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Auto Talk => General Automotive => Topic started by: 12,000 RPM on June 28, 2016, 10:49:28 AM

Title: And the most American car is:
Post by: 12,000 RPM on June 28, 2016, 10:49:28 AM
*bugle toots*

Toyota Camry!

https://www.cars.com/articles/the-2016-carscom-american-made-index-1420684865874/ (https://www.cars.com/articles/the-2016-carscom-american-made-index-1420684865874/)

Even better, the top 5 are all Toyotas and Hondas. And to put the final nail in the coffin:

(https://www.cstatic-images.com/stock/1170x1170/64/img1239201116-1466633302164.jpg)

(http://superdimension.net/gifs/animated/wow.gif)

Didn't see that coming :popcorn:
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: MexicoCityM3 on June 28, 2016, 10:55:56 AM
Hellcat. I don't care about what the so called "experts" at cars.com have to say. We the people are with the Hellcat.
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: 12,000 RPM on June 28, 2016, 11:09:54 AM
More like Gato Del Infierno. I'm a real Mrrcn. Camry XSE V6 please.
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: CaminoRacer on June 28, 2016, 11:18:50 AM
The most Kentuckian :rockon:
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: 2o6 on June 28, 2016, 12:36:11 PM
If anything, it shows how smart Toyota is by having everything for a very popular model localized in the markets where it sells the strongest.
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: 93JC on June 28, 2016, 05:06:29 PM
Quote from: MexicoCityM3 on June 28, 2016, 10:55:56 AM
Hellcat. I don't care about what the so called "experts" at cars.com have to say. We the people are with the Hellcat.

The hecho en Canadá Hellcat?
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: MexicoCityM3 on June 28, 2016, 09:55:06 PM
Quote from: 93JC on June 28, 2016, 05:06:29 PM
The hecho en Canadá Hellcat?
I don't care about so-called facts. The Hellcat is strong and loud and that's all I care about.
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: veeman on June 29, 2016, 11:15:53 AM
So what is better for the American economy?  A foreign brand like Toyota or Honda which assembles their cars in America or a domestic brand which assembles their cars in a foreign country?  I'm sure that's very difficult to answer and maybe no one knows the answer to it.
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: RomanChariot on June 29, 2016, 11:34:53 AM
Quote from: 12,000 RPM on June 28, 2016, 11:09:54 AM
More like Gato Del Infierno. I'm a real Mrrcn. Camry XSE V6 please.

That would put you on the fringe. I think you meant to say Camry LE 4 cylinder.
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: MrH on June 29, 2016, 01:16:23 PM
Quote from: veeman on June 29, 2016, 11:15:53 AM
So what is better for the American economy?  A foreign brand like Toyota or Honda which assembles their cars in America or a domestic brand which assembles their cars in a foreign country?  I'm sure that's very difficult to answer and maybe no one knows the answer to it.

Well, Honda and Toyota and doing a lot of their design for American market cars here too.  Really, the only difference is their HQ and profits are going back overseas.  Pretty much everything else is here.
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: 12,000 RPM on June 29, 2016, 01:19:43 PM
Quote from: veeman on June 29, 2016, 11:15:53 AM
So what is better for the American economy?  A foreign brand like Toyota or Honda which assembles their cars in America or a domestic brand which assembles their cars in a foreign country?  I'm sure that's very difficult to answer and maybe no one knows the answer to it.
The foreign brands, easily, considering all the bailouts and protectionism we wasted money on for the domestics. High key FCA shouldn't even exist outside of Jeep, and it should be under the ownership of an American entity.
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: veeman on June 29, 2016, 02:06:28 PM
Quote from: MrH on June 29, 2016, 01:16:23 PM
Well, Honda and Toyota and doing a lot of their design for American market cars here too.  Really, the only difference is their HQ and profits are going back overseas.  Pretty much everything else is here.

