• The world’s largest manufacturer of motor vehicles is Toyota, cranking out about 10.5 million vehicles a year. Toyota also holds the record for the best-selling car of all time, the Corolla, with one sold every 40 seconds around the world. The first Corolla rolled off the assembly line in 1966, and by 1974, it was already the best-selling car in the world. Volkswagen is Toyota’s biggest rival, producing about 8.5 million a year. Ford comes in at #6, with sales of about 6.4 million. How about Ferrari? That company produces just 9,000 of their luxury vehicles a year.
• Toyota might be the largest manufacturer, but they’re far from the most profitable. For 2022, Tesla, Inc. had the largest net profit, BMW was second. Toyota was down the list at #7.
• After Chattanooga mechanic Ernest Holmes helped six men pull a Model T out of a Tennessee creek using blocks and ropes in 1916, he came up with the idea of assembling a system of poles, pulleys, and a chain to connect to his 1913 Cadillac, the first tow truck. Holmes continued to tweak his invention and filed a patent in January, 1918. Many improvements to his tow truck followed, including vehicle lifts, cables, cranes, creepers, and jacks, all of which he quickly patented. His business was a huge success, and during World War II, he was the supplier for the U.S. war effort, supplying upwards of 6,000 military wreckers when the company boasted more than 200 employees. In later years, the Holmes Company became the choice of wrecker for NASCAR. The heritage of the company lives on today, after being purchased from Holmes’ grandsons by Miller Industries in 1990. It’s still located in Chattanooga, along with the International Towing and Recovery Hall of Fame and Museum.
• The average car has about 30,000 parts, right down to every screw, nut, and bolt.
• What’s America’s favorite color when it comes to cars? The most popular color at 23.5% is white, with second place going to black at 21.2%. Gray is next at 16.8%, followed by silver at 12.9%, making almost 75% of all vehicles in a neutral color category. Blue is the next favorite with 9.0% and red at 8.6%. Are you looking for an orange pickup? There aren’t a lot of those on the market — just 0.3% of all pickup listings are orange. Same with pink! You have about a 0.31% chance of spotting a pink car, 1 in 330 cars.
• The 2011 Ford Crown Victoria was the last car to be fitted with a cassette tape player.
• The average American spends over 51 hours a year stuck in traffic, compared to 1982’s figure of 16 hours. That is, unless you live in Chicago, which claims to have the worst traffic in the country, with a driver wasting 155 hours of life every year sitting in traffic. Boston isn’t far behind at 134.
• Every 32 seconds, a vehicle is stolen in the United States. More than a million vehicles were stolen in 2022, up 7% from the previous year. California, Texas, and Washington lead the pack in stolen vehicles, although Illinois had the largest increase, up 35% from 2021. The National Insurance Crime Bureau reports that the most stolen vehicles in 2021 were the 2004 Chevrolet full-size pickup, the 2006 Ford full-size pickup, and the 2000 Honda Civic.
