Automotive industry in Indonesia

The Daihatsu Ayla, one of the first Low Cost Green Car alongside the Toyota Agya.

In 2007, the Indonesian government announced a set of tax incentives intended to help develop a "Low Cost Green Car" (LCGC) as an Indonesian people's car. The initial rules required a low price, set lower for villagers, a fuel efficiency of at least 20 km/l (56 mpg_‑imp; 47 mpg_‑US), and at least 60 percent domestic content.[23] A few projects were shown but none made it to market, and in May 2013 a new set of regulations were issued, meaning a 0% luxury tax for cars under 1,200 cc (1,500 cc for diesels) as long as they could meet the same 20 km/l mileage goal. The luxury tax is between 50 and 75 percent for larger and less fuel efficient vehicles.[24]

Indonesia levies an import tax of 10% on foreign imported luxury cars, while the import tariff for imported cars from outside the free trade area is currently at 50 percent.[25][26][27][28]

In Indonesia, the import, marketing, distribution, and after sales service rights of foreign brands are usually held by firms called ATPMs (Agen Tunggal Pemegang Merek, "sole trademark-holding agent").[34] ATPMs may be foreign or locally owned, with certain differences to their licensing requirements and scope. Foreign firms, for instance, may not sell directly to Indonesian consumers (Agency), although Distribution may be foreign-controlled.[34] ATPMs may carry out the manufacture under license, or contract the manufacture to third parties (subject to approval of the principal), or may simply act as distributors and retailers. In the case of special-bodied vehicles, such as the angkots offered by many body builders (karoseri, from Dutch word carrosserie), ATPMs also have relationships with specific companies and often sell their designs through their own showrooms.[35]

NV Spemotri was BMW's main importer of motorcycles during the 1950s; they mainly brought in the 250cc one-cylinder R25, R26, and R27.[36] A handful of BMW 700s were imported to Indonesia by NV Spemotri in the early 1960s; the Salim Group held the import rights until they sold the tiny concession to the Astra Group in the late 1970s.[31] Astra sells BMW through a wholly owned subsidiary called PT Tjahja Sakti Motor. The first BMW to be assembled locally was the 520/4, which was sent CKD and built in Jakarta by PT Indonesia Service Coy. 780 E12 were assembled from 1976 until 1981, with the 520/6 replacing the four-cylinder in 1978.[37] Indonesia Service Coy later built the E28, E30, E36, and E34 models, until assembly was taken over by the PT Gaya Motor company in 1993.

As of April 2001, BMW has their own wholesale company in Indonesia, PT BMW Indonesia, although Astra continues to assemble BMW automobiles through PT Gaya Motor.[38] Assembly is currently of a limited variety of semi-knocked down cars, while the remainder of the range is available CBU.[37]

The Astra Daihatsu Motor headquarters in Sunter, North Jakarta.

In the 1970s and 1980s, PT Daihatsu Indonesia were distributing Daihatsus while assembly was carried out by Gaya Motor - both companies were located in Sunter, Jakarta. PT Daihatsu Indonesia was a joint venture between a Japanese holding company (30%) and PT Astra International (70%), while PT Gaya Motor was a joint venture between the Indonesian government, PT Astra International, PT Multi France and PT Multi Astra.[39] Gaya Motor was a general assembler and also built Peugeot and Renault automobiles in the early 1980s.[39] Daihatsu's Hijet was very popular in Indonesia, especially after the larger one-litre engine from the Charade was introduced - one out of eight four-wheeled vehicles built in Indonesia in 1983 was a Hijet.[20]

In 2003, Daihatsu through PT Astra Daihatsu Motor (ADM) launched its joint project with Toyota, which spawned the Toyota Avanza and Daihatsu Xenia.[40][41][42] Both cars are designed according to Indonesian needs in mind. As an entry-level MPV, it complements the role of Toyota Kijang, offering similar capability in a smaller and cheaper package. Both cars would later send Astra Daihatsu Motor as the largest car manufacturer in the country, surpassing Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia, and saw the Avanza as the best selling car in Indonesia since 2007 until today. 40.8% of Indonesia's total vehicle production output (four-wheel or above) in 2019 was contributed by ADM.

