Top 40 Best Deals on American-Made Cars

Memorial Day is a time to commemorate the sacrifices made by men and women to protect our freedoms and values. It is a time to rally around the flag, with picnics, parades, and yes, car sales. In the patriotic spirit, our Auto Price Services team has studied the market and compiled these best deals on American-made cars for the holiday weekend.

Made in America
Buying an American-made car puts a new car in your driveway, and it also stimulates the economy from the automaker down through the parts suppliers, factory workers, and neighborhood dealerships. Given the recent announcements from Chrysler and General Motors that they will be making drastic cuts in the number of franchised dealerships, there will now be a greater drive than ever for these stores to make a deal. Likewise, their competitors will also offer significant discounts.

As is the case with our Best New Car Deals, to make this list, a vehicle must meet our stringent requirements to be recommended. Specifically, the vehicle must have performed well in Consumer Reports' tests, have average or better reliability, and, if crash-tested, provide good overall safety. Vehicles also must not have tipped up in the government rollover test.

To truly judge the deals, we factored customer rebates as well as hidden dealer incentives, as available in our new car price reports. From a list of all discounted models, we whittled it down to the 40 American-made models that meet our recommended criteria and offered the greatest discounts.

The list showcases a diverse assortment of 11 brands, reflecting the global nature of the auto industry and the reality that most companies build cars in the United States. (Conversely, many models from Chrysler, Ford, and GM are imported from other countries.)

While pro-America motives may fuel your purchase, be sure to research the models that best suit your needs and budgets, weighing the potential risks in choosing from a brand in bankruptcy proceedings or being divested, such as Hummer, Pontiac, Saab, and Saturn. Tremendous up-front savings can be overshadowed by excessive depreciation unless you plan on keeping the car longer than five years. There also may be limited dealer access.

Regardless of the model that catches your eye from this list, buying these models will help keep America working and put you behind the wheel of a good car.

Make & model	Expires	MSRP	Invoice price	Customer rebate	Dealer incentive	Bottom line price	Potential savings below MSRP
2009 Nissan Titan SE 4X4 Crew Cab SWB	6/1/2009	$33,200	$30,061	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	25%+
2009 Ford Focus SES Sedan	6/30/2009	17,865	16,552	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	20%+
2009 Ford Focus SES Coupe	6/30/2009	17,865	16,552	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	20%+
2009 Nissan Armada LE 4X4	6/1/2009	47,860	43,562	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	20%+
2009 Ford Mustang GT Premium Coupe	6/1/2009	29,160	26,734	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	20%+
2009 Ford Mustang V6 Premium Convertible	6/1/2009	27,345	25,100	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	20%+
2009 Ford F-150 XLT 4x4 SuperCrew 157-in.	6/1/2009	34,760	31,303	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	20%+
2009 Ford Escape XLT 2.5L 4WD	6/30/2009	25,205	23,381	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Honda Odyssey EX	6/1/2009	29,455	26,692	No	Yes	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Mercury Sable Premier	6/30/2009	29,380	26,917	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Ford Escape XLT 3.0L 4WD	6/30/2009	26,215	24,300	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Ford Taurus Limited FWD	6/30/2009	30,670	28,053	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Mercury Mariner Premier I4 4WD	6/30/2009	26,515	24,598	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Honda Ridgeline 3.5 Auto RTS	6/1/2009	31,305	28,363	No	Yes	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Nissan Frontier 4.0 LE Crew Cab 4X4 AT	6/1/2009	29,190	27,045	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Mercury Mariner Premier V6 4WD	6/30/2009	27,515	25,508	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Toyota Tundra 5.7 Auto 4WD SR5 Crew Max	6/1/2009	34,285	31,369	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Ford Taurus X Limited AWD	6/30/2009	34,175	31,272	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Toyota Camry 2.4 Auto Hybrid	6/1/2009	26,150	23,796	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Toyota Camry 2.4 Auto SE	6/1/2009	22,815	20,533	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Toyota Camry 2.4 Auto LE	6/1/2009	21,650	19,593	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Lincoln Navigator Luxury 4x4	6/1/2009	56,020	51,383	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Ford Expedition Eddie Bauer 4x4 EL	6/30/2009	45,730	41,628	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Subaru Outback 2.5 Auto I	6/1/2009	23,295	21,907	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Toyota Camry 3.5 Auto V6 XLE	6/1/2009	28,695	25,823	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Hyundai Sonata GLS I4	6/1/2009	18,700	17,922	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Subaru Tribeca Limited 5-Passenger	6/1/2009	32,595	30,727	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 1LT 4X4 Crew Cab	6/1/2009	34,295	31,723	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Mazda Tribute 2.5 Auto i Grand Touring 4WD	6/1/2009	26,375	24,681	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Subaru Outback 3.0R Limited w/Navigation Auto 4WD	6/1/2009	34,095	31,721	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Honda Accord 2.4 LX-P	6/1/2009	21,905	19,869	No	Yes	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Honda Pilot EX-L 4WD	6/1/2009	35,295	31,969	No	Yes	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Mazda Tribute 3.0 Auto S Grand Touring 4WD	6/1/2009	27,635	25,856	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Honda Accord 2.4 LX-P 5AT	6/1/2009	22,705	20,592	No	Yes	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 Nissan Altima 2.5 HEV Auto	6/1/2009	26,650	24,976	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	15%+
2009 GMC Sierra 4WD Crew Cab SLT SWB	6/1/2009	41,855	38,716	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	10%+
2009 Hyundai Sonata GLS V6 A/T	6/1/2009	22,450	21,466	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	10%+
2009 Nissan Altima 2.5 S Sedan	6/1/2009	21,040	19,728	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	10%+
2009 Nissan Altima 3.5 SE Auto Sedan	6/1/2009	25,680	23,800	Yes	No	Get the Bottom Line Price	10%+
2009 Honda Accord 3.5 EX-L V6 5AT	6/1/2009	28,955	26,240	No	Yes	Get the Bottom Line Price	10%+

