SUPERIOR GETS ROLLING ON HIGHER PRODUCTION.

Byline: Barbara Correa Staff Writer

VAN NUYS - Emboldened by rising demand and growing market share, auto parts maker Superior Industries International Inc. said Monday it will expand manufacturing capacity by about 25 percent in the next 12 months.

Operations will be expanded at the Van Nuys-based company's facilities in Pittsburgh, Kan., and Fayetteville, Ark.

``We want (the expansion) in place for the next model year,'' said Jeffrey Ornstein, chief financial officer at the 46-year-old company, which makes cast aluminum wheels and other products for automakers including the big three domestic companies, General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler.

With the rising popularity of light trucks and sport utility vehicles and car buyers putting a greater emphasis on aesthetics, Superior's sales rose 23 percent through the third quarter of the year from 2001. The increase reflects auto makers' steady demand for aluminum wheels, which are now installed on 58 percent of all cars, Ornstein said.

``Aluminum wheels ... are a big selling point for the consumer because it looks better than the iron,'' said Richard Leader, an analyst who follows Superior for Burnham Securities. ``It's also much lighter. It improves fuel efficiency.''

Along with rising demand, the company has continued to snag lucrative new contracts with foreign manufacturers it hasn't traditionally supplied, such as Nissan and Toyota. Additionally, the company has about a 35 percent share of the big three domestic domestic market, Leader said.

Meanwhile, Superior's closest competitor, Hayes Lemmerz International Inc., has been operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection since last December.

``There are no strong competitors out there,'' said Leader.

Aside from the plan announced Monday, Superior Industries has completed expansions in the last two years at its plants in Rogers, Ark. and Van Nuys, added a new plant near an existing facility in Chihuahua, Mexico and boosted operations by 25 percent at its joint venture manufacturing facility in Tatabanya, Hungary.