Today, the global economy makes it hard to point out which product is really American. Cars for example - most of the vehicles we drive have parts that come from outside the United States but are assembled here, thus the term, built in the United States. According to some observers, one factor that affects this is that some cars assembled in the U.S. from strictly American-made parts don't sell very well, meaning that fewer Americans are building those models.
So which vehicles really, are the Top American Cars?
To help consumers identify the top ten vehicles which are truly the most American in terms of their parts (like for instance), where they are produced, and their popularity with U.S. buyers, Cars.com recently released its updated American Made Index.
Cars.com's American-Made Index highlights the cars that are built in the United States, have the highest amount of domestic parts, and are bought in the largest numbers by Americans. In order to make it to the list, cars must have a domestic-parts-content rating of 75 percent or more. Cars.com also used the figure alongside the window sticker of new cars to determine a car's domestic parts content. If a car is going to be discontinued in the near future, it was also disqualified.
General Motors has a total of four cars on the list with Ford and Toyota each claiming three spots in the top ten. For more information about the American Made Index, visit Cars.com.
The American Made Index
1. Ford F-150*
Assembly Location: Claycomo, Mo.; Dearborn, Mich.
2. Toyota Camry**, Camry Solara
Assembly Location: Georgetown, Ky.; Lafayette, Ind.
3. Chevrolet Silverado 1500*
Assembly Location: Fort Wayne, Ind.; Pontiac, Mich.
4. Chevrolet Cobalt
Assembly Location: Lordstown, Ohio
5. Ford Focus
Assembly Location: Wayne, Mich.
6. Toyota Sienna
Assembly Location: Princeton, Ind.
7. Chevrolet Malibu, Malibu Maxx
Assembly Location: Kansas City, Kan.
8. Pontiac G6
Assembly Location: Orion, Mich.
9. Ford Escape**
Assembly Location: Claycomo, Mo.
10. Toyota Tundra
Assembly Location: Princeton, Ind.; San Antonio, Texas
*Rankings based on estimated sales breakouts and/or production data
**Excludes hybrid.
Sources: Automaker data, Automotive News, National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration
"With the large increase in the number of Toyota makes and models that are being built and sold in this country, it isn't a surprise that the manufacturer now has three vehicles that made the top 10," said cars.com managing editor, Patrick Olsen. "I wouldn't be surprised to see more foreign makes and models on the list in the near future."
