Born in the USA: These are the most American cars of 2017
These cars have the Stars and Stripes embedded in their DNA.
Sixth Place (tie): Ford Taurus
TDC: 80.5 percent
Chicago is the land of deep-dish pizza, rowdy Cubs fans, and midwestern accents. It’s also home to Ford’s factory that churns out the Taurus full-size sedan. Built alongside the Explorer SUV, the Taurus sources approximately 61 percent of its parts from the United States and Canada, according to the AALA. Thanks to the sedan’s domestic roots and stateside assembly plant, though, DuBois’s index charts the Taurus as having a TDC of 80.5 percent.
PHOTO: Ford
Sixth Place (tie): Lincoln Navigator
TDC: 80.5 percent
Like the Taurus, the Lincoln Navigator is AALA listed as sourcing approximately 61 percent of its parts domestically. Unlike Ford’s Chicago-built large sedan, though, the assembly point for the Navigator is Ford’s truck plant in Louisville, Kentucky. Although a new, aluminum-bodied Navigator is slated for the 2018 model year, we expect the Kentucky-built large SUV to hold its place as one of the most American vehicles sold on our shores.
PHOTO: Lincoln Motor Company
Fifth Place (tie): Ford Expedition
TDC: 81 percent
Despite sharing its underpinnings and powertrain with the Lincoln Navigator, the Ford Expedition is just a smidge more American than its more luxurious counterpart, with the American Automobile Labeling Act reporting that the Blue Oval–badged full-size SUV sources 62 percent of its parts from the United States and Canada. While we’re not sure what part or parts tip the balance—is the Navigator’s grille made of imported chrome?—but the Expedition’s slightly higher AALA percentage is enough to push its TDC up to a full 81 percent, 0.5 percent ahead of the Navigator.
PHOTO: Ford
Fifth Place (tie): Jeep Wrangler
TDC: 81 percent
It seems wrong that the Jeep Wrangler isn’t number one on this list. After all, the Wrangler is about as analogous with America as baseball, Johnny Cash, and Old Glory. While the AALA shows that an impressive 74 percent of the Wrangler’s parts are sourced from the United States and Canada, the Jeep’s Italian-American parent company—Fiat Chrysler Automobiles—ultimately drags down the Ohio-built Wrangler’s TDC. Those in search of the most American 2017 Jeep Wrangler will need to check the box for the available automatic transmission, because the six-speed manual transmission is sourced from Germany.
PHOTO: Jeep
Fourth Place: Jeep Wrangler Unlimited
TDC: 81.5 percent
If you truly want to own the most American 2017 Jeep Wrangler, you’ll want the four-door Wrangler Unlimited equipped with the optional automatic transmission. According to the AALA, the 20.6-inch-longer Unlimited sources 75 percent of its parts from the United States and Canada—1 percent more than its smaller sibling. That’s enough extra red, white, and blue pieces to push the Wrangler Unlimited’s TDC up to 81.5 percent.
PHOTO: Jeep
Third Place: Chevrolet Corvette
TDC: 82 percent
The Chevrolet Corvette is America’s sports car, and the fact that it ranks as one of the top five most American cars sold today is absolutely fitting. What is surprising, though, is that just 64 percent of the Corvette’s parts are sourced from the United States and Canada, according to the AALA. Fortunately for Chevrolet, the Corvette’s deep-rooted American heritage in the form of its Bowling Green, Kentucky, assembly plant (and museum!), as well as its U.S.-made small-block V-8 engine and available eight-speed automatic transmission, help the Corvette earn a TDC of 82 percent. Choose to row the Corvette’s gears yourself, however, and the Mexico-built Tremec transmission drops the Corvette’s TDC down to 75 percent.
PHOTO: Chevrolet
Second Place: Ford F-150
TDC: 85 percent
Pickups are America’s most popular vehicles, and the Ford F-150 has been the country’s best-selling pickup for four decades. It would be a travesty if the F-150 weren’t at the top of this list. As it is, those legions of F-150 owners can festoon their trucks with American-flag stickers with pride, since their truck really is 85 percent made in the USA.
PHOTO: Ford
First Place (tie): GMC Acadia Limited
TDC: 85.5 percent
The GMC Acadia may be all new for 2017, but that isn’t stopping General Motors from selling the original Acadia alongside it. Dubbed the Acadia Limited, the older and longer three-row crossover is also the more American of the two. And that’s not just by American University’s math, either, as the Acadia Limited sources 71 percent of its parts from the U.S. and Canada compared with the Acadia’s 65, per the AALA. When that number is crunched against the other factors in generating its TDC percentage, the Acadia Limited comes out as one of the most American vehicles sold in the United States today.
