Oct. 2 (Bloomberg) -- The biggest Japanese automakers earned an average $2,400 more per vehicle sold in North America than U.S.-based rivals in 2005 by charging more and spending less on labor and health care, according to a study released today.

Toyota Motor Corp., Nissan Motor Co. and Honda Motor Co. persuaded buyers to pay an average $24,289 per vehicle, 12 percent more than U.S. automakers, the Harbour-Felax Group study said. The Japanese paid $1,400 less per vehicle on health care, and their workers spent more time on the job.

The study highlights topics that will be raised as General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler prepare to negotiate a four-year contract with the United Auto Workers. Ford and GM are working to revive profit after first-half losses, and Chrysler expects a $1.5 billion deficit in the third quarter.

``It's time for the Detroit Three and the UAW to get together and resolve these problems,'' Jim Harbour, the study's co-author, said in a statement.

This year's first half showed some improvement for GM's per- vehicle earnings. In the first six months of 2006, GM lost $326 for each vehicle it made, compared with $1,271 last year. GM reduced its reliance on rebates and other incentives and cut back on low-profit sales to rental-car companies and other fleet operators, Harbour-Felax said.

Ford's First Half

Ford, by contrast, lost ground. In this year's first half, Ford's per-vehicle loss rose to $738 from $451 in 2005. The study didn't give information on Chrysler's first-half performance.

``I believe you're going to see another strong quarter for General Motors,'' Laurie Harbour-Felax, who wrote the study with her father Jim, said in an interview. ``They really have gone the furthest in engineering efficiencies and lowering labor costs.''

Under current contracts, GM, Ford and Chrysler must continue to pay union employees in ``jobs bank'' programs even when there's no work for them, the study said. By comparison, workers at Toyota, Honda and other Asia-based automakers take less vacation and get shorter breaks.

Sales and market-share declines at GM, Ford and Chrysler ``over the last year have substantially increased the leverage they will have in bargaining with the union,'' said Michael Robinet, an analyst with CSM Worldwide, an automotive consulting company in Farmington Hills, Michigan. ``There's no doubt that jobs banks will be on the negotiating table.''

Market Share

Further contributing to U.S. automakers' problems is their loss of market share in the U.S. Through August of this year, GM's sales have fallen 12 percent, Ford's are down 9.9 percent and Chrysler's are down 9.7 percent. Consumers are buying smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles from Toyota and Honda, and avoiding the large trucks and sport-utility vehicles that the U.S. automakers rely on for profit.

Quality problems add to the U.S. automakers' competitive disadvantage, Royal Oak, Michigan-based Harbour-Felax Group said. Toyota spends $348 per vehicle on warranty costs, compared with more than $500 each at Detroit-based GM, Dearborn, Michigan-based Ford and DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler unit.

U.S. automakers spend as much as $138 more per vehicle on longer vacations and holidays and up to $70 per vehicle on unscheduled absenteeism, Harbour-Felax said.

Japanese automakers provide workers with an average of 30 minutes of break time each day, costing $133 per vehicle, while GM, Chrysler and Ford provide 46 minutes at a cost of $203 per vehicle, she said.

Retiree Costs

Toyota spent $215 per vehicle on health care for active workers and has only a handful of retirees at its North American factories, which it began building in 1986. Last year, GM had to make pension payments to 337,588 retirees and surviving spouses. GM spent $1,120 per vehicle for retiree health costs last year and $515 for active workers.

James Harbour is a former vice president of manufacturing engineering at Chrysler Corp. and the founder a separate company called Harbour Consulting.

James Harbour said discounts and sales to car-rental companies reduced the average selling price for U.S. automakers' vehicles. ``GM gave away a ton of money last year,'' Harbour said today at a press conference.

Ford had a $1.44 billion first-half loss, while GM posted a $2.93 billion first-half deficit. Auburn Hills, Michigan-based Chrysler expects a net loss in the third quarter because of slowing sales of its pickup trucks and SUVs.

Union Talks

Union contracts at GM, Ford and Chrysler expire in September 2007, and the automakers are preparing to negotiate a new four- year accord.

Troy Clarke, head of GM's North America unit, said in an interview last week that he has begun preliminary talks with the UAW on the new contract.

``We got where we are together and we'll get to the future together,'' Clarke said. ``That's the spirit we enter into this with.''

UAW spokeswoman Christine Moroski didn't immediately return a call seeking comment.

Toyota, Nissan and Honda also are helped by exchange rates. ``The Japanese yen is an absolute major problem'' for U.S. automakers, James Harbour said. A weak yen makes the export of Japanese vehicles into the U.S. less expensive.

Of the 1.47 million Toyota models sold in the U.S. through July, 45 percent were imports, 34 percent more than a year earlier. If that pace continues, Toyota will this year top the previous high of 1.02 million vehicles imported in 1986, surpassing a million for the first time since Toyota made its first Corolla in the U.S. late that year.

Currency Advantage

Today's yen-dollar exchange rate widens Toyota's advantage over domestic automakers by $1,054 per vehicle, Harbour said.

Toyota saved $1,000 per vehicle over the last five years by designing components such as hinges and air bags so they can be used on a wide variety of cars and trucks, Harbour-Felax said. In an August speech, she said one U.S. automaker, which she didn't name, offers 81 varieties of side-view mirrors, compared to two for its more efficient Japanese rival.

Of the U.S. car companies, Ford is least adept at using ``common'' components among its vehicles, Jim Harbour said. ``Chrysler is approaching it. GM's whole focus is `common.'''

GM's shares rose 24 cents to $33.50 at 4:01 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. Ford's rose 4 cents to $8.13, while DaimlerChrysler's U.S. shares gained 3 cents to $49.99.

To contact the reporter on this story: John Lippert in Southfield, Michigan at jlippert@bloomberg.net; Barbara Powell in Southfield, Michigan, at 2959 or bpowell@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 2, 2006 16:04 EDT