The United States, a country that we directly associate with the automobile, but which in the end does not have such a significant presence in the European market. A handful of brands are still represented there, but with production not necessarily “made in the USA.”
A few hours before Donald Trump’s inauguration, a review that also includes models from European and Asian brands imported from Uncle Sam’s country.
Ford
Founded in 1903, Ford is one of the pioneers of the automobile industry. But the blue oval brand also has a long history in Europe. Its local subsidiary, “Ford of Europe AG”, was created in 1967, with the merger of its already existing subsidiaries in different countries.
We can thus establish a long tradition of models developed especially for the Old Continent, such as the Fiesta, which was manufactured only in Europe until 1996, before also being marketed in other markets such as Brazil or India.
A tradition that continues today, with the small Puma SUV, assembled in Romania, and the latest generation of 100% electric models, the Explorer and Capri, developed on a Volkswagen platform and produced at Ford’s factory in Cologne.
Almost all of its sales of passenger cars and utility vehicles in Europe are produced locally: 22 models out of 25 according to data provided by the Inovev company. Among the top three we find the Puma (almost 150,000 sales in Europe in 2024), followed by the Kuga (just over 100,000 sales) and the Transit Custom (about 90,000 units).
One of its most emblematic models is still imported from the United States: the Mustang, with 2,625 sales in Europe last year, according to Inovev estimates, out of a total production of about 57,000 units at the Flat Rock, Michigan plant.
Its electric SUV, the Mustang Mach-E, is produced in Mexico.
tesla
It’s a much more recent arrival than Ford, but sensational to say the least: Tesla began exporting its Model S, its first mass-produced model, to Europe in late 2013.
But it was the Model 3, from 2019, and then the Model Y, which marked the true accelerated development of the brand in Europe. With a strong symbol of a factory built near Berlin, inaugurated in early 2022 and producing its best-selling SUV.
In 2024, the Model Y will be by far Tesla’s best-seller, with more than 175,000 units sold in Europe, according to Inovev estimates. The Model 3, produced in Shanghai (China) and which can therefore no longer benefit from the ecological bonus in France since last year, is far behind with nearly 96,000 units sold.
But there are still two Teslas “made in the USA”, with the Model S and Model Volumes of these high-end models remain much lower than the rest of the range, with 1,727 imports of the sedan last year and 1,609 of the SUV with gullwing doors.
Jeep
We find a legendary American brand with Jeep and its famous Willys, mechanical hero of the Allied landing in June 1944.
A brand that also has an important anchor in Europe: it was part of FCA (Fiat-Chrysler) before the merger with PSA to form the Stellantis group.
Most of its models sold in Europe are produced there: in the lead last year, the Avenger, in Tychy (Poland), with nearly 78,000 units, ahead of the Compass (26,000 sales) and the Renagade (21,000 sales), both products in Melfi. , Italy.
Among its models imported from the United States, the Wrangler stands out, with 3,168 units sold in Europe, for a total production at the Toledo (Ohio) factory estimated by Inovev at around 214,000 copies.
cadillac
Although Chevrolet would be considering returning to Europe, it is another Genaral Motors brand, Cadillac, that relaunched its local subsidiary last year. With a 100% electric offer made up of the Lyriq SUV and will be followed by a somewhat shorter version, the Optiq, immediately.
Models that are currently “made in the USA”, although the brand would consider local production depending on the progress of its sales development in Europe.
These European models “made in the USA”
Ultimately, European brands are the largest importers of models produced on the other side of the Atlantic. In fact, BMW and Mercedes assemble some of their SUVs in the United States.
At BMW, the SUV is also produced in South Africa and China.
The other models (X4, X5, X6, X7 and X) are sold primarily in the United States.
At Mercedes, the EQE and EQS electric SUVs are assembled there. But it was GLE and GLS that accounted for the largest volume last year, according to Inovev data. For the GLE, sales in Europe last year are estimated at 35,556 units out of a total production of more than 211,000 examples.
Finally, we can mention some models from Asian brands produced in the United States for Europe. Among them, the Toyota Highlander (2,169 sales in Europe in 2024 out of a production of 78,009 copies), the Subaru Outback (4,701 imports out of 180,891 products) or the Genesis (Hyundai subsidiary) GV70 (1,418 imports out of 23,924 products).
Source: BFM TV
