Its Economics 101. Put large factory in town, all those employees need a place to eat, shop, live, etc. Big economic impact on that town.
Ok, Toyota, Honda, Hyundai, you name it, they all have large assembly factories in American towns, those employees have to do all of the above.
Economics 201, executives of Ford, GM and Chrysler and the foundations of those companies give to orchestras, zoos, schools, etc, with the profits of these companies that stay in the United State.
Now most people know those both, but what people don’t know much about is what I am going to call Economics 301. Its really more like 501 (grad level) and its “How its made”.
You see cars are one of the most expensive and complicated things the average American will buy. The only thing more expensive is the house, but due to the “stick built” nature of most houses, that kind of has to be made in America. (See also the future of manufactured homes being outsourced)
With a car, assembly is nice, it takes a bunch of workers, etc. Me and my brother used to spend hours upon hours assembling LEGO blocks, that doesn’t make the blocks made in the US.
How manufacturing really works. There are a ton of companies (OEMs) who make all the components that go into a branded product. With electronics many people know Foxcomm makes Apple’s products. With cars, Ford, and all the rest really do make their cars. They assemble them, make the engines, frames, body panels, etc. But they can’t make every last component.
Step into your car, what’s the first thing you do? (after starting it) Put on your seat belt of course (Don’t be a dummy!). Right after that, you press the radio button. And even if that radio is a Motorcraft or Mopar, instead of the higher end Bose in your Caddy, chances are that little black plastic button was made by another OEM.
Sure the OEM on a Chevy could be in Japan and the OEM on a Nissan could be in the US, but if you look at the origin of materials that comes on each new car, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that American cars tend to have more American components (see also shipping costs, unions, and being American).
Take the Mazda CX-7, its a Ford Edge (or Lincoln MKX). Look at the manufacturer cert, that darn thing is otherwise nothing like its American cousin! Why? Simple economics (401?) It is far less expensive to manufacture a radio button, switch, widget, wingnut or sprocket close to Japan (ie China, Taiwan, etc) than it is in the US. So yes, Mazda has an identical(ish) factory making CX-7′s and 9′s to where Ford makes the Edge and MKX (its actually in Ontario and I will drive by it between writing and publishing this article). Just as they do have a separate body panel manufacturing facility (that one is right in my own backyard here in Buffalo, hence picking the Edge/CX-7 as the example!)
So the next time you’re in the market for a car, think back to economics. Don’t buy the BS you get sold (Consumer Reports, CNN?) and buy American. Your neighbor who makes black radio buttons will thank you, as will his butcher, his baker, his candlestick maker and his banker… Oh wait one of those is you!