A total of 79,853 units of passenger cars and pickup trucks were produced in Iran during the 30-day period ending January 20, said Amirhossein Qanati, the automotive deputy of Iran's Ministry of Industries, Mining and Trade.
According to local automotive website Persian Khodro, approximately 95% of the vehicles produced were passenger cars and the rest were pickup trucks. Thirty-four models of passenger cars and only six models of pickup trucks were produced.
Vehicles were evaluated based on recently upgraded standards and classified in five price ranges. In January, Iran's vehicle auditing system was overhauled to make way for the new certifications.
Following the upgrade, cars are given one to five star ratings, while previously they were given a numerical grade above or below zero.
SAIPA's X131 model of Pride held the record in terms of the most number of units produced while the Chinese-derived ASA Besturn B50 (produced by Bahman Group) was at the bottom of the same list.
According to Qanati, the latest data show 19 vehicles received a single-star rating, 10 models have fallen under the two-star rating and five models held three stars. No cars were ranked higher, leaving the four and five star rating class empty.
Compared to the previous month, the quality of two models: Suzuki Grand Vitara and JAC-S5, dropped a star, ASA Besturn B50 was upgraded by one star while the quality of all other vehicles remained unchanged.
The most and least produced pickup trucks were Arisun and Cara respectively. Arisun is produced by Iran Khodro Company while Bahman Group produced Cara in collaboration with Mazda. All six models of pickup trucks produced and assessed during the month-long period received a single star rating.
