What is the top 5 cars in America?
See Which Car Companies Are the Most American
T esla is the only automaker that assembled 100% of its U.S.-sold cars domestically last year. And only three other companies — Jeep, Cadillac and Dodge — broke 80%.
President Donald Trump wants to change that, boasting in his first joint address to Congress that he’s already brought jobs back to America through Ford, Fiat–Chrysler, and General Motors, among other companies. All three automakers announced plans to create thousands of American jobs in January.
Ford even decided against investing $1.6 billion in a new Mexican assembly plant, though still plans on expanding its Mexican transmission and engine factories—highlighting the complexity in determining whether a car is “American made.”
This list orders brands by the percent of their cars which are assembled in the United States, according to a TIME analysis of American University’s 2016 Auto Index. Jeep previously held the top spot, until 2014, when the company began producing the Renegade in Italy, reflecting a growing trend of automakers moving assembly outside of the U.S. to cut costs.
Kristin Dziczek of the Center for Automative Research says that Ford is taking a longer view: “Making investments in plants are long term decisions, outlasting even two presidential terms.” More important than Trump’s tariff threats are potential changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement and corporate tax reforms, she says. “There’s a lot of unknowns, that will probably cause people to sit back and see where the dust settles.”
Overall, out of 17.5 million vehicles sold in the U.S. in 2015, about 65% were produced in the U.S. And with American car factories operating at 95% capacity, according to Dziczek, there’s very little room to expand unless companies invest in new facilities.
As noted in the list, there are ten foreign manufacturers that sell cars in the U.S. but do not make any of them here.
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Popular Car Brands
Ford, Toyota, Chevrolet, Honda, and Nissan are currently the most popular car brands in America, accounting for a significant portion of the country’s auto market.
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The Most Popular Car Brands in America
According to recent studies, the most popular car brands in America are Ford, Toyota, Chevrolet, Honda, and Nissan. These five brands dominate the American auto market and have consistently been among the top-selling car brands in the country.
Ford has been a leading car brand in America for over a century and is known for its high-quality vehicles, including the most popular Ford F-series pickup. Toyota is another popular car brand in America, known for its reliable and efficient cars, such as the RAV4 and Camry. Chevrolet, a division of General Motors, is also a popular choice for American car buyers, such as the Silverado and Equinox.
Of course, there are many other car brands available in America, including luxury brands like BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Lexus, as well as relatively small Japanese manufacturers like Subaru and Mazda.
Let’s take a look, Which car brands are on the list.
The ranking is based on 2021 sales in the US, but some brands do not have data available.
Here is the Full Ranking List (Top 50)
2,027,787 Toyota Mass-Market Cars
1,804,824 Ford Mass-Market Cars
1,432,022 Chevrolet Mass-Market Cars
1,309,222 Honda Mass-Market Cars
919,085 Nissan Mass-Market Cars
778,711 Jeep Sport Utility Vehicles
738,081 Hyundai Mass-Market Cars
701,416 Kia Mass-Market Cars
647,328 Ram Trucks Pickup Trucks, Vans
583,810 Subaru Mass-Market Cars
482,437 GMC Pickup Trucks
375,030 Volkswagen Mass-Market Cars
336,644 BMW Luxury Vehicles
322,821 Mazda Mass-Market Cars
329,574 Mercedes-Benz Luxury Vehicles
304,475 Lexus Luxury Vehicles
302,000 Tesla Luxury Electric Vehicles
215,724 Dodge Performance Cars
196,038 Audi Luxury Vehicles
179,799 Buick Mass-Market Cars
157,408 Acura Luxury Vehicles
122,173 Volvo Luxury Vehicles
118,311 Cadillac Luxury Vehicles
115,004 Chrysler Luxury Vehicles
102,037 Mitsubishi Mass-Market Cars
92,400 Land Rover Luxury Sport Utility Vehicles
86,929 Lincoln Luxury Vehicles
70,025 Porsche Luxury Sports Cars
58,553 Infiniti Luxury Vehicles
49,621 Genesis Luxury Vehicles
35,168 Mini Luxury Small Cars
24,269 Maserati Super Luxury Sports Cars
18,252 Alfa Romeo Luxury vehicles
17,149 Jaguar Luxury Vehicles
14,659 Bentley Ultra-luxury Cars
11,155 Ferrari Super Luxury Sports Cars
8,405 Lamborghini Super Luxury Sports Cars
6,178 Aston Martin Super Luxury Sports Cars
4,490 Polestar High performance Electric Cars
2,374 Fiat Small Cars
1,490 Rolls-Royce Ultra-luxury Cars
1,295 McLaren Super Luxury Sports Cars
United States Lucid Luxury Electric Vehicles
France Bugatti Luxury Supercars
United Kingdom Lotus Sports Cars, Racing Cars
United States Rivian Electric Vehicles
United States Canoo Electric Vehicles
United States Pontiac Luxury Vehicles
United States Oldsmobile Luxury vehicles
Croatia Rimac Electric Sports Cars
Even though some car brands have closed down or reduced their operations in the United States market, they are still very popular among American consumers. For example, Pontiac, Saturn and Oldsmobile were all General Motors (GM) brands that were discontinued in the 2000s, but many of their models still have a loyal following in the used car market.