If the headquarters are in Japan, as opposed to Detroit, what does that mean for a country's GNP?  A little bit or a lot a bit?  As far as profits goes, let's say a given Camry has a profit per vehicle of $3000 (I'm making up this number).  If the headquarters are in Japan as opposed to the U.S., I'm assuming the U.S. government gets less tax money from that $3000?  I have no idea.
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: Soup DeVille on June 29, 2016, 02:16:26 PM
Quote from: veeman on June 29, 2016, 02:06:28 PM
If the headquarters are in Japan, as opposed to Detroit, what does that mean for a country's GNP?  A little bit or a lot a bit?  As far as profits goes, let's say a given Camry has a profit per vehicle of $3000 (I'm making up this number).  If the headquarters are in Japan as opposed to the U.S., I'm assuming the U.S. government gets less tax money from that $3000?  I have no idea.

The profits are very thin, and in most cases, the actual company will be Toyota North America anyways.
The number of workers and suppliers in the US makes much more of a difference.

But, this graph is a weird way to try to quantify this, and I wonder about the significance of this number.
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: SJ_GTI on June 29, 2016, 02:29:31 PM
Quote from: 12,000 RPM on June 29, 2016, 01:19:43 PM
The foreign brands, easily, considering all the bailouts and protectionism we wasted money on for the domestics. High key FCA shouldn't even exist outside of Jeep, and it should be under the ownership of an American entity.

I understand the concept you are explaining, but the article in the opie actually says that the American companies, overall, are a much bigger driver of employment in the US overall.

There are some things you have to consider about their methodology.

1. Its not a list of which cars have the highest % of US content, its an estimate of how many jobs exist due to the car.
2. Point number 1 means a car that has higher sales, but a lower % of US content, will still be "more American."
3. It excludes cars below an arbitrary threshold of 75% US content
4. Point three means if a car has 74.9% US content and sells twice times as much as a car on this list that has 75.1% US content, it would mathematically be "more American" using their methodology, except that again they set an arbitrary threshold. There might have been a reason for this threshold originally, but whatever reason they give it would still be arbitrary.

To me, since you are bring the sales volume in to the discussion, it doesn't make sense to create a threshold WRT US content. If a car had 10% US content but outsold all other cars by a factor of a thousand, that is the most American car using their methods. Just live with that or change the methodology.
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: SJ_GTI on June 29, 2016, 02:34:10 PM
Quote from: veeman on June 29, 2016, 02:06:28 PM
If the headquarters are in Japan, as opposed to Detroit, what does that mean for a country's GNP?  A little bit or a lot a bit?  As far as profits goes, let's say a given Camry has a profit per vehicle of $3000 (I'm making up this number).  If the headquarters are in Japan as opposed to the U.S., I'm assuming the U.S. government gets less tax money from that $3000?  I have no idea.

As I understand GNP calculations, whether the profits go back to Japan or not is irrelevant. If the value is added/created in the US (which is what GNP normally tries to measure) it is part of the US GNP. So If TNA buys materials for $10 and sells the product for $100, then they contributed $90 to the GNP, even if their margin on that product is $80 and all that profit is funneled back to Japan.

I am not an expert on the matter though, so I could be wrong (and obviously I am oversimplifying it).
Title: Re: And the most American car is:
Post by: MrH on June 29, 2016, 02:35:35 PM
Quote from: SJ_GTI on June 29, 2016, 02:34:10 PM
As I understand GNP calculations, whether the profits go back to Japan or not is irrelevant. If the value is added/created in the US (which is what GNP normally tries to measure) it is part of the US GNP. So If TNA buys materials for $10 and sells the product for $100, then they contributed $90 to the GNP, even if their margin on that product is $80 and all that profit is funneled back to Japan.

I am not an expert on the matter though, so I could be wrong (and obviously I am oversimplifying it).

Yeah, I think that's right.  It's about value-add.  For something like a Camry, pretty much everything is sourced and assembled here.

A lot of the profits are kept here for reinvestment too.  Similar to how Apple hoardes money in China, so they don't get taxed bringing it back home, I have to imagine everyone is doing that to some degree.