Cars.com just released its annual list of the top made American cars. The Ford F-150 was ranked number one thanks to big sales and domestic-parts sourcing. However, the new, innovative, Tesla Motors Inc.’s Model S may become the next most American made car due to the company’s transparency, new policies, environmental friendliness, and, most importantly, the construction of their new Gigafactory.

The electric car manufacturer’s new factory is estimated to produce around 500,000 vehicles a year, which would make it one of the biggest and most productive car factories in the world. At least 55 percent of the material in a vehicle is required to be made in the country for it to be considered domestic, Tesla Motors plans to make their vehicles containing 90 percent American material, which would beat the Ford F-150 by 20 percent, and have the most American parts in it than any other vehicle in the United States.

The Gigafactory is going to be a $5 billion endeavour, yet four governors are vying the company to construct the facility in their state: Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona and Texas. All the states desire the estimated billions of dollars in revenue and some 6,500 jobs. Texas governor Rick Perry tweeted himself driving the Model S around Tesla Motors headquarter state, California. He stated in the tweet that the only way to make the vehicle faster would be to produce it in Texas. The Gigafactory project will draw from sources in the surrounding area for construction, and be powered with nearby windmills and solar panel fields that will be constructed with the factory.

Another factor that is contributing to Tesla Motors’s Model S being the new number one on Cars.com’s annual list, is their claim that their company will build 500,000 clean batteries annually. The company’s battery partner, Panasonic, has remained skeptical of this task. Observers have also stated that Tesla Motors Inc.’s Model S is poised to be the most American made vehicle due to the company’s plan to expand it’s supercharging stations in the United States, which would make the purchasing of a Tesla vehicle much more viable.

Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jones called Elon Musk’s Tesla “the most important car company in the world.” Jones also attributed the Model S possibly ending the 32 year reign of the F-150 to the increase in affordability of the Tesla Motors Inc.’s vehicle, which will have a starting price of $35,000. Musk also stated that a more compact, and energy efficient version of the Model S will be made at an even more affordable price.

The electric-car manufacturer put a time stamp on construction of their Gigafactory, and the launch of the new model for 2017. Analysts cite that if the Gigafactory is built, and if Tesla Motors follows through on their promise for more affordable vehicles and making supercharging stations more accessible, and Ford does not find any method to open source more of its material from American sources, Tesla Motors Inc.’s Model S will, almost certainly, no longer be poised to be the most American made car: but officially have the title.

By Andres Loubriel

Sources:

Fool

CleanTechnica

Tesla Motors

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