Just How American Are GM’s Trucks, SUVs and Vans?
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What constitutes a truck as being American? Is a Honda Ridgeline that is assembled in America and has 75 percent of its parts made in America an American vehicle? Maybe the National Highway Traffic Administration’s American Automobile Labeling Act list can shed some light on the issue.
The list ranks trucks and SUVs based on how much American-made content they contain. Topping the list overall, with 80 percent of their parts made domestically, is the Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana full-size vans. The Ford F-150 contains the greatest number of American-made parts for a pickup truck, with 75 percent of them coming from within the country. The most American SUV is the Jeep Wrangler, at 73 percent, with the General’s Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse, and GMC Acadia close behind at 72 percent.
The Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra twins rank low on the list compared to other pickups, with 40 percent of their parts being made in America. This is bested by nearly all of GM’s competitors, including Nissan, Toyota, Honda and Ram.
Deciding which cars are truly American and which aren’t has become increasingly difficult since foreign automakers started setting up manufacturing facilities in the U.S. The Ridgeline might wear a Honda badge, but few people know it is made up of more American parts than a Silverado. Whether that makes it more American or not is up for you to decide.
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This has always been a touchy subject for me. Due to the fact that I can get very defensive about it. I don’t care where parts come from, where it is designed and even where it is built. As long as it comes from an American company and the profits stay here, I am okay. .
So you’re ok with a GM vehicle being completely assembled overseas and shipped over to the U.S. to be sold so that the corporation could see the dealership and the corporation could benefit, rather than have 75% of the parts made here in the U.S. and assembled in the U.S. (and subsequently sold in the U.S.) so that all the workers can benefit as well?
Nobody writes a check to the emperor for each sale of a Toyota, the sales go towards the gross domestic product, which is a measure of economy, where on the other side, the sales of a toyota go towards the gross national product for Japan. It’s clearly more beneficial for a person to buy something, regardless of where corporate HQ is, that was made in this country!
You know what George, let’s take a stroll through this article and see who looks like the dumb one then: http://money.cnn.com/2009/10/12/autos/most_american_car/?postversion=2009101207
Edgar,
There is no data proving anything in this article you posted a link for. It quotes a couple people, but they give no data to support their stance. This article appears to be based on opinion and not factual data.
Are you seriously that stupid? The profit stays here? Yea for the CEO. The workers, the American people who actually support the economy, and who are your actual piers are not seeing any profit. The American people who make parts aren’t seeing any profit. The American people who design vehicles aren’t seeing any profit. The CEO gets richer by outsourcing jobs. The true driving force behind a solid economy. So who is benefiting? People in another country, the corporate suites/CEO, and dealerships. SO many jobs are lost because of this practice. Do you not see how ridiculous your point of view on this is?
Evan, it appears you’re interested in ensuring that the dollars you spend stay in the US where they benefit Americans. Unfortunately, with only 40% of a GM trucks content coming from the US (1 of the 2 factories is in Mexico), it’s likely that that Honda Ridgeline probably does more Americans more good than that new Chevy truck I’ve been eyeing as most of the money you spend for a truck isn’t profits that go to an American owned firm but rather into the cost of producing it – paying for the parts and the services of the workers.
Don’t get too hung up on where the vehicle is assembled — assembly labor is only a very small portion of the cost of the vehicle. Where are the high values parts coming from? Engine, transmission, sheet metal, electronics?
Considering that japanese companies are making record profits do to the low value of the yen I can take one guess as to where their money is going. I’ll give you one hint, the answer is in the first sentence of my comment.
A Toyota Tundra is more American then any Chevy. Why? It’s actually built here, by Americans.
The GM fat cats took billions of American tax dollars and they still had the audacity to make vehicles that have far more foreign parts than Nissan, Honda and Toyota?!
The above excuses by GM faithful are only valid here in gmauthority fantasy land. In the real world people are upset and GM will pay for this with a continued market share slide. Maybe this time when they run the company into the ground again they won’t get the government teat to suckle on. Let them fail. That would be the American way. Something better will grow in its place.
Now look at the prices of the vehicles a ford f150 where I live STARTS at $40,000 a silverado/sierra starts at $28,000 (again where I live) how many unions are there for a car to be assembled compared to have the parts shipped then built or built then assembled
I bought my 4×4 f150 crew cab 35,000. I am tall and cannot sit comfortably in a chop top Chevy.
That low number is probably because they didn’t convert all three N.A. plants to the 2014 model at once. If I remember, the Mexican plant was second.
In the past GM has been over 60% American or Canadian and I expect the same for next year.
Evan gets this right! Follow the money that’s all you need to be worried about!
So who’s gonna reply to magirus’ comment? Me or you?
Yea follow it all the way to big bonuses for executive big wigs. 40%! Really! What a joke. How about we worry that American jobs and manufacturing stay here so Americans can have decent jobs to support their families. We all deserve a chance to get a piece of the pie.
