Trevor Lautens' column last week exhorting the purchase of domestic cars instead of foreign cars is based on a laudable goal -- supporting fellow North Americans by purchasing the cars they make.
Though the goal was laudable, the research was a bit lacking.
Lautens was correct in one way: All the Big Three carmakers, particularly General Motors, have made enormous strides in improving the quality, drivability, durability and desirability of their vehicles. Chevy's new Malibu, for one, is every bit as good a car as you can get from a foreign brand. Ford's new Flex is fun, funky and fuel-efficient.
Chrysler's new sedans, albeit as good as they are because they're largely Mercedes-based, are stylish and comfortable, if not exactly fuel-efficient. And GM's Saturn division has been totally knocking it out of the park with cars like Astra, Outlook and Aura.
In short, buying a car from the Big Three is no longer a sympathy play.
But by the same token, in the 51 years since Lautens reviewed the Ford Edsel, borders have become increasingly blurry, to the point that who makes it is no longer a clear indication of where a vehicle is from.
"The interesting thing about saying to 'buy domestic' is that the top two selling cars in Canada are both built in Canada," said Toyota Canada managing director Stephen Beatty, referring to the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla, in that order.
Which is domestic? The Chevy built in Korea? The Ford built in Mexico? Or the Suzuki built in Canada?
Honda builds 390,000 vehicles a year at its plant in Alliston, Ont. Buy a Honda Civic and you've "bought Canadian." They make Civics, Ridgelines and Acura MDXs. Of those 390,000 cars Honda builds here, they sell only a fraction here. Total Honda and Acura sales in Canada in 2007 were 170,307. Which means that Honda is a net exporter of cars from Canada.
Drive down the road to Cambridge, Ont., and chances are excellent you'll see the Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada car plant.
Head up the road a little farther to Woodstock, Ont., and you'll see Toyota's second Canadian plant under construction. There, they plan to produce a large portion of the North American supply of Toyota RAV-4 compact SUVs.
Zip over to Ingersoll, Ont., and watch Suzuki SUVs roll off the line.
Canadian automotive analyst Dennis Desrosiers notes that since 2000, North American production by the Big Three carmakers has declined by four million vehicles while North American production by so-called New Domestic carmakers (the foreigners) has increased by two million units. The Big Three share of domestic production has fallen from 74.7 per cent to 59.6 per cent and he estimates it will fall to 52.8 per cent by 2012.
"Who's providing the job growth in North America?" Desrosiers asks.
The list of foreign carmakers who build vehicles on North American soil is longer than Lautens may think: Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Hyundai, Toyota, Honda, Mazda, Subaru, Suzuki, Mitsubishi and Nissan all produce, on average, more cars than they import.
Colin Fisher, spokesman for Honda Manufacturing in Alliston, said that with few exceptions, a Honda or Acura vehicle sold in Canada is made in North America. Civic, Ridgeline, Accord, CR-V, Pilot and Acura MDX -- the heavy hitters in Honda's Canadian sales -- are all built in North America.
He said the notion that you need to buy a Big Three car to support the North American economy "is kind of a hollow argument."
Honda Manufacturing Canada has invested $2.6 billion in the 22 years it's operated in Alliston. It employs 4,600 workers and buys $1.5 billion worth of parts each year from Canadian suppliers, Fisher said.
"This plant adds to the Canadian economy, and the spinoff jobs are significant," he said.
Honda is expanding the Alliston plant and will soon be producing 200,000 four-cylinder engines each year, bringing Honda Manufacturing's Canadian payroll to about 5,000 workers.
Toyota has been building the Toyota Corolla in Cambridge since 1988. Add in the Lexus RX350 and Toyota Matrix, and some 302,749 cars rolled off its Canadian line in 2007, about 101,000 vehicles more than the 201,000 cars it sold that year. Of the 159,297 Corollas built at Cambridge in 2007, 40,474 ended up in Canadian driveways. Where did the other 118,823 go? America.
Toyota has invested $3.71 billion in Cambridge since 1987 and employs 5,059 workers.
Have you seen a Toyota Camry? Nissan Altima? Mercedes-Benz ML350 SUV? BMW X5? Hyundai Sonata or Santa Fe? Mazda6? Mitsubishi Eclipse, Gallant or Endeavor? Subaru Legacy, Outback or Tribeca? Suzuki XL-7? BMW Z4? All were built in North America, just to name a few.
At Nissan, 12 of the 15 Nissan models sold here are built here. Only the Murano, GT-R and Rogue arrive by boat.
On the flip side, buying a car from the Big Three is no longer a guarantee you're buying local. Did you buy a Chevy Aveo or Pontiac G3 Wave because you couldn't stand the thought of buying "one of them furrin' things"? Sorry. Your car was built in Korea. Saturn Astra? Belgium. Chrysler Crossfire? Germany. Been eyeing the upcoming Pontiac G8? G'day, mate. It's built in Australia.
If your definition of foreign includes Mexico, then the Ford Fusion, Lincoln MKZ and Ford Super Duty trucks are all foreign.
For a sense of how complicated is the question of buying domestic, consider the Saturn Vue: It is designed in Germany, engineered in Korea and assembled in Mexico. Would you like some kim-chi on your bratwurst taco?
And for all the hand-wringing about impored cars, even GM spokeswoman Natalie Nankil points out: "One should not forget that the same is working in reverse... We build several vehicles in North America that are in demand in other global markets -- Chevrolet and Cadillac, and Buick is huge in China," she wrote in an e-mail.
Toyota's Beatty points out that to qualify as being built here, under the North American Free Trade Agreement, a minimum 62.5 per cent of the car's value must be added here. "All of us building cars in North America meet or exceed that minimum."
As to which carmakers qualify as domestic, Beatty said that with all manufacturers building cars around the world, selling to customers around the world and answering to shareholders around the world, it comes down to two choices:
"Either all of us who manufacture cars in North America are domestic, or we're all foreign," he said, noting that all carmakers are multinational corporations trying to align production with demand as best they can.
"Any carmaker who doesn't think its first job is building product the public wants is making a big mistake," he said. "If you lean on a 'buy domestic' campaign, it's a crutch and it weakens you."
The best advice? Buy the car that best meets your needs. The manufacturer who doesn't meet the needs of enough customers has only itself to blame.
kelly.taylor@freepress.mb.ca
PREVIOUS
