NEWS
Cars.com’s 2021 American-Made Index ranks 90 vehicles, from entry-level sedans to highfalutin’ luxury SUVs. For shoppers interested in buying American-made products, it’s a more useful consolidation than the 344 distinct models up for sale in the U.S. for 2021, as of this writing. But 90 cars is still plenty overwhelming. Not to worry: If you’re shopping for a particular class, we’ll pull out some options below.
Related: 2021 Cars.com American-Made Index: Which Cars Are the Most American?
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Vehicle (AMI ranking)
*Can be configured with two or three rows.
**Considered one model with Atlas Cross Sport for AMI purposes.
Forty-five of the 90 nameplates ranked in the 2021 American-Made Index are SUVs. That’s perhaps unsurprising, given the body style’s popularity. Twenty-one of those 45 offer standard three-row seating, with another four models offering it on some but not all examples. As you might expect, the group spans price ranges and dimensions — from the mid-size, affordably priced Kia Sorento to the full-size Cadillac Escalade and Lincoln Navigator luxury SUVs.
*Can be configured with two or three rows.
**Considered one model with Atlas for AMI purposes.
Two-row SUVs run the gamut of compact and mid-size models, with four of the 24 models above offering two or three rows, depending on configuration. The remaining 20 are two-row only.
Fifteen pickup trucks are rated in the 2021 index, with a variety of mid-size and full-size models.
The 2021 index rates just three sports cars, though all three landed in the top half of the overall index. Most nameplates — cars like the Mazda MX-5 Miata or Dodge Challenger, not to mention entire lineups from luxury brands like Aston Martin, Ferrari, Lamborghini and Porsche — are imported. And one American-made sports car (the Acura NSX, assembled in central Ohio) did not meet our minimum sales and inventory requirements for inclusion.
Budget-minded shoppers still looking to shop American-made can check out the index’s nine least expensive cars, which all start under $25,000 (all prices include destination). All nine are sedans or hatchbacks, a reflection on the added expense of SUVs, with the No. 76 Impreza (starting at $19,720) waging the least on your wallet. For those who want an inexpensive American-made SUV? The budget-friendliest options are the No. 61 Ford Escape ($26,800), No. 69 Honda CR-V ($26,525) or No. 86 Nissan Rogue ($27,000).
As of this writing, automakers sell 80 substantially electrified models in the U.S. for the 2021 model year. So you might be surprised to find just 14 ranked in the AMI. That’s because the balance of substantially electrified cars, from household names like the Toyota Prius hybrid to exotics like the Ferrari SF90 Stradale plug-in hybrid, are imported.
Of those 80 substantially electrified models sold here, automakers build just 27 of them here. Thirteen of those U.S.-built models didn’t meet various AMI thresholds, leaving the batch you see above: Ten hybrids, one plug-in hybrid and three all-electric vehicles.
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Related Video: Cars.com’s 2021 American-Made Index
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