Honda first entered Indonesia in the 1960s through PT Imora Motor as its sole national distributor, with its first model Honda T360 pickup. In 1972, Honda also introduced the two-door Civic to the country.[43] As a response to the vehicle import ban, PT Prospect Motor began local assembly of Honda automobiles in Sunter, North Jakarta. The brand then gained reputation for its passenger cars, contrary to several other Japanese brands which relied on commercial pickups and minivans. Honda's best selling products at the time were the Civic and Accord.

In 1999, Honda established a new joint venture company, PT Honda Prospect Motor (HPM), which took over Imora Motor's sole national distribution rights that same year. HPM integrated Honda's Indonesian automobile businesses, which was previously conducted by four separate companies ranging across vehicle assembly, engine and component manufacturing, and wholesale distribution. A new manufacturing plant in Karawang was opened in 2003.

Mercedes-Benz officially entered Indonesian market in 1970, when PT Star Motors Indonesia (nowaday's PT Mercedes-Benz Distribution Indonesia/MBDI) established together with PT German Motor Manufacturing (nowaday's PT Mercedes-Benz Indonesia) in collaboration with Volkswagen in Tanjung Priok. They have since then become the dominant market leader on premium vehicles in Indonesia. Currently, the following models that are locally assembled including the C-Class, GLC-Class, E-Class, GLE-Class, S-Class, GLS-Class, Axor trucks, and some Mercedes-Benz buses.

The Mitsubishi Colt L300 is the vehicle with the longest production run in Indonesia under a single generation. Production started in 1982.

Mitsubishi through PT Krama Yudha Tiga Berlian Motors (KTB) has a long presence in Indonesia, but their first true hit was the Colt T120. This was a locally built version of the first generation Mitsubishi Delica, and from its introduction in the early 1970s it became a seminal vehicle. It was mostly alone in its class and for a generation of Indonesians "Colt" became synonymous with minibus.[44] The T120 was finally discontinued in 1982 and replaced by the L300 (also based on the Delica); but sales never reached their earlier highs. Mitsubishi finally revived the T120 nametag with a Mitsubishi-engined version of the Suzuki Carry Futura called the Mitsubishi Colt T120SS.[44] This alliance with Suzuki was an attempt to challenge the dominance of the Astra Group's Toyota, Daihatsu, and Isuzu.[45]

In 2014, Mitsubishi Motors Corporation announced to build an MMC-owned plant in Indonesia. On 24 March 2015, the construction of a new manufacturing plant in Cikarang, West Java was started. The plant was designed with a maximum production capacity of 160,000 vehicles per year. PT Mitsubishi Motors Krama Yudha Indonesia, owned 51% by MMC was established to operate the plant. The plant was started its operation in April 2017 by producing the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport. At the same time, the passenger cars and LCV operations were transferred from PT KTB to PT Mitsubishi Motors Krama Yudha Sales Indonesia (MMKSI).[46][47] Mitsubishi Xpander was launched in August 2017 and nearly doubled Mitsubishi Motors sales in the country between 2017 and 2018 from 79,807 units to 142,861 units, emerging as the largest market for MMC. In 2019, MMKI surpassed Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia as the second largest car manufacturer in Indonesia by a production output of 193,954 units.

