New methods of joining the body units widely used in foreign automotive industry and having a number of technical advantages are not used at the Volzhsky automobile plant. Among the major reasons, usually, the application of expensive materials and equipment are named. In this regard, this paper presents the results of the aggregated estimation of a number of specific economic indicators that allow comparing the traditional and the advanced methods of joining. The authors compared the indices of labor intensity, efficiency, and capital investments per unit, as well as the production cost of one meter of joining when applying spot welding, carbon dioxide welding, flame brazing, laser welding, arc and laser brazing. The calculations were carried out separately for short and elongated joints. It is shown, that the methods of joining new for the domestic automotive industry are quite competitive economically in relation to the traditionally used methods. Taking into account technical indicators, the authors formulated the recommendations on the selection of a method of joining. The current tendency to replace flame brazing can be explained by the high labor intensity and production cost of this method of joining. However, the replacement of flame brazing with welding in carbon dioxide is unequal, principally in terms of quality. Arc brazing is the most suitable method of body parts joining for short sections where the leak tightness, good appearance and the quality of the weld are required. To get the elongated joinings, laser brazing is the advanced method ensuring the maximum performance and minimum production cost in comparison with all the methods of joining considered, and the specific capital investments are comparable to other methods considered.