Throughout the last thirty years, the automotive industry underwent major organisational changes that can be described as the formation of an increasingly integrated Global Value Chain. Emerging countries captured more prominent positions within this type of industrial organisation, both as production and as consumption sites. However, despite this seeming success in industrial development, various issues for emerging countries, their firms and workers remain. This chapter explores the industrial development and industrial policy implications of the current configuration of world automotive production along Global Value Chains. In particular, after outlining the global structure and division of labour in the industry, it engages with the concept of upgrading and illustrates how industrial policy tools available to developing countries pursuing automotive industrialisation have changed over time.