PT Suzuki Indomobil Motor is a joint venture between Suzuki Motor Corporation and the Indomobil Group. Until recently, the company was known as PT Indomobil Suzuki International. The company is located in Jakarta, Indonesia and specialized in manufacturing Suzuki vehicles for the local market. Their first products were the ST10 Carry and Fronte LC20 of 1976. The Carry (soon replaced by the ST20) saw extensive use as an Angkot.[48] Suzuki's first Indonesian activity was in 1970 through its import firm PT Indohero Steel & Engineering Company. Six years later they had built their manufacturing facility in Jakarta, which is the oldest part of the Indomobil Group. Suzuki's sales rose exponentially in the mid-1980s as sales of minitrucks boomed and the Forsa/Swift was introduced: Suzuki Indonesia sold 13,434 vehicles in 1984, followed by 58,032 in 1985.[49]

Since 2004, Suzuki Indonesia's APV (All Purpose Vehicle) budget MPV has been assembled exclusively in Indonesia. Designed in Japan, it is exported to numerous countries since 2005, to the ASEAN and beyond. It is also available with Mitsubishi badging (as the "Maven").

The Toyota Kijang, one of the Indonesian automotive industry icon.

PT Toyota Astra Motor (TAM) was founded in April 1971.[50] Vehicle production began in September 1974 at the PT Multi-Astra manufacturing subsidiary.[50] Toyota Indonesia's most famous product is the Kijang series of light trucks and vans. The Kijang, developed from the Philippine market Tamaraw Revo of 1976, has spawned an entire range of vehicles and is now built in a number of Asian countries including India. The Kijang was one of a series of BUV's, or Basic Utility Vehicles, developed for developing markets by several global manufacturers in the 1960s and 1970s. The Kijang was very successful for Toyota Astra Motor, with the 100,000th example leaving the line in February 1985.[51] Production was almost entirely localized by the mid-eighties, with engine parts as well beginning to be produced in Indonesia by January 1985.[51] The Kijang also caused major upheavals amongst Indonesia's host of small body builders, as the body was built to a whole new standard of quality and was offered directly by Toyota in a number of variants that had hitherto been the purview of the body builders.[35] The success of the Kijang was helpful for TAM as the Crown, Mark II, Land Cruiser, and Corona GL were all struggling in the market place in the first half of the 1980s.[52]

The Land Cruiser dominated the "Jeep" category until the early 1980s, when lighter and more economical competitors began taking away its market share.[52] Unable to compete with the smaller offerings from Suzuki and Daihatsu, Toyota chose to not further increase the local content levels of the Land Cruiser and had withdrawn it from the Indonesian market by 1986.[53] Currently Toyota Astra Motor's production is carried out by PT Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia (TMMIN), which consists of the erstwhile PT Multi-Astra as well as PT Toyota Mobilindo (which was established in December 1976 with production commencing in May 1977).

Toyota and the Astra Group remains dominant in Indonesia, with their market share historically hovering from 35 to 50 percent. They are bigger than the two second biggest brands combined.[54]

Volkswagen advertising pavilion by the National Monument.

Volkswagen and their local partner PT Garuda Mataram was a major player until the mid-1970s but sales dropped precipitously in the latter half of the decade. In 1970, Volkswagen entered into a collaboration with Mercedes-Benz Distribution Indonesia to set up a manufacturing line in Tanjung Priok, Jakarta. The resulting company was called PT German Motor Manufacturing, with Garuda Mataram retaining the Volkswagen distribution rights. The partnership was dissolved in 1979 and Volkswagen went their own way.[55] In or just before 1971 Indonesia's Army Strategic Command (Kostrad) took over the local Volkswagen operations as part of a trend of direct government involvement in vehicle manufacturing (and industry in general).[56] Kostrad owned the Volkswagen agency through its Yayasan Dharma Putra business group, in partnership with two Chinese entrepreneurs.[57]

As with Volkswagen in the Philippines, sales dropped precipitously as the Japanese brands took hold. By 1980, the locally developed Mitra project had come to an end as had assembly of the Beetle and the Typ 181 (Camat). Assembly of German-made Kombis and Transporters ended in 1978.[58] Volkswagen replaced this on their Indonesian assembly lines with the Brazilian-made Volkswagen Combi Clipper. This remained Volkswagen's single model on offer in Indonesia until the middle of the 1980s.[59] By 1986, Volkswagens were no longer available in Indonesia, after 13,162 Volkswagens had been assembled between 1976 and 1985.[60]

In 1998, a new distributor company called PT Garuda Mataram Motor was founded as a joint venture between Volkswagen Group and Indomobil Group, currently, the company assembles and distributes Volkswagens passenger cars in Indonesia.