PHOTO: GMC Acadia
First Place (tie): Buick Enclave
TDC: 85.5 percent
Would it surprise you to find out that the Acadia’s sibling, the Buick Enclave, is also a gold medalist for the title of most American vehicle? Didn’t think so. The big Buick is made alongside its GMC counterpart at General Motors’ Lansing, Michigan, assembly plant, a facility that GM claims has produced more than 2 million vehicles over its lifetime. Nevertheless, the Enclave undergoes a redesign next year, which means Buick’s flagship may lose its crown as the most American of vehicles.
PHOTO: Buick
First Place (tie): Chevrolet Traverse
TDC: 85.5 percent
Rounding out the top spot is the third member of GM’s Lambda platform family, the Chevrolet Traverse. Like its upper-crust siblings from Buick and GMC, the Traverse sources 71 percent of its parts from the land of the free (and its neighbor to the north), according to the AALA. That figure, factored in with other elements such as GM’s Detroit headquarters and the Traverse’s Lansing, Michigan, factory, helps Chevy’s big family hauler share the title of most American vehicle with its equally American platform mates. Like the Enclave, the Traverse is completely redesigned for 2018, and while the new crossover will continue to be made in the USA, we’ll have to see whether its reign at the top of this list will continue.
PHOTO: Chevrolet
Sixth Place (tie): Ford Taurus
TDC: 80.5 percent
Chicago is the land of deep-dish pizza, rowdy Cubs fans, and midwestern accents. It’s also home to Ford’s factory that churns out the Taurus full-size sedan. Built alongside the Explorer SUV, the Taurus sources approximately 61 percent of its parts from the United States and Canada, according to the AALA. Thanks to the sedan’s domestic roots and stateside assembly plant, though, DuBois’s index charts the Taurus as having a TDC of 80.5 percent.
PHOTO: Ford
Sixth Place (tie): Lincoln Navigator
TDC: 80.5 percent
Like the Taurus, the Lincoln Navigator is AALA listed as sourcing approximately 61 percent of its parts domestically. Unlike Ford’s Chicago-built large sedan, though, the assembly point for the Navigator is Ford’s truck plant in Louisville, Kentucky. Although a new, aluminum-bodied Navigator is slated for the 2018 model year, we expect the Kentucky-built large SUV to hold its place as one of the most American vehicles sold on our shores.
PHOTO: Lincoln Motor Company
Fifth Place (tie): Ford Expedition
TDC: 81 percent
Despite sharing its underpinnings and powertrain with the Lincoln Navigator, the Ford Expedition is just a smidge more American than its more luxurious counterpart, with the American Automobile Labeling Act reporting that the Blue Oval–badged full-size SUV sources 62 percent of its parts from the United States and Canada. While we’re not sure what part or parts tip the balance—is the Navigator’s grille made of imported chrome?—but the Expedition’s slightly higher AALA percentage is enough to push its TDC up to a full 81 percent, 0.5 percent ahead of the Navigator.
PHOTO: Ford
Fifth Place (tie): Jeep Wrangler
TDC: 81 percent
It seems wrong that the Jeep Wrangler isn’t number one on this list. After all, the Wrangler is about as analogous with America as baseball, Johnny Cash, and Old Glory. While the AALA shows that an impressive 74 percent of the Wrangler’s parts are sourced from the United States and Canada, the Jeep’s Italian-American parent company—Fiat Chrysler Automobiles—ultimately drags down the Ohio-built Wrangler’s TDC. Those in search of the most American 2017 Jeep Wrangler will need to check the box for the available automatic transmission, because the six-speed manual transmission is sourced from Germany.
PHOTO: Jeep
Fourth Place: Jeep Wrangler Unlimited
TDC: 81.5 percent
If you truly want to own the most American 2017 Jeep Wrangler, you’ll want the four-door Wrangler Unlimited equipped with the optional automatic transmission. According to the AALA, the 20.6-inch-longer Unlimited sources 75 percent of its parts from the United States and Canada—1 percent more than its smaller sibling. That’s enough extra red, white, and blue pieces to push the Wrangler Unlimited’s TDC up to 81.5 percent.
PHOTO: Jeep
Third Place: Chevrolet Corvette
TDC: 82 percent
The Chevrolet Corvette is America’s sports car, and the fact that it ranks as one of the top five most American cars sold today is absolutely fitting. What is surprising, though, is that just 64 percent of the Corvette’s parts are sourced from the United States and Canada, according to the AALA. Fortunately for Chevrolet, the Corvette’s deep-rooted American heritage in the form of its Bowling Green, Kentucky, assembly plant (and museum!), as well as its U.S.-made small-block V-8 engine and available eight-speed automatic transmission, help the Corvette earn a TDC of 82 percent. Choose to row the Corvette’s gears yourself, however, and the Mexico-built Tremec transmission drops the Corvette’s TDC down to 75 percent.
