General Motors has halted production at its main South African plant because of the strike by the country’s National Union of Metalworkers.
The US car giant has not been able to access component parts for its cars.
GM told the BBC that its production line was down, but that it has enough cars to sell over the next two weeks.
The current strike is targeted at the steel and engineering sector, which makes products for industries such as mines, automotives and telecoms.
“We undertook contingency planning to minimise disruption of supply to our plant and also to ensure sufficient inventory of finished vehicles,” company spokesperson Gishma Johnson said.
GM, which is not directly affected by the NUMSA strike, is concerned that if the industrial action lasts more than a few weeks, it will not be able to stockpile cars such as small trucks and SUVs.
NUMSA workers are demanding a wage increase of 12% and a housing allowance.
On Thursday night, talks with employers failed to reach agreement after the union rejected their latest offer.
The strike has been underway for four days, but already manufacturers are taking the strain. NUMSA says its strike is indefinite.
Last year, 30,000 NUMSA members in the automotive sector downed tools. The strike lasted one-month and carmakers lost $2bn (£1.2bn) in revenues, with car exports for the international market dropping by 75%.
Since then, vehicle sales have recovered.
The latest NUMSA strike is getting more violent – on Friday, local media was reporting on armed members intimidating non-striking workers.
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