Wuling Motors (Indonesia) is established in August 2015 as a subsidiary of SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile Company Limited (SGMW) with share composition 50.1 percent of SAIC (Shanghai Automotive International Corporation), 44 percent of GM China and 5.9 percent Guangxi Automobile Group. The company has 60 hectares land in Cikarang, 30 hectares is for the manufacturing and 30 hectares is for supplier park for accessibility of the parts.[61][62][63]

A 1948 Chevrolet Advance Design being unloaded in Makassar in 1949.

The General Motors complex in Tanjung Priok, Batavia (now Jakarta) in 1939.

A variety of General Motors vehicles have been sold in Indonesia, since the early days of the automobile there. General Motors vehicles have been represented in Indonesia since 1915. General Motors established their first local assembly operation (pictured) in Tanjung Priok in February 1927, as "KN Gaya Motor." The location was suitable as there was ample timber nearby, a necessity for car body manufacture at the time.[32] In 1930, the company was renamed "N.V. General Motors Java Handel Maatschappij." Cars from their Jakarta factory were exported all across the region. After having been requisitioned by the Netherlands East Indies government in 1941, on 9 March 1942 all machines and equipment was destroyed to avoid it falling into the hands of the approaching Japanese.[64] Two weeks later the Japanese occupied the plant and interred all foreigners; on 31 December General Motors wrote off the entire enterprise.[64] The plant was taken over by Toyota, and was used to assemble trucks for the military.[65]

In 1946 General Motors Overseas Operations established a Batavia Branch (later renamed "Djakarta Branch") to continue the pre-war activities, building nearly 20,000 vehicles in the next six years.[64] By 1953, activities had mostly ended as Sukarno's pro-Chinese government took power. As of 1954 local partner PN Gaya Motor continued alone; the Indonesian government took over the assets in April 1955. General Motors dissolved this paper operation a year later.[64] The government-run operations did not take good care of the plant and 60 percent of the run-down assets were sold to PT Astra Motor (who, coincidentally, had gotten their start by being allowed to import 800 Chevrolet trucks in 1967) in 1969.[66] Astra had expected to sell Chevrolets but were denied the contract and ended up importing Toyotas instead.[66]

A number of other, smaller companies proceeded to import and assemble a variety of General Motors products. Udatimex/Udatin has generally handled Holdens, while Garuda Diesel/Garmak has sold Chevrolets, Opels, and the short-lived Morina national Basic Transportation Vehicle project.[67] In the early 1970s, PT Kali Kuning (Jakarta) also imported Opels, particularly the Rekord. Chevrolet, Holden, Opel, and Isuzu badging have been used, often placed on the same cars by the various importers.

Holden

At the time of their 1959 introduction to Indonesia (although Holden-built Chevrolets first arrived in 1938) Holdens were sold by Gaya Motor. After gaining some popularity in the 1960s Udatimex (part of Fritz Eman's Udatinda Group in Jakarta) took over in 1970. Another sub-company, PT Udatin, acted as the assembler. From 1954 until 1959, Holden Australia held the General Motors rights to all of Australia and Indonesia. The first Holden to arrive in Indonesia was the FC series.[68] Sales increased considerably when the locally assembled Holden Gemini arrived in 1981. Other locally assembled Holdens were the Torana, Commodore, Statesman, Kingswood, and Premier. In the early 1970s, the HQ Statesman was sold as the "Chevrolet 350" by Garuda Diesel (Chevrolet's sole agent in Indonesia), while the Statesman was sold in parallel by Udatimex.

