MW For the first time, a majority of the 10 most 'American-made' cars are EVs

By Victor Reklaitis

For 2025, the top 10 in Cars.com's annual American-Made Index includes EVs from Kia and VW. As usual, Tesla models lead the way.

A long-running index from Cars.com that ranks automobiles on factors such as U.S.-based assembly and domestic sourcing of parts has gone electric this year, with six electric vehicles making the top 10 for the first time.

This development comes as a promised U.S. switch to EVs has hit some big speed bumps - and as Cars.com says that "knowing what's made here and what that really means has never been more important."

The lead researcher for Cars.com's 2025 American-Made Index said that having a "majority electric" top 10 for the first time is significant - but only up to a point.

"I wouldn't want to say this is like the inflection point where EVs take over. That's a little ambitious of a statement. But it does raise the awareness that, yeah, there are models that are being made here that are fully electric that you can buy, that might be from down the street," researcher Patrick Masterson said. "I don't assume that shoppers know that, are fully aware of that."

As shown in the table below, Tesla Inc. $(TSLA)$ models captured the first four spots, followed by the Kia EV6 (KR:000270) at No. 6 and the Volkswagen ID.4 (XE:VOW3) at No. 10.

For several years in a row, Tesla models have claimed the No. 1 spot and performed well overall in the index. Cars.com said the EV6 is new to the list this year because it is now assembled at the Kia plant in West Point, Ga.

From MarketWatch's archives (June 2022): Tesla earns the No. 1 spot for back-to-back years in the Cars.com American-Made Index

Top 10 American-made cars for 2025

There are multiple organizations that provide annual rankings of the car models that are the most U.S.-made. EVs also dominated a list from American University's Kogod School of Business that came out in December.

People are increasingly interested in the extent to which their vehicles are American-made because the Trump administration imposed new 25% tariffs on the automotive sector this year. These import taxes target all cars not assembled in the U.S. as well as many auto parts coming from other countries. They're expected to increase the price of new cars by thousands of dollars.

"There's a lot of openness to actually paying a higher price, and I think some acceptance that prices are going up," said David Greene, an analyst at Cars.com. He said a Cars.com survey of nearly 1,000 shoppers conducted this month found that 55% were willing to pay more for a vehicle if it created U.S. jobs.

At the same time, Greene emphasized a point that other analysts have also made - that vehicles priced at $30,000 or below are mostly imported, so the new tariffs have created "a very difficult situation for someone who's seeking affordability right now." He said there are 18 such vehicles, only two of which are made in the U.S.

The new tariffs could help Tesla and other companies that only make EVs, such as Rivian $(RIVN)$ and Lucid $(LCID)$, according to Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Steve Man. He told MarketWatch shortly after the duties were announced that these companies' business model is quite different from that of conventional automakers, in that they are much more vertically integrated. That means they build many more parts - especially higher-cost items - themselves.

Big speed bumps for EVs

While EVs have performed well in rankings of the most "made in the USA" cars, they're running into problems on other fronts.

Analysts at Bank of America Institute last week said internal BofA data shows a sharp pullback in consumer-loan originations for new EVs in recent months, although some of that could be due to an increase in leasing for these vehicles. Loan originations in May were almost 80% below the 2022 average in May, the analysts wrote in a report.

"Looking further ahead, BofA Global Research expects the next four years will be the most uncertain and volatile time ever for EV product strategy, with implied EV penetration rates for the next few years about half of what was estimated last year," they said.

Rental-car chain Hertz $(HTZ)$ has been among the U.S. companies hammered by weaker-than-expected demand for electric vehicles. A year ago, the company expanded its plan to sell off its EV fleet.

Washington's stance on EVs has changed a great deal, as President Donald Trump has rejected former President Joe Biden's embrace of the industry. Earlier this month, Trump linked his fraying relationship with billionaire Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk to his administration's efforts to reduce support for EVs.

There have been expectations for months that Trump and congressional Republicans would end a $7,500 tax credit for buyers of EVs at the end of this year, and that's largely what the version of the GOP tax and spending megabill would do. The bill has passed the House and is now under consideration in the Senate.

-Victor Reklaitis

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June 17, 2025 07:45 ET (11:45 GMT)

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