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Fewest vehicles ever found eligible for Most American survey

Once again, the most American car on the market is from an American brand. The Ford F-150 retained its number one spot in Cars.com's annual survey of the most American vehicles, trumping the Toyota Camry, which remains at number two.
Ford taking the top spot is small consolation, though, as the Detroit Three aren't too well represented here. General Motors scored a win at number seven, with the Chevrolet Corvette, while Chrysler squeaked in at number ten, with the Dodge Viper. Outside of those three vehicles, Toyota and Honda dominate the top ten.
What's most remarkable, though, is that there were so few cars available for this year's list.

GM, Ford, Honda winners in 'Car Wars' study as industry growth continues

General Motors' plans to aggressively refresh its product lineup will pay off in the next four years with strong market share and sales, according to an influential report released Tuesday. Ford, Honda, and FCA are all poised to show similar gains as the auto industry is expected to remain healthy through the rest of the decade. The Bank of America Merrill Lynch study, called Car Wars, analyzes automakers' future product plans for the next four model years. By 2020, 88 percent of GM's sales will come from newly launched products, which puts it slightly ahead of Ford's 86-percent estimate. Honda (85 percent) and FCA (84 percent) follow. The industry average is 81 percent. Toyota checks in just below the industry average at 79 percent, with Nissan trailing at 76 percent. Car Wars' premise is: automakers that continually launch new products are in a better position to grow sales and market share, while companies that roll out lightly updated models are vulnerable to shifting consumer tastes. Though Detroit and Honda grade out well in the study, many major automakers are clumped together, which means large market-share swings are less likely in the coming years. Bank of America Merrill Lynch predicts the industry will top out with 20 million sales in 2018 and then taper off, perhaps as much as 30 percent by 2026. Not surprisingly, trucks, sport utility vehicles and crossovers will be the key battlefield in the next few years, Car Wars says. FCA will launch a critical salvo in 2018 with a new Ram 1500, followed by new generations of the Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra in 2019, and then Ford's F-150 for 2020, according to the study. Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst John Murphy said the GM trucks could be pulled ahead even earlier to 2018, prompting Ford to respond. "This focus on crossovers and trucks is a great thing for the industry," Murphy said. Cars Wars looks at Korean (76 percent replacement rate) and European companies more vaguely (70 percent), but argues their slower product cadence and lineups with fewer trucks puts them in weaker positions than their competitors through 2020. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Featured Gallery 2016 Chevrolet Silverado View 11 Photos Image Credit: Chevrolet Earnings/Financials Chrysler Fiat Ford GM Honda Nissan Toyota study FCA

10% of Toyota China dealers may drop due to losses

News about the auto industry in China is usually positive thanks to booming sales and an ever-increasing number of factories across the country. But in some cases, it appears that the dealers with the job of actually selling all of those vehicles are having trouble finding buyers. The result is cars piling up on lots and showrooms resisting against automakers. Japanese automakers already face a tough road to success in China, but the FAW-Toyota joint venture is especially struggling this year. According to Bloomberg, as many as 10 percent of the dealers might have to close or stop selling the brand because they just can't make money selling the vehicles on their lots. Also, 95 percent of the showrooms are reportedly losing money. The issue facing FAW-Toyota sellers is mostly a case of supply and demand. Automakers in China mandate the number and types of vehicles that dealers sell. However, the inventory from all makes is at its highest level since August 2013, according to Bloomberg. The situation leaves dealers with packed lots, and cars often require discounts to move. Making matters harder is that showrooms have annual sales targets, which are linked to bonuses. This money can account for over half of the sellers' annual profits, according to Bloomberg. The FAW-Toyota dealers are pushing back by asking Toyota for 2.2 billion yuan ($355 million) to pay for costs associated with the extra inventory. It also lowered sales targets by six percent earlier this year and has requested no increase in the numbers for 2015. News Source: BloombergImage Credit: Nelson Ching / Bloomberg via Getty Images Earnings/Financials Toyota Car Buying Car Dealers