Garuda also developed an SUV version on the basis of the Isuzu KB, called the Holden Lincah. This was superficially very similar to the Isuzu Trooper, but had locally developed bodywork. A small number of Lincahs were exported to neighboring and Pacific Island countries in the middle of the 1980s.[69] A five-door version of the Lincah was also developed, called the Lincah Gama, but may never have entered production. The Lincah Gama was one of the many cars Malcolm Bricklin planned on importing, following his success with the Yugo.[70] While the Gemini Diesel remained popular with taxi operators, with passenger car sales slowing down Udatimex shut their doors in 1991, and regular imports of Holdens came to an end. The last new Holden introduced in Indonesia was the VL Calais. Even as the Indonesian automobile market has grown rapidly after the Asian Crisis Holden did not return, as GMH's export manager Bob Branson decreed the end of exports to countries with annual sales of less than 500 cars in 2001.[71]

Opel

In January 1993 General Motors again began direct local operations as PT General Motor Buana Indonesia (GMBI) was formed, with a plant with 15,000 vehicle capacity in Bekasi, West Java.[64] 60 percent of the company was held by GM, with the remainder belonging to local partner PT Garmak Motor. In 1997 General Motors took full control of the company. The first locally made productof the new company was the Opel Vectra (1994), followed by the Opel Optima and the Opel Blazer in 1995.[64] As of 2002, the Chevrolet nameplate has replaced Opel in Indonesia.[64] Opels had also been very popular before the war, with the Opel P4 being assembled in Tanjung Priok. A locally bodied 7-seater taxibus arrived in 1932; an ambulance version was added in 1933.[72] The taxi model was called Oplet (short for the trade name "Opelette") - a name which was used for share taxis until the type was abolished in 1979.

Chevrolet

Chevrolet manufactured the Spin MPV in Bekasi, Indonesia between 2013 and 2015.

Chevrolet was one of the most popular brands in Indonesia until the 1960s. In particular the 210-series sold well. Later, the Chevrolet badge was mainly used on various Isuzu products like the Chevrolet LUV and Trooper.

In 2002, Chevrolet replaced Opel as GM's only marque in Indonesia. At the time, the locally assembled Opel Blazer was renamed to Chevrolet Blazer. It was sold alongside Tavera, a rebadged Isuzu Panther and the imported Zafira. In 2005, GM ended Blazer production in Indonesia, effectively rendering their manufacturing plant in Bekasi as dormant. Since then, GM effectively acts as an importer of Chevrolet-badged Daewoo cars from Thailand and South Korea.

In 2012, GM announced that it would reactivate the Bekasi plant to assemble a compact MPV, the Chevrolet Spin for Southeast Asian market. The 58,000 square meter plant represents an investment of USD 150 million, employs 700 people and was planned to produce 40,000 vehicles a year.[73] GM says that the Bekasi plant is a critical part of GM's growth strategy in Indonesia and Southeast Asia. The plant's location fulfills GM's philosophy of "build where we sell and source where we build."[74] GM closed the plant in 2015, citing low sales and rising costs.[75][76] GM status in Indonesia was reverted as an importer.

In October 2019, General Motors Indonesia announced that it would exit the Indonesian market entirely by 31 March 2020.[77][78] Later in February 2020 GM also exited Thailand and Australia, leaving GM without any major presence in right-hand drive markets.[79][80]

