How much does overhead cost to build a new car?

Answer 1

The overhead cost is defined by all and every expense to run the company other than the materials, parts and specific special labor for that car in particular (a special wooden console which is made for that only car by a carpenter specifically hired for that purpose and who does not work in anything else). So it would be all the wages, utilities, financial costs, transportation, plant maintenece, etc divided by the number of cars produced, unfortunately that cost depends on the plant size, number of employees and production figures, so I cannot give you a figure.

But, for example, a way auto makers use to reduce overhead costs is to standarize, so, a starting if a plant produces seats, if you use the same seats for all the cars, then you can divide the operational cost of that plant between all the cars of the brand (or most of them) and reduce the overhead cost on each car, regardless of the model. This is seen a lot in chinese motorcycle makers, they use the same engine and several other parts for several models, therefore reducing overhead cost. Regards