Automotive components are the physical parts and computers inside a car, such as the wiring, the brakes, the airbags and the motors. A car is sold under the carmaker's brand name, but most of these parts are made by other companies. The carmaker designs the car, assembles it and sells it.
The parts come in tiers. A Tier 1 supplier makes a whole system, such as the braking system or the car's electronics, and sells it straight to the carmaker. A Tier 2 supplier makes the components inside those systems and sells them to the Tier 1 suppliers. Both are described under Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers. The global suppliers run large engineering centres in India, and India also has many smaller suppliers that make parts for carmakers here and abroad.
A supplier usually signs a contract to make a part for a car model for several years. The carmaker pays for each part delivered. One supplier can sell the same part to many carmakers, which is why suppliers employ so many engineers.
This zone has three products. The vehicle E/E architecture is the wiring, connectors and computers that run every system in the car. The automotive safety electronics are the airbag controllers, the braking systems and the steering motors, together with their sensors. The powertrain is the engine or electric motor and the gearbox that make the car move.
Every one of these runs on electronic control units, the small computers of a car. Carmakers are now replacing dozens of them with fewer, more powerful ones, so that more of the car can be run and updated by software, as a software-defined vehicle. Safety parts must also meet strict rules of safety certification.
In an electric vehicle, the most expensive part is usually the battery. It is described under battery pack and battery management system.