PHOTO: Chevrolet
Second Place: Ford F-150
TDC: 85 percent
Pickups are America’s most popular vehicles, and the Ford F-150 has been the country’s best-selling pickup for four decades. It would be a travesty if the F-150 weren’t at the top of this list. As it is, those legions of F-150 owners can festoon their trucks with American-flag stickers with pride, since their truck really is 85 percent made in the USA.
PHOTO: Ford
First Place (tie): GMC Acadia Limited
TDC: 85.5 percent
The GMC Acadia may be all new for 2017, but that isn’t stopping General Motors from selling the original Acadia alongside it. Dubbed the Acadia Limited, the older and longer three-row crossover is also the more American of the two. And that’s not just by American University’s math, either, as the Acadia Limited sources 71 percent of its parts from the U.S. and Canada compared with the Acadia’s 65, per the AALA. When that number is crunched against the other factors in generating its TDC percentage, the Acadia Limited comes out as one of the most American vehicles sold in the United States today.
PHOTO: GMC Acadia
First Place (tie): Buick Enclave
TDC: 85.5 percent
Would it surprise you to find out that the Acadia’s sibling, the Buick Enclave, is also a gold medalist for the title of most American vehicle? Didn’t think so. The big Buick is made alongside its GMC counterpart at General Motors’ Lansing, Michigan, assembly plant, a facility that GM claims has produced more than 2 million vehicles over its lifetime. Nevertheless, the Enclave undergoes a redesign next year, which means Buick’s flagship may lose its crown as the most American of vehicles.
PHOTO: Buick
First Place (tie): Chevrolet Traverse
TDC: 85.5 percent
Rounding out the top spot is the third member of GM’s Lambda platform family, the Chevrolet Traverse. Like its upper-crust siblings from Buick and GMC, the Traverse sources 71 percent of its parts from the land of the free (and its neighbor to the north), according to the AALA. That figure, factored in with other elements such as GM’s Detroit headquarters and the Traverse’s Lansing, Michigan, factory, helps Chevy’s big family hauler share the title of most American vehicle with its equally American platform mates. Like the Enclave, the Traverse is completely redesigned for 2018, and while the new crossover will continue to be made in the USA, we’ll have to see whether its reign at the top of this list will continue.
PHOTO: Chevrolet
Sixth Place (tie): Ford Taurus
TDC: 80.5 percent
Chicago is the land of deep-dish pizza, rowdy Cubs fans, and midwestern accents. It’s also home to Ford’s factory that churns out the Taurus full-size sedan. Built alongside the Explorer SUV, the Taurus sources approximately 61 percent of its parts from the United States and Canada, according to the AALA. Thanks to the sedan’s domestic roots and stateside assembly plant, though, DuBois’s index charts the Taurus as having a TDC of 80.5 percent.
PHOTO: Ford
Sixth Place (tie): Lincoln Navigator
TDC: 80.5 percent
Like the Taurus, the Lincoln Navigator is AALA listed as sourcing approximately 61 percent of its parts domestically. Unlike Ford’s Chicago-built large sedan, though, the assembly point for the Navigator is Ford’s truck plant in Louisville, Kentucky. Although a new, aluminum-bodied Navigator is slated for the 2018 model year, we expect the Kentucky-built large SUV to hold its place as one of the most American vehicles sold on our shores.
PHOTO: Lincoln Motor Company
Fifth Place (tie): Ford Expedition
TDC: 81 percent
Despite sharing its underpinnings and powertrain with the Lincoln Navigator, the Ford Expedition is just a smidge more American than its more luxurious counterpart, with the American Automobile Labeling Act reporting that the Blue Oval–badged full-size SUV sources 62 percent of its parts from the United States and Canada. While we’re not sure what part or parts tip the balance—is the Navigator’s grille made of imported chrome?—but the Expedition’s slightly higher AALA percentage is enough to push its TDC up to a full 81 percent, 0.5 percent ahead of the Navigator.
PHOTO: Ford
Fifth Place (tie): Jeep Wrangler
TDC: 81 percent
It seems wrong that the Jeep Wrangler isn’t number one on this list. After all, the Wrangler is about as analogous with America as baseball, Johnny Cash, and Old Glory. While the AALA shows that an impressive 74 percent of the Wrangler’s parts are sourced from the United States and Canada, the Jeep’s Italian-American parent company—Fiat Chrysler Automobiles—ultimately drags down the Ohio-built Wrangler’s TDC. Those in search of the most American 2017 Jeep Wrangler will need to check the box for the available automatic transmission, because the six-speed manual transmission is sourced from Germany.
