As trade tensions and U.S. auto tariff threats loom on the horizon, a study released Tuesday aims to paint an accurate picture of a vehicle's true American parts content.
In the annual Kogod Made in America Auto Index, General Motors led the pack with the Chevrolet Corvette, which acquired a top score of 83.5 points, followed by the Chevrolet Volt, with 83 points.
Twenty-four vehicles finished in the top 10 because the ranking included tie scores and several vehicle variants.
GM placed seven vehicles, including variants, in the top 10. Besides the Corvette and Volt, it also placed the Cadillac ATS, the Chevrolet Camaro and the GMC Acadia.
Ford Motor Co. landed eight vehicles in the top 10, including the F-150 pickup, Lincoln Continental, Ford Taurus, Lincoln MKC, Ford Explorer and Ford Mustang. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles placed three Jeep Wrangler variants among the top five scores.
The index was created in 2013 by Frank DuBois, associate professor of international business at the Kogod School of Business at American University in Washington, D.C.
If the government applies a 25 percent tariff on all vehicle and parts imports, it will drive up costs of vehicle production, which will be passed along to consumers, DuBois said in a statement.
"The price of vehicles will rise and domestic consumption of vehicles will fall. In addition, retaliation by trading partners will make it that much harder for U.S. vehicle exporters and parts producers to win orders in foreign markets," DuBois said.
Honda Motor Co. was the only foreign automaker in the top 10, placing the Honda Ridgeline, Odyssey and Pilot and the Acura MDX and TLX.
The Tesla Model S finished eighth, with a score of 77.5.
The index showed 86 models tied at the bottom, with a score of 1.
In total, the index ranked 544 vehicles and draws from the American Automobile Labeling Act, which, since 1994, has made it mandatory for automakers to disclose U.S. and Canadian parts content, country of assembly and country of origin for the engine and transmission on the window sticker.
The study also builds off several criteria to determine a vehicle's score, which includes profit margin, labor content, r&d, transmission, inventory capital and other expenses, and body, chassis and electrical components.
- Profit margin: If the manufacturer is based in the U.S., the model receives 6 points, but FCA models receive 3 points because it's a European-American company. If the manufacturer is based outside the U.S., it receives 0 points.
- Labor content: If the vehicle is assembled in the U.S., it receives 6 points; if it's not, 0 points.
- R&D: If the model is a product of a U.S.-based automaker, it receives 6 points. A foreign product assembled in the U.S. shaves 3 points off the score. Imports get only 1 point.
- Transmission: If the transmission is produced in the U.S., it receives 7 points;if it's not, 0 points.
- Inventory capital and other expenses: The model receives 11 points if the vehicle is assembled in the U.S. and 0 points if it's not.
- Body, chassis and electrical components account for half of the vehicle's score.
The index is a cross of multiple factors pulled from research conducted by the Center for Automotive Research, which were used to get a net of total domestic content.
"It's likely that no vehicle has been truly 100 percent American since the Model T," DuBois said in the statement. "And you could argue that some of those parts were mined or manufactured out of the country. This index gives the best current estimation of domestic content for vehicles sold in the U.S."