1 Brand-New Lexus Model Outranked Almost Everyone on the Most US-Made Vehicles List
Lexus upsized its three-row crossover for 2024, discontinuing the RX L and debuting the Lexus TX. This all-new model, assembled in Princeton Indian, outranked almost every other vehicle you can buy on Cars.com’s index of the most “American-made” vehicles for 2024. Here are the top 10:
Rank | Model | Assembly Location |
---|---|---|
1 | Tesla Model Y | Austin, TX & Fremont, CA |
2 | Honda Passport | Lincoln, AL |
3 | Volkswagen ID.4 | Chattanooga, TN |
4 | Tesla Model S | Fremont, CA |
5 | Honda Odyssey | Lincoln, AL |
6 | Honda Ridgeline | Lincoln, AL |
7 | Toyota Camry | Georgetown, KY |
8 | Jeep Gladiator | Toledo, OH |
9 | Tesla Model X | Fremont, CA |
10 | Lexus TX | Princeton, IN |
How did these models land at the top of the list? The truth is that only 100 models qualified at all. Many models are assembled outside the U.S. Others are assembled here, but are extremely limited production, so they don’t qualify. Heavy-duty trucks also don’t qualify because automakers don’t need to publish information, such as where components originate.
Cars.com ranks the models that do qualify based on four criteria: location of final assembly, engine’s country of origin, transmission’s country of origin, and percentage of all the components that come from either the U.S. or Canada. Automakers must print all of the above info on the window stickers of new cars.
So how did the brand-new Lexus TX outrank all but 9 models? First and foremost, it is assembled in Princeton, Indiana. That helps it out considerably. In addition Toyota/Lexus has many facilities in the U.S.–such as the San Antonio, Texas campus that assembles full-size trucks and SUVs. So many of the TX’s parts may come from other Toyota facilities in the U.S.
The Lexus TX also has another trick up its sleeve. It is based on the Toyota Grand Highlander chassis, and is built alongside that crossover in Princeton. So even though it’s new, it’s made on an existing assembly line. In fact, the regular Toyota Highlander earned #11 on this list and the Grand Highlander came in at #16.