Tesla’s Model Y has once again claimed the top spot in the list of the most American-made cars in 2024, marking the third year in the row the popular electric crossover has dominated.
Tesla Model Y dominates Cars.com’s American-made index
Cars.com’s 19th annual American-Made Index (AMI) named the Tesla Model Y “the most American-made car” for the third consecutive year.
However, the American electric vehicle giant has lost its clean sweep of the top 4 with its S3XY lineup. In 2023, the order was as follows: Model Y, Model 3, Model X, and Model S.
“The Texas-based all-electric automaker locked out the top four in the 2023 index, but its Model S sedan and Model X SUV come in at Nos. 4 and 9 this year, and noticeably absent from the top 10 is a vehicle that once ranked No. 1 outright in 2021: the Model 3 sedan.”
Cars.com
For context, Cars.com evaluated hundreds of 2024 MY vehicles with the following five key factors to compile the rankings:
- “Location of final assembly
- US and Canadian parts percentage
- Country of origin for available engines
- Country of origin for available transmissions
- US manufacturing employees relative to the automaker’s footprint”
Top 10
Presented below are the top 10 most American-made cars in Cars.com’s 2024 American-Made Index report:
| Model | Origin | Body Style | Powertrain | |
| 1 | Tesla Model Y | Fremont, Calif. and Austin, Texas | SUV | EV |
| 2 | Honda Passport | Lincoln, Ala. | SUV | ICE |
| 3 | Volkswagen ID.4 | Chattanooga, Tenn. | SUV | EV |
| 4 | Tesla Model S | Fremont, Calif. | Sedan | EV |
| 5 | Honda Odyssey | Lincoln, Ala. | Minivan | ICE |
| 6 | Honda Ridgeline | Lincoln, Ala. | Pickup Truck | ICE |
| 7 | Toyota Camry | Georgetown, Ky. | Sedan | ICE |
| 8 | Jeep Gladiator | Toledo, Ohio | Pickup Truck | ICE |
| 9 | Tesla Model X | Fremont, Calif. | SUV | EV |
| 10 | Lexus TX | Princeton, Ind. | SUV | ICE |
Tesla’s vertical integration strategy
Tesla’s strong dominance in Cars.com’s most American-made cars list is primarily due to its “vertical integration approach.”
It enables the Musk-led company to self-produce a significant number of necessary parts in the United States for its North American electric vehicle manufacturing operations.
Interestingly, foreign automakers heavily invested in American production made up the rest of the top 10, including the Honda Passport, Odyssey and Ridgeline, Toyota Camry, Lexus TX, and Volkswagen ID.4 EV.
The origin of a vehicle and its parts feed into the intensifying political tension over import tariffs. The US government recently announced quadrupling import tariffs on China-made EVs from 25% to 100%. Securing a spot in Cars.com’s index proves that a certain vehicle is made in America regardless of the brand’s origin.
