Vrrrooom! What does it take to build a car?
Ever wonder how a car is made? Today we visit a manufacturing plant to learn the first steps. Part 1 of two.
from the June 19, 2007 edition
Page 3 of 3
The math of making cars
Building cars involves a lot of numbers. Here's a look at the digits behind the making of cars at the Chrysler Group's Belvidere (Ill.) Assembly Plant.
3.7 million – Square footage of the main assembly plant. That's roughly the size of 77 football fields!
3,400 – Approximate number of employees working around the clock, in three shifts, to build cars.
900 – About the number of robots involved in building cars.
3 – Models of cars currently made at the facility – the Dodge Caliber, Jeep Compass, and Jeep Patriot.
19 – Approximate number of hours it takes to build one Dodge Caliber.
11 – Approximate number of miles of assembly line track an automobile will travel from start to finish, as it's being built.
1,800 – Number of parts in a car, not including "preassemblies" such as the engine, which alone contains thousands of parts.
4,500 to 4,800 – Number of welds in a car, depending on the model.
42 – A new Caliber, Patriot, or Compass rolls off the assembly line every 42 seconds. That's about 1,450 automobiles per day.
15,435 – Manufacturer's suggested retail price, in dollars, for a Dodge Caliber SE produced at Belvidere. How many months – or years! – will it take you to save up enough allowance money to buy one?
– Compiled by Steven Ellis
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