EVs (electric vehicles) make up about four of the top ten American-made cars in today's auto market.
Honda and Acura, on the other hand, hold nine of the top twenty spots.
“Where do babies come from?” Explaining this to a curious child is much simpler than tackling the daunting question of “Where does my car come from?” After all, vehicles like the Jeep Wrangler, Chevy Colorado, and the iconic, best-selling Ford F-150 seem as American as apple pie, but the reality is more intricate. If only a stork could deliver us new cars.
Cars.com’s annual report, titled “American-Made Index” (AMI), was released on Tuesday, revealing that nearly half of the top twenty cars listed as the most American-made are produced by Honda and its luxury brand, Acura. The index endeavors to answer not just “Where does my car come from?” but also more critically, “How much of my car was made in America, and how much of what I spend benefits Americans?”
The 19th edition of the AMI analyzes over 400 new car models for the 2024 year, based on Cars.com’s new car inventory and on-site audits of dealers nationwide. The index does not consider sales volume, so it does not provide an overall assessment of the domestic automobile economy. The Ford F-Series, led by the F-150, remains the best-selling vehicle in America, thus having a significant impact on the domestic economy that is not fully captured by the AMI.
Instead, the index serves as a benchmark in the murky waters of where the money from a new car purchase flows, and who it ultimately benefits. Its methodology includes assembly location, percentage of U.S. and Canadian parts (including engines and transmissions), and the impact on the domestic manufacturing workforce.
This topic has gained traction this year, especially as federal EV tax credit criteria tighten to favor domestic production and assembly, and as the Biden administration hikes tariffs on Chinese imports: the increase on Chinese EVs in particular jumps from 25% to 100%. After all, it’s an election year.
“Over the last year, domestic manufacturing has been thrust into the spotlight due to recent United Auto Workers organizing efforts, and it remains a hot topic with the upcoming presidential election,” said Patrick Masterson, lead researcher for Cars.com’s American-Made Index. “When it comes to the global automotive industry, the badge on the hood doesn’t always reveal a vehicle’s economic contributions. In fact, 66% of vehicles on Cars.com’s 2024 American-Made Index come from foreign automakers that support communities in Alabama, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio.”
The question of American-made cars affects in-market car shoppers significantly. According to a recent Cars.com survey of 1,003 respondents, 56% indicated they want to purchase an American-made vehicle. Of these, more than half expressed willingness to pay at least 10% more for a new vehicle if it contributes to creating American jobs.
Job opportunities have migrated from Detroit, the long-time epicenter of American automotive manufacturing, to the South. More than half of the top 100 vehicles on the AMI were assembled in the South, with Alabama leading the way, compared to 45% in the Midwest. According to Cars.com, there are 5.4 million workers in the U.S. automotive industry, encompassing automakers, dealers, aftermarket suppliers, repair shops, and other automotive-related businesses.
Tesla remains the leader in American car production, with three of its models in the top ten and the Model 3 ranked 21st (the Cybertruck was not evaluated due to insufficient sales data). Headquartered in Austin, Texas, and with factories in Fremont, California, Tesla is the only automaker in the index whose 100% U.S. sales come from domestic manufacturing. However, the Model 3 dropped out of the top ten for the first time due to changes in Cars.com’s “workforce calculations” for Tesla and its parts content calculation.
Honda and Acura secured nine out of the top twenty spots thanks to their plants in Alabama and Ohio.
What are the top 20 most American-made cars?
Tesla Model Y: manufactured in Fremont, California, and Austin, Texas
Honda Passport: Lincoln, Alabama
Volkswagen ID.4: Chattanooga, Tennessee
Tesla Model S: Fremont, California
Honda Odyssey: Lincoln, Alabama
Honda Ridgeline: Lincoln, Alabama
Toyota Camry: Georgetown, Kentucky
Jeep Gladiator: Toledo, Ohio
Tesla Model X: Fremont, California
Lexus TX: Princeton, Indiana
Toyota Highlander: Princeton, Indiana
Acura RDX: East Liberty, Ohio
Honda Accord: Marysville, Ohio
Honda Pilot: Lincoln, Alabama
Acura MDX: East Liberty, Ohio
Toyota Grand Highlander: Princeton, Indiana
Acura Integra: Marysville, Ohio
Acura TLX: Marysville, Ohio
Ram 1500 Classic: Warren, Michigan
Toyota Tundra: San Antonio, Texas
How many cars are considered to be American-made?
The 401 models sold in the U.S. for the 2024 model year account for derivatives, such as the F-150 being counted separately from the F-150 Lightning due to different factories. It also excludes models that didn't sell enough to qualify, such as those from Rivian and Lucid, or newer models with incomplete sales data, like the Tesla Cybertruck.
Of the 401 models, 134 are produced in the U.S. Another 15 models have split production between domestic and imported lines, while the majority, 252 models, are imported.
American-Made Index methodology
The in-depth study included an analysis of 165,000 new vehicles in inventory, according to the Cars.com database, as well as in-person audits at 700 dealerships nationwide. The analyzed vehicles were weighted on a 100-point scale broken down into five categories, though Cars.com did not disclose the weighting formula.
Location of final assembly
Percentage of U.S. and Canadian parts
Country of origins for available engines
Country of origins for available transmissions
Effect on U.S. manufacturing workforce
Adrian is an Editor. Psychology graduate with over 4 years in the automotive industry, 3 in front of the camera. Occasionally seen at his family owned tyre shop. He will only buy cars that pass the big bottle test.