PHOTO: Jeep
Fourth Place: Jeep Wrangler Unlimited
TDC: 81.5 percent
If you truly want to own the most American 2017 Jeep Wrangler, you’ll want the four-door Wrangler Unlimited equipped with the optional automatic transmission. According to the AALA, the 20.6-inch-longer Unlimited sources 75 percent of its parts from the United States and Canada—1 percent more than its smaller sibling. That’s enough extra red, white, and blue pieces to push the Wrangler Unlimited’s TDC up to 81.5 percent.
PHOTO: Jeep
Third Place: Chevrolet Corvette
TDC: 82 percent
The Chevrolet Corvette is America’s sports car, and the fact that it ranks as one of the top five most American cars sold today is absolutely fitting. What is surprising, though, is that just 64 percent of the Corvette’s parts are sourced from the United States and Canada, according to the AALA. Fortunately for Chevrolet, the Corvette’s deep-rooted American heritage in the form of its Bowling Green, Kentucky, assembly plant (and museum!), as well as its U.S.-made small-block V-8 engine and available eight-speed automatic transmission, help the Corvette earn a TDC of 82 percent. Choose to row the Corvette’s gears yourself, however, and the Mexico-built Tremec transmission drops the Corvette’s TDC down to 75 percent.
PHOTO: Chevrolet
Second Place: Ford F-150
TDC: 85 percent
Pickups are America’s most popular vehicles, and the Ford F-150 has been the country’s best-selling pickup for four decades. It would be a travesty if the F-150 weren’t at the top of this list. As it is, those legions of F-150 owners can festoon their trucks with American-flag stickers with pride, since their truck really is 85 percent made in the USA.
PHOTO: Ford
First Place (tie): GMC Acadia Limited
TDC: 85.5 percent
The GMC Acadia may be all new for 2017, but that isn’t stopping General Motors from selling the original Acadia alongside it. Dubbed the Acadia Limited, the older and longer three-row crossover is also the more American of the two. And that’s not just by American University’s math, either, as the Acadia Limited sources 71 percent of its parts from the U.S. and Canada compared with the Acadia’s 65, per the AALA. When that number is crunched against the other factors in generating its TDC percentage, the Acadia Limited comes out as one of the most American vehicles sold in the United States today.
PHOTO: GMC Acadia
First Place (tie): Buick Enclave
TDC: 85.5 percent
Would it surprise you to find out that the Acadia’s sibling, the Buick Enclave, is also a gold medalist for the title of most American vehicle? Didn’t think so. The big Buick is made alongside its GMC counterpart at General Motors’ Lansing, Michigan, assembly plant, a facility that GM claims has produced more than 2 million vehicles over its lifetime. Nevertheless, the Enclave undergoes a redesign next year, which means Buick’s flagship may lose its crown as the most American of vehicles.
PHOTO: Buick
First Place (tie): Chevrolet Traverse
TDC: 85.5 percent
Rounding out the top spot is the third member of GM’s Lambda platform family, the Chevrolet Traverse. Like its upper-crust siblings from Buick and GMC, the Traverse sources 71 percent of its parts from the land of the free (and its neighbor to the north), according to the AALA. That figure, factored in with other elements such as GM’s Detroit headquarters and the Traverse’s Lansing, Michigan, factory, helps Chevy’s big family hauler share the title of most American vehicle with its equally American platform mates. Like the Enclave, the Traverse is completely redesigned for 2018, and while the new crossover will continue to be made in the USA, we’ll have to see whether its reign at the top of this list will continue.
PHOTO: Chevrolet
These cars have the Stars and Stripes embedded in their DNA.
Contrary to Aristotle’s assertion, the sum of a car’s parts is greater than its whole—at least if you’re trying to establish how American one car is relative to another.
Thanks to the global economy, today’s cars are a hodgepodge of parts sourced from all over the world. Unlike in the past, a vehicle manufacturer’s global headquarters or a vehicle’s final assembly point can no longer solely determine whether a specific car or truck is a primarily domestic or foreign product.
To help account for the new world of vehicle manufacturing, Frank DuBois, an associate professor at the American University Kogod School of Business, has developed a formula to index just how American a car or truck is. It takes into account factors such as the final point of assembly for a vehicle and its major components, the locations of a manufacturer’s headquarters and its research-and-development centers, and the percentage of U.S. and Canadian parts used in each vehicle, . Crunch all of those numbers together, and, voilà, you come up with the percentage of a given vehicle’s total domestic content (TDC).
After DuBois ran the numbers on 419 vehicles for his 2017 report, the following 10 emerged as the most American cars and trucks sold today. Click through and commence flag waving.