Big Three (automobile manufacturers)

In the United States automotive industry, the term Big Three is used for the country's three largest motor vehicle manufacturers, especially indicating companies that sell under multiple brand names.

The term originated in the United States, where General Motors was the first to form a large, multi-brand, motor-vehicle corporation (in the 1910s), followed by the Ford Motor Company, and the Chrysler Corporation, all before World War II.

The term Big Three has since been sometimes used to refer to the following automakers:

• United States — General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis (historically Chrysler)
• Germany — the Volkswagen Group, the Mercedes-Benz Group, and BMW^[1]
• France — Peugeot, Renault, and Citroën^[2]
• Italy — Fiat, Alfa Romeo, and Lancia^[3]
• Japan — Toyota, Honda, and Nissan^[4]
• South Korea — Hyundai Motor Company, GM Korea, and Renault Korea
• India — Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki, and Tata Motors^[5]
• China — BYD Auto, Geely Auto, and Great Wall Motor are private-owned Big Three while Chery, BAIC Group, and SAIC Motor are state-owned Big Three.