KOSTAL Automobil Elektrik – Energy & Empathy!

The dimmed headlights, the rain sensor, the anti-pinch protection system for electric windows, the first automatic emergency braking function based on a mono camera: KOSTAL invented them all.

KOSTAL Automobil Elektrik is the largest of the four divisions of the KOSTAL Group: a company run by the fourth generation of the family that owns it and with headquarters in Lüdenscheid, in Germany’s Sauerland region. It would be hard to find a car on the road anywhere in the world that didn’t have a single KOSTAL product installed in it.

KOSTAL develops and manufactures innovative, reliable and cost-optimised products for the global automotive industry and is among the top 100 automotive suppliers in the world.

The company’s history goes back over 100 years and is visible evidence of the long-term, reliable and cooperative relationship that KOSTAL Automobil Elektrik enjoys with its customers, employees and everyone connected to us.

With its innovative focus in areas such as electric mobility and new operating concepts, KOSTAL is shaping the future today.

Innovation with tradition

Innovations

1954

The first switch panel

Space-saving and safe operation
1958

Dimmed headlights

A patent for using the indicator switch to dim the headlights
1986

Anti-pinch protection

Safety for electric window systems, with over 100 million units on the market
1994

Rain sensor

Automatic windscreen wiping with over 20 million applications on the road
1998

Complex steering column modules

Integration of wiper, indicator, cruise control and gear selection switches, clock spring cartridge and steering angle sensor makes KOSTAL the market and integration leader
2004

Shift-by-wire gear selection switch

Switching using electrical impulses with a brand-defining control element in the centre console
2011

Front-view camera for driver assistance systems

Greater safety and comfort through opto-mechatronic innovation
2013

Fragrance systems for enhanced well-being

A multi-sensory experience
2015

Driver Monitoring

First automatic emergency brake function based on a mono camera
2020

Onboard Charger

Efficient charging of battery electric vehicles in large vehicle platforms in series production