The Tesla Model Y is the Most American-Made Car: Study
Of the top ten vehicles, only two are built by legacy American automakers.
Cars.com released Tuesday its annual study of the most American-made vehicles sold domestically. The results, representing 95 vehicles built in America during the calendar year 2021, placed Honda and Tesla in the top 10 more often than other automakers including Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis. The study noted that among customers surveyed, a surging number of Americans are interested in purchasing fully electric or hybrid vehicles, and just the same, many want them to be built in the United States.
The study's primary ranking determined which individual models are the most American-made by equally weighing the national origin of their engine, transmission, and parts content alongside their assembly locations and factory job numbers. The most American vehicle for 2021 was the Tesla Model Y, followed by the Tesla Model 3. The No. 3 position was filled by the Lincoln Corsair, which was then backed up by an additional two Teslas, the Model X and S.
In light of the study's findings, it's not surprising that Teslas are so highly ranked. All of California automaker's cars sold in the United States are built here, and the Model 3 is still reasonably inexpensive despite Tesla's price hikes.
"Tesla is the only major automaker to claim 100% domestic production for all cars it sells in the U.S., well above the industry’s roughly 52% average," said Jenni Newman, Editor-in-Chief of Cars.com. "An all-American workforce producing cars with major components sourced stateside is what helped earn Tesla the top spots." As far as the Hondas go, many of its vehicles are built Stateside as well. The four vehicles from the Japanese automaker in the top ten are the Passport, Ridgeline, Odyssey, and Pilot.
Only two U.S.-based automakers, Jeep with its Cherokee in 7th place and Lincoln had vehicles in the top 10. The Chevrolet Corvette was number 11, followed by the GMC Canyon and Chevy Colorado in 12th and 13th, respectively. General Motors had the most vehicles from its fleet on the list of 95 cars, at 19 percent. It was followed by Honda in second at 14 percent, Toyota and Ford tied at 12 percent, and Stellantis in fifth at 9 percent.
The study's findings have broad implications for the auto industry. It found that a huge 41 percent of car buyers say the pandemic has influenced them to buy American when looking for a new vehicle, an increase of 22 percent versus 2020. Likewise, affordability increased 15 percent as the most important attribute for shoppers in 2021. Combined with a 21 percent increase in shoppers considering a hybrid or electric vehicle and the rationale behind the success of the Ford Maverick, although it is not built in the United States, is clear. GM will soon follow suit with other inexpensive purely electric offerings, which, according to this data, is probably a good move.
The full Cars.com's study can be viewed on its website.
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