Tesla’s sold in the U.S. have a great deal of parts supplied and vehicles assembled here, and the company claims it has the “most American-made cars.” Varying trims of the Tesla Model Y and 3 are at least 85% domestic content, according to an annual Made in America auto index.
For comparison, Ford builds about 80% of the vehicles it sells in the U.S. domestically.
The American and European car industries are “severely affected by tariffs. On top of the 25% tariff imposed on vehicles, we are impacted by layer upon layer of additional compounding tariffs including those on aluminum, steel, and parts,” Stellantis Chairman John Elkann said in the company’s annual general meeting Tuesday, noting at the same time, the Chinese auto market’s potential for growth this year.
“But it’s not too late if the U.S. and Europe take the necessary urgent actions to promote an orderly transition,” Elkann added. “We are encouraged by what President Trump indicated yesterday on tariffs for the car industry.”
Though Trump says his tariffs are intended to bolster U.S. auto manufacturing, automakers aren’t able to reconfigure their sourcing in short periods of time, experts say.
Because of the nature of the business and the length of time it takes to design product and get manufacturing up and running, it could take years to reevaluate sources of supply and establish new assembly operations.
“Flipping upside down a global supply chain that has been in place for decades cannot happen overnight for the auto industry,” Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives said in a research note, “and we strongly believe the clear right move would be to focus on finished cars made in the U.S.” versus auto parts.