TodayApril 15, 2022

Toyota President on Made in America NAIAS2017

President-Elect Donald Trump has been talking about production in the United States. I asked Bob Carter, Senior Vice President of Automotive Operations of Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., Toyota Motor Corporation, how does Toyota stack up with Made in the U.S.A.? Are they helping to make America great again?

Carter rattled off the figures he has, by now, been asked a hundred times, “about 73% of the vehicles sold in the United States are produced in the U.S.” Cars.com did a study and found that the Toyota Camry was one of the top American contented cars in America. Carter told me that has been the case for the last five years. Toyota, like all other companies, source globally for their vehicles.

With most Americans buying SUVs and pickups, if you increase the price of sedans, either by imports or producing with higher wages, there will be less cars sold in the United States.

Listen to Bob as he explains the complexity of manufacturing a global product.

Lou Ann Hammond

Lou Ann Hammond is the CEO of Carlist and Driving the Nation. She is the co-host of Real Wheels Washington Post carchat every Friday morning and is the Automotive, energy correspondent for The John Batchelor Show and a Contributor to Automotive Electronics magazine headquartered in Korea. Hammond is a founding member of the Women's World Car of the Year #WWCOTY, and board member of the Women in Automotive.