If you bleed red, white and blue, you probably eat a ton of American pie, you watch baseball, buy lemonade from the kids down the street and, by golly, you drive an American car. You want to support America in anyway you can, and that's a great thing. But how American is that supposed American car you bought in today's global economy? Is it possible to drive a Toyota that's actually made up of more American parts and labor than lets say a Chevrolet?
We all assume if it's an American company we're safe, but let's not forget the "Imported from Detroit" slogan Chrysler used when some of the most popular models were made in Canada. They got away with this, because for some reason they report anything made in America or Canada as American.
By now, it's common for an automaker to have manufacturing plants all around the world, depending on where there is the most demand for their product, labor prices and export/import considerations. Because of all this, the Kogod School of Business at American University in Washington, DC does a survey every year and comes up with a list of the top car models that contribute to the overall wellbeing of the U.S. economy. More simply put, these are the most American cars.
The most recent survey looks at 2020 models, and the criteria includes profit margin, whether or not a company's headquarters is in the United States, and whether a vehicle's final assembly is conducted in the U.S. They assign number values to all of these, while also looking at whether a car's research and development, engine, and transmission are made foreignly or domestically. They average out these numbers, and voila, you have the most American cars for each year. Let's take a look at the top 10 American cars for 2020.
2020 Made in America Auto Index
Rank Manufacturer Makes Carline
1. Ford Motor Company Ford Ranger All
2. General Motors LLC Chevrolet Camaro AT
3. General Motors LLC Chevrolet Corvette
3. General Motors LLC Chevrolet Colorado Gas
3. General Motors LLC GMC Canyon Gas
4. Fiat Chrysler Jeep Cherokee Latitude AWD
4. Fiat Chrysler Jeep Cherokee Trackhawk
5. Ford Motor Company Ford Ford Explorer 3.0
5. General Motors LLC Cadillac CT4
5. General Motors LLC Cadillac CT5
5. Tesla Tesla Model S
5. Tesla Tesla Model Y
6. General Motors LLC Cadillac XT4
7. General Motors LLC Chevrolet Camaro MT
7. General Motors LLC Cadillac XT5
7. General Motors LLC Cadillac XT6
7. General Motors LLC GMC Acadia
7. Honda Motor Co., Ltd. Acura TLX
7. Honda Motor Co., Ltd. Honda Odyssey All
7. Honda Motor Co., Ltd. Honda Passport All
7. Honda Motor Co., Ltd. Honda Ridgeline
8. Ford Motor Company Ford Expedition
8. Ford Motor Company Ford Mustang 2.3L Ecoboost
8. Ford Motor Company Ford Mustang 5.0L AT
9. Ford Motor Company Ford F 150 5.0L
9. Ford Motor Company Lincoln Aviator
9. Tesla Tesla Model 3 Long Range
9. Tesla Tesla Model X
10. Fiat Chrysler Jeep Cherokee