Commercial vehicle production in South Korea 2011-2023

In 2023, around 334 thousand units of commercial vehicles were manufactured in South Korea. This was a slight increase from the previous year, but the production of commercial vehicles in the country has steadily decreased in recent years overall. 

Made by Daewoo Commercial Vehicles

Apart from Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Motors, the other major player in the commercial vehicle segment was the now-defunct Daewoo Motors. The truck and bus divisions were bought by other companies and are now known as Tata Daewoo Commercial Vehicle and Zyle Daewoo Commercial Vehicle; however the latter has since gone out of business. The passenger car segment continues to operate under the title of General Motors Korea.

A push for electric buses

Various newcomers were challenging the status quo of the bus segment in South Korea. For example, Edison Motors (now called KGM Commercial) declared their ambition through their namesake to become an electric vehicle manufacturer that would rival Tesla Motors in the future. Additionally, Woojin Industrial Systems, a company that deals in microgrids and renewable energy, began production of electric buses.