Similarly, other brands like Plymouth and Mercury have also been discontinued, but their cars remain popular among collectors and enthusiasts. Moreover, some foreign brands like Saab and Suzuki have also left the US market, but they still have a dedicated fan base that appreciates their unique features and designs.
Overall, the popularity of a car brand is not only determined by its availability in the market, but also by its reputation, quality, and performance. Even though some car brands have closed down, they have left a lasting impact on the American car industry and continue to be remembered and appreciated by their fans.
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Rank | Company | Country |
---|---|---|
#1 | Volkswagen | Germany |
#2 | Toyota | Japan |
#3 | Stellantis | Netherlands |
#4 | Mercedes-Benz Group | Germany |
#5 | Ford Motor | United States |
Rank | Company | Country |
---|---|---|
#1 | Michelin | France |
#2 | Bridgestone | Japan |
#3 | Continental | Germany |
#4 | Goodyear | United States |
#5 | Sumitomo | Japan |
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The Best Selling Cars in America of the 1990s
The evolution of cars in the U.S. has seen some exciting fads over the years. However, once Japanese vehicles entered the U.S. market, the best-selling cars in the auto industry were forever changed. The 1990s saw various new options, but only three cars took the top spot over ten years.
The best selling car in 1990 was the Honda Accord
The 1990s were not known for style; ask anyone who lived through it. However, the Honda Accord would beg to differ. For 1990 and 1991, the stylish Honda Accord was the best-selling car on the market, according to Visual Capitalist. In 1990, the Honda Accord sold 417,179 units alone. By the time 1991 rolled around, that number dropped a bit to 399,297 units. Overall, that’s 816,476 Accords sold in the U.S. over two years.
The Accord was also the most popular vehicle in 1989, selling 362,707 units during the year. 1989 was the first year that a Honda vehicle was the best-selling brand in the country. Previously, American brands like Chevrolet, Oldsmobile, and Ford took the lead. The Oldsmobile Cutless was the best-selling car from 1978 through 1981, and again in 1983.
In 2001, the Honda Accord was the most popular car, again selling 414,718 vehicles in one year.
The best selling car from ’93 to ’96 was the Ford Taurus
According to Visual Capitalist, automakers sold over 348 million cars between 1978 and 2020. That’s an average of about 8.1 million vehicles per year.
“From 1978 to 1988, two of the “Big Three” Detroit-based auto manufacturers had the best-selling cars in the country. GM had two models of the Oldsmobile Cutlass and two different Chevrolets in the top spot, while Ford was able to compete with the compact Ford Escort.”
Visual Capitalist
After that, Japanese cars took the lead for the reliability and affordability these brands offered. In 1992, the Ford Taurus sold 409,751 units, which went down to 360,448 in 1993. By 1994, the Taurus sold 397,037 units, 366,266 in ’95, and 401,049 in ’96. That’s 1,934,551 Ford Taurus vehicles sold over five years. Besides the Toyota Camry, the Taurus had the longest best-selling car streak of five years.
The Toyota Camry took the crown from ’97 through ’99
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Once the Toyota Camry drove onto the scene, it was over for the other vehicles. In 1997, the Toyota Camry bumped the Taurus from the top spot. It sold 397,156 cars the first year, followed by 429,575 in 1998. That number increased to 448,162 in 1999 and continued through 2001 when the Honda Accord made an appearance.
From 2002 until 2020, the Toyota Camry was the best-selling car. It had a four-year streak from 1997 to 2000, and then a 19-year streak through last year. That is 9,177,081 Camry’s sold over 19 years in the top spot.
Toyota has yet to relinquish its hold on the U.S. market. Toyota has remained the world’s largest automaker for most of the previous 30 years. Additionally, the Toyota Corolla is the best-selling car of all time. Toyota makes reliable and affordable vehicles that buyers can’t seem to ignore. Plus, these vehicles tend to resell pretty well. What more could buyers want?