The Ford F-150 is one of the best selling models of one of the biggest car makers and businesses to come out of America, Ford. The F-150 has been on sale, in one form or another, in America since it’s introduction in 1948. It has even been the countries’ top selling vehicle for an impressive 32 year. Another title that the Ford F-150 has held is the title of the most American Made Automobile, but a relative newcomer to the auto industry, Tesla, could soon take that title away from a vehicle that many believe to be as American as apple pie.
The most American Made Automobile is a title given out by Cars.com. The website measures factors such as; where the parts come from, where the car is manufactured, and where the sales come from. As stated before, the Ford F-150 has been the undisputed champ of this award for a year now, but that all might change thanks to Tesla’s Model S. Tesla is currently constructing a “gigafactory” that they will use to assemble the lithium batteries that they use to power the all electric Model S right here in the US. When this plant is constructed, 90% of the materials used to assemble a Model S will be manufactured in America. This easily defeats the F-150, which only uses 75% American made Materials.
Tesla sales have been steadily increasing since its debut, and the numbers are expected to keep climbing. Another blow to the F-150’s American reputation comes in the form of news that the Ford Motor Company plans to move more of the manufacture of the F-150 to Mexico. When the rapid sales increases are combined with Teslas almost exclusive use of American materials and Ford’s plans to move production abroad, it seems the Ford F-150 won’t have a chance at keeping its title as The most American Made Automobile.