Ford Shows Its American Pride, Part II

Hot on the heels of our post about Ford touting the F-150 as one of the most valuable consumer goods built by an American company comes more patriotic news involving the Blue Oval.

Ford’s other truck, the smaller Ranger, tops vehicles such as the redesigned Chevrolet Corvette C8, the Chevrolet Camaro, and the Dodge Grand Caravan for tops in the American-made index put out by American University’s Kogod School of Business.

The study is published each year, and it takes a variety of factors into account. Those factors include the percentage of American and Canadian parts used, the location of a company’s HQ, and where the profits go.

Each vehicle gets a score based on those factors.

The Ranger scored 85, thanks to the fact that 70 percent of its parts content comes from the U.S. and Canada. Dodge’s Grand Caravan actually has 4 percent more of its parts content sourced from America and Canada, but its score is only 64, since Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is headquartered in Amsterdam and the financial center for the company is in London. Dodge, of course, is still based in southeast Michigan – Auburn Hills, to be precise.

An automatic-trans Camaro scores 83, but cars with clutches drop to 76 points, since the manual transmission is sourced from overseas. The Kentucky-built Corvette ties with corporate teammates the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon for third with scores of 82. The ‘Vette sources 64 percent of its parts from the U.S. or Canada. A quick note on the trucks – the diesel versions score lower.

That F-150? Ninth, if you have the 5.0-liter V8. So maybe today’s earlier news needs to be rethought, hmmm? Another Ford icon (or “Icon”, as the company calls certain vehicles now) is the Mustang, and either cylinder count places it eighth.

Another vehicle synonymous with America is Jeep’s Wrangler, but its scoring varies widely based on engine and transmission combo. The EcoDiesel isn’t scored.

Last-place finishers, all with a score of 1, include the Audi A3, Jaguar F-Type, Porsche 911, and Subaru WRX STI.

When it comes to total domestic content, or TDC, across lineups, the Detroit Three do well, with GM at 70.6 percent, Ford at 67.6 percent, and FCA at 64.1 percent.

[Image: Ford]