This speaks volumes of “American quality”! The sad reality is that this country in general has dramatically declined in exporting; the vast majority of our resources come from overseas. So while it’s frustrating to know only 40% of GM’s trucks and SUV parts are actually built in America, at least the final product is assembled in America.
Wrong! It was a loan! It was a stock swap for cash! If you want to be mad at someone be mad at the Fed’s they are the ones that offered money for stock in the company!
I will give you more info if you want!
It never fails to amaze me on just how people can take things like this and not tell the whole story.
Who drove much of the production of RWD V8 vehicles from this country? The US government did. Automaker went to Canada and Mexico long ago to build vehicles and not have them hurt the CAFE.
Now that trucks are getting better MPG and the rules have changed newer plants were built here by the Asian companies that did not have to deal with the old issues.
GM on the other hand had already invested much into a Canadian plant and have kept it in production. Add to this they have also closed down older plants like in WI and other places that just were outdated.
GM is just not going to close down a plant in Canada and Mexico to move it back here till the plant has our grown it’s use or efficiency.
Now with these plants there many of their suppliers also located near by and make things out of country because it is cheaper for than shipping them long distance and trying to make it there right on time as they supply the line.
This is not like GM is importing trucks from China here they are North American built with their engines from NY and Transmission from IN and OH along with most other parts like axles etc. The parts made local are often body panels, wire harnesses and dash assemblies.
Also it is a competitive world too and with the plants they all have to compete for these production jobs every model change. If a plant here will offer to do it cheaper they will win the contract. GM shops these production programs around and usually gives first shot to the new plant but it does not always work out.
Also GM has already move a lot of production back here. Even the Sonic is now MI built. Next the Camaro is coming home to MI and I expect the next gen SS sedan to join it in the same plant that is now making the ATS and CTS.
Many of the Asian companies are here because they can do It cheaper here than home as many plants are not union and they had no legacy cost left over from the past like the big three have had. It has not been a even playing field but things are now leveling out.
In the past the UAW just kept asking for more and GM just kept giving it out. In time it came up to burn both as it got to the point GM just did not have it to give anymore and the UAW demands were killing the host.
Now if GM was importing trucks from China I would be upset but Oshawa is not all that far from me and most of the money comes back to a company bases here unlike the Asian companies who send it home.
As for Mexico we need to keep them viable as if a hostel government ever got in that is all we need along the border as we already have enough issues now. The more gainfully employed the northern part is the less trouble there will be in the future. If you have never been to Mexico or been away from the resort towns then you have never seen poor. It really is a different world when you cross the border in places down there that do not host vacationers. You really understand why they want to come here at all cost.
I can’t find a new Silverado/Sierra in Arizona without a VIN that starts with a “3”. (Made in Mexico). Why do we get screwed here and have to buy the Mexico crap?
Stop. You act like it’s the end of the world! Just remember that they are people too! These jobs are life and death for them! They struggle every single day trying to support their poor families! They eat trash! Next time you want to say something like that, please consider it first instead of looking cold and callous!
High volume models are made in multiple locations to minimize things like shipping costs. If you want a US made pickup, you might have to choose something like a regular cab or specialty model or a 2500/3500.
I wouldn’t worry about Mexican quality though. Audi chose Mexico for their next plant.
And I would bet a lot of those parts on the Mexican assembled truck came from the US too.
The Mexico built trucks are just as good as the ones built in Texas.
There is a lot into this from Government regulation that are put in to protect us but lose our jobs. Just ask a coal miner about that one right now. Also it is about unions that refused to help the companies when they needed a break and lost many job for the people they should have been protecting. And finally it is about companies that just did not keep up and also approved those high priced contracts they should have never approved.
In short there is a lot of people to blame.
I call BS. Always blaming the worker wages. The workers wages have risen minimally compared to big corporate. you are to blame for being $tupid.
Having a plant in Mexico was an incentive by Clinton to keep some of the greaseballs in Mexico.
Just for a moment think about this….. when a factory is built by a u.s. company in mexico is it built by Mexicans with Mexican materials? are the employees Mexican? when the factory is running is it not staffed by Mexicans, does the company pay taxes, wages, benefits????? that is American money goeing to another countrys economy, some goes for Canada, how much money is that?? all the money that a employee is payed stays at home! so in comparison Toyota R & D=u.s. factorys= u.s. engines =u.s. transmissions=u.s. so if we take in to account how much Japanese money gets pumped into our own economy which is better???
Where exactly do these thousands of cars cross the border into the U.S.? That would be a picture worth a thousand words!
I laugh at how people only care about where their car/truck is made … Does anyone bat an eye at 98% of other goods you buy that are most definitely not made in North America? How many iPhone and Samsung users are out there – do they care their phones are made overseas?
I’m ALL for supporting local, but the global economy is changing so much where companies are looking at “global” workforces, not just your local manufacturing plant. It’s the new norm and it’s not going to change.
For the record, my father and uncles all worked for GM in Windsor, Ontario for 30+ years so I was raised in a “support local” family and which is why I still only drive GM products. Unfortunately, it’s not the 1970s or 1980s where US and Canadian manufacturing was in its heyday …