What it is: A breakdown of how many new vehicles have been produced in North America — sorted by automaker, brand, model, country, plant and other categories.
Where it comes from: The production figures are pulled together from a combination of automaker reports, third-party input and Automotive News estimates. Automotive News does not disclose the third-party sources or how it calculates the estimates.
How it’s used: The data can be useful in determining changes in factory production levels over a period of time. It is an especially helpful tool for tracking vehicle demand or for highlighting the operational impact of the global semiconductor shortage and other supply chain snarls and labor challenges in recent years. The data provides a general sense of what inventory levels or sales might be in a given month.
How it might be misused: Because some numbers are estimates, it can be hard to accurately compare production figures between two companies or two production locations. The production tables also do not reflect nameplates that are only sold commercially.