Hungarian Carmakers Hit by Global Chip Shortage

The global shortage of microchip semiconductors has also caused production to falter at Hungarian car manufacturers, with the unpredictability of parts arrivals making the previously normal order fulfilment pattern untenable.

Companies interviewed by the state news agency MTI said that they are trying to cope with the situation by analyzing the market and organizing production flexibly, and are trying to keep their workforce, but they expect the semiconductor supply problem to continue to plague the automotive industry for months to come.

At Magyar Suzuki, the global shortage of semiconductors in 2021 has led to the loss of about one production unit per month, and production is currently running in one shift, communications manager Zsuzsanna Bonnár-Csonka told MTI. She explained that although customer demand for their models remains high, they are still forced to continuously review their sales plans and adjust them to the production volumes.

Audi Hungaria's operations are also significantly affected by the fact that increased demand for semiconductors has caused a shortfall or significant delay in deliveries of parts. According to the company, this has resulted in the cancellation of several shifts in both engine and vehicle production in the recent period. At present, production in Audi Hungaria's engine and vehicle production is running according to schedule. However, due to the disruption in the supply of spare parts, production has to be temporarily adjusted to the supply of spare parts, which may lead to shift cancellations in the future. The third car manufacturer in Hungary, the Mercedes plant in Kecskemét, has been forced to stop production three times this year due to a shortage of parts caused by supplier difficulties: in January, April and August. According to the information provided at the time, the plant adapted to the situation by flexibly adjusting production, using the time of the production break for maintenance activities and preparations for series production of the new model.