Mazda MR90

Mazda Baby Boomer

Mazda Vantrend

Mazda first entered the Indonesian market in the 1960s as an imported brand. In 1985, Indomobil started manufacturing Mazda vehicles in Indonesia through its fully owned plant and was distributed through PT Unicor Prima Motor.[81] In 1989, Indomobil together with Sumitomo Corporation started PT Mazda Indonesia Manufacturing (MIM) plant through a joint venture.[82] The plant would manufacture the Mazda MR90, a car based on the third generation Mazda 323 Familia. It was designated as a 'people's car' to compete with Toyota Kijang. MR90 stands for 'Mobil Rakyat 1990', ('people's car of the 1990s'), as the car was introduced around July 1990. To achieve a competitive price for the car, Indomobil proposed to the government to lower the luxury goods tax from 30% to 0-10%. The proposal was then unexpectedly rejected by the government, citing the absence of a 'national car' regulation and the fact that the car is categorized as a sedan, which means it is considered as a luxury goods. As the result, sales were below expectations, since the car was significantly more expensive than the Toyota Kijang.[83] The Mazda MR90 was later revised and renamed to Mazda Vantrend and Mazda Baby Boomer, hoping to improve sales. In 1998, PT MIM went bankrupt in the midst of Southeast Asian financial crisis and the plant in Tambun was sold to Suzuki.[83]

Between 1998 and 2006, Mazda cars were imported and distributed by PT Unicor Prima Motor before the distribution was taken over by Mazda Motor Corporation, creating PT Mazda Motor Indonesia as the sole importer and distributor.[84] The handover marked the end of production of the locally assembled Mazda E2000 which was introduced in 1996,[85] and also saw PT Unicor Prima Motor transformed into Chery car distributor.[86] Mazda Motor Indonesia solely relied on importing its line-up of vehicles from Japan, Thailand and the Philippines, except the Suzuki-made Mazda VX-1 (a rebadged Ertiga).

In 2017, Mazda Motor Corporation transferred its operations in Indonesia to PT Eurokars Motor Indonesia.[87] Mazda remained an import brand, sourcing Mazda vehicles from Japan, Thailand and Malaysia.

Timor S515

In 1996, the Ministry of Industry and Trade announced a president instruction (Inpress) No. 2 year 1996 regarding the development of the national car industry, instructing the Minister of Industry and Trade, the Minister of Finance, and the State Minister for Mobilization of Investment Funds to immediately realize the national car industry. It also mentioned the pioneer company to do so is PT Timor Putra Nasional (TPN), owned by Hutomo Mandala Putra, the son of president Suharto. TPN is the only car manufacturer to be declared free from luxury goods tax.[88] TPN partnered with Kia Motors to import Kia Sephia sedan as the Timor S515i by a semi knock down (SKD) scheme. The sedan was introduced on 8 July 1996. Due to its low price, the car quickly gained some traction in Indonesia.

However, several countries such as Japan, the United States, and the European Communities immediately protested the national car program and privilege of Timor cars. A lawsuit was then brought to the World Trade Organization (WTO). The program was declared incompatible with WTO rules by Dispute Settlement Body of WTO in 1998. It was proved that the "national car program" violated the World Trade Organization Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Duties because the exemption from taxes is a subsidy contingent upon the use of domestic goods.[89] As such, the company had to stop its operations by a presidential decree (Keppres) No 20 1998 issued on 21 January 1998.

A fleet of Volvo 144's being used as police cars in 1976, a result of Liem's close relationship with the Indonesian government.

Volvo automobiles have been regularly imported to Indonesia since 1971, when Liem Sioe Liong's PT Central Sole Agency gained the concession.[90] By 1975, industrial policy dictated that the cars be assembled locally and Liem responded by creating a joint venture called PT Salim Jaya Motor, operated by his son Albert. They assembled two Volvo models and had a steady market in the form of military and government officials. The venture lost money though, due to the difficulties of collecting money from government officials during the Suharto era. A small number of heavy trucks were also imported. Even with government favor, sales were never very large: between 1976 and 1985, only 1015 Volvo passenger cars (and 201 heavy trucks) were assembled in Indonesia.[91]

The Salim Group still imports Volvo trucks, buses, and construction equipment as of 2017, through a company called PT Indotruck Utama. Since January 2017, Garansindo is the sole importer and distributor of Volvo automobiles in Indonesia.[92]

[7][108]

including passenger cars, light commercial vehicles and heavy commercial trucks

excluding light commercial vehicles and heavy commercial trucks