, São Paulo state.
18. Land Rover
The company was part of the BMW Group and Ford, but since 2008, it belongs to Tata Motors. The brand produces SUVs, which are big cars, attracting Brazilian customers who appreciate space and comfort. In 2014, the brand sold a total of 815 units in Brazil.
19. Jac Motors
The brand competes directly with Chery in Brazil. Jac arrived in Brazil in 2011 and in 2014 built it first factory in the country. It is located in Camaçari in the state of Bahia and it is one of the largest car factories in the country with 5 million square meters.
20. Suzuki
Suzuki´s main products are motorcycles and scooters, but it gained market share in Brazil due to the sales of jeeps which are imported from Japan. Suzuki does not have a factory in Brazil.
From the list, you can see that almost all brands mentioned already have factories established in Brazil. The Brazilian government's relationship with multinational automotive car manufacturers is very good, since the car manufacturers enjoy very attractive incentives for setting up local plants.