Cars.com Releases Expanded 2020 American-Made Index®: Ford Ranger Takes Top Ranking, While Tesla and Honda Each Earn Three Spots in the Top 10

CHICAGO, June 23, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Cars.com Inc. (NYSE: CARS), a leading digital automotive marketplace and solutions provider, today released its 2020 American-Made Index (AMI). Now in its 15th year, the AMI is an independent annual list that ranks the new vehicles that contribute most to the U.S. economy based on criteria ranging from U.S. factory jobs and manufacturing plants to parts sourcing. The No. 1 most American-made vehicle for 2020 is the Ford Ranger. To view the complete list, visit www.cars.com/ami.

"This marks the 15th year we have released the American-Made Index, and for the first time, we are ranking a full, comprehensive list of qualifying American-made cars available in the U.S. Of some 350 cars on the market for 2020, 91 models qualified for our index," said Kelsey Mays, Cars.com's senior consumer affairs and vehicle evaluations editor. "The auto industry is highly globalized, but these 91 models bring jobs to America and investments to our local communities — a growing concern for Americans in the current climate."

According to new research from Cars.com, 70% of shoppers consider a car's U.S. economic impact a significant or deciding factor in their vehicle purchase; that's up from 66% who indicated the same in 2019¹. The COVID-19 pandemic has further impacted Americans' desire to "buy local." The survey found that nearly 40% of consumers report they are more likely to buy an American-made car due to the current health and economic crisis, while just 4% said they were less likely¹. And a whopping 26% said it was "unpatriotic" to buy a non-American-made car, compared to just 18% in 2019¹.

With rising interest in buying American amid the economic disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic, Cars.com has changed its methodology and expanded its rankings to all qualified cars built in the U.S.

Here are the top 10 finishers on the 2020 Cars.com American-Made Index:

"Expanding the American-Made Index required significant updates to certain elements of our methodology, but the results accommodate a long-standing desire of AMI audiences: to see the full list," Mays said.

The Michigan-built Ford Ranger, resurrected for the U.S. market in 2019, ranks No. 1 on the 2020 index. At No. 2 is Fiat Chrysler Automobiles' Jeep Cherokee, assembled in northern Illinois. New entrant Tesla, meanwhile, took three spots among the top 10 on the 2020 AMI. This is the first year Tesla has participated in the AMI, shaking up the results. Honda and GM also hold top spots on the index this year.

In total, the 2020 American-Made Index ranks cars from 13 automakers built in 14 states.

Methodology

Cars.com's American-Made Index ranks cars based on five factors: assembly location, parts sourcing as determined by the American Automobile Labeling Act, U.S. factory employment relative to vehicle production, engine sourcing and transmission sourcing.

For more information on the 2020 Cars.com American-Made Index, including a deeper dive into the data and methodology, visit www.cars.com/ami.

¹ Cars.com internal data. The 2020 American-Made Index surveyed over 1,000 participants from an independent, third-party provider. The survey was fielded on May 26 - May 28, 2020.

About CARS
CARS is a leading digital marketplace and solutions provider for the automotive industry that connects car shoppers with sellers. Launched in 1998 with the flagship marketplace Cars.com and headquartered in Chicago, the Company empowers shoppers with the data, resources and digital tools needed to make informed buying decisions and seamlessly connect with automotive retailers. In a rapidly changing market, CARS enables dealerships and OEMs with innovative technical solutions and data-driven intelligence to better reach and influence ready-to-buy shoppers, increase inventory turn and gain market share. In 2018, Cars.com acquired Dealer Inspire®, an innovative technology company building solutions that future-proof dealerships with more efficient operations, a faster and easier car-buying process, and connected digital experiences that sell and service more vehicles.

CARS properties include Cars.com™, DealerRater®, DealerInspire®, Auto.com™, PickupTrucks.com™ and NewCars.com®. For more information, visit www.Cars.com.

SOURCE Cars.com Inc.