Last year's sales of the ACS members, employing more than 20,300 people, reached some EUR 2.8bn, while the projections for this year are even better.

"We estimate that our target - EUR 3.2bn in sales - will be reached this year, while we expect 5-10% growth next year," ACS head Dušan Bušen told the press. Exports account for over 80% of total sales.

Since its founding, the ACS has been focusing on growth and development. According to Bušen, in the past decade the cluster evolved from a small group of individual companies and institutions into "a closely linked network of development partners of most top global car producers".

Matija Fajdiga of the Ljubljana Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, who is also the chief supervisor of the ACS, said that the companies united in the cluster had become "a kind of a global company".

Iskra Mehanizmi CEO and vice president of the ACS Marjan Pogačnik believes the cluster is a success story which could serve as a role model for the country. "Without cooperation nothing can be done," he said.

Despite the negative outlook for the EU and eurozone for 2012, Cimos CEO Zorko Kenda remains optimistic. "Next year will not bring the end of the world. Europe will still be driving."

Europe's Association of Automotive Suppliers (CLEPA) CEO Lars Holmqvist warned that the European car industry faced two big challenges.

One is the Asian market, especially Chinese manufacturers, and the other is more stringent fuel economy standards which the car industry will need to adjust to.