—Jeff Bartlett and Michael Dempsey

 

Comments

[Cale]

Family sedan shoppers would be crazy not to include a Ford Fusion on their shopping list this Memorial Day. Regardless of county of origin and the "water cooler" nature of the blog. There's still a lot of domestic content in a Ford Fusion, so while it's fashionable to talk about where a car is assembled, the domestic content of the parts still supports a great many domestic jobs.

Check out the Fusion!

[Albert J. Pryor]

Perhaps Cale should review the content label on the Ford Fusion as it has just 30% American content, and is assembled in Mexico, whereas the Hyundai Sonata has 43% and is put together by AMERICAN labor!

[Drew]

I agree with Cale's comment. Origin does not always tell the complete story of who's being supported. If anyone is curious, just check out the information that's being presented by the Level Field Institute.

I give my congrats to Ford, they seem to be doing the best job with their recovery and the company is producing some excellent products. I hope they rise to the top spot within our country and across the world. Their lineup of cars and trucks that will be available in the near future is exceptional.

I don't mean to come across as a Ford fan boy with these kind of remarks;) Okay... well maybe I am:)

[Chad]

It matters little where the car is made; what matters is where the money from the purchase of the vehicle ends up. The problem with buying a Nissan Titan is the fact that very little of the money one spends on the vehicle stays inside the U.S.A.(under 5% of manufacturing cost last time I looked at averages) with the vast majority going straight to Japan. If you want to help your country, buy from an American car manufacturer. GM itself still contributes more to the U.S. GDP than all Asian car manufacturers combined. That's what counts.

The fallacy of the importance of manufacturing location is proven by basic global-systems economics. We live in a globalized economy, so it's easy to be confused that "if it's made in America, it supports America."

[Anthony]

If you need a big truck, this is your weekend... If you need a family sedan, this is your weekend, for the rest of it, Ford Focus? Not even the best choice in that segment.

Oh well, I need a car badly my main car is being repaired and I have already missed a week at my 2nd job because of the lack of a car.

If your in the same boat, the deals aren't confined these cars, there are more out there, auto sales are in BAD shape in general...

[Mark]

Right now you can get a brand new Hyundai Sonata GLS for under $15k if you email the dealers and ask if they can match that price. I did! (And I mean brand new, less than 10 miles on the ODO)

PS - It's made in Alabama.

[Observant]

While Asian manufacturers do thankfully make cars in the U.S., I don't think they manufacture nearly as many of their cars in the U.S. as the big three do. How many Nissan plants are there in U.S. compared to... say... GM plants? What percentage of their cars are built in U.S. compared to big three percentage built in U.S.?

I think it would be unfair of Consumer Reports to suggest to the public that buying American is accomplished just as well by buying an Asian model. This doesn't seem to be thought through very well.

[Mrpushrod]

The authors at Consumer Reports just don’t get it. While Nissan may assemble cars in the US, that is just a fraction of cost (jobs created) that goes into producing a car. Companies have departments such as marketing, manufacturing, payroll, engineering, sales, etc, etc. Each of these departments share a sliver of the pie which in turn make the whole company. Assembly accounts for very little of the actual cost of building a vehicle.

To say purchasing a Nissan over a Ford is better for the American economy is not accurate at all. Who did Mercedes sell when times got tough?

Sending profits to other countries has produced conglomerates such as Toyota and Honda. Wouldn’t it be nice if GM & Ford were building and selling product in Japan and collecting profits like Toyota & Honda do in the US. Wouldn’t that help our trade deficit/economy?

The issue now is GM & Ford are lame ducks because of the burden placed on them from legacy union deals that Toyota & Honda don’t have. These deals were cracked prior to the transplants showing up on our shores. If GM & Ford were healthier, you better believe Americans could be at the forefront of the next generation of green vehicles and other products for that matter. American’s have the knowhow, but our companies are crippled.

American’s developed the internet which provided prosperity for many generations. Unfortunately, we are setting our kids up to take a back seat in the next technology advancement which is creating green products. We may end up purchasing batteries from China for the next 50 years if we don’t smarten up.

Just one more point when you read the list of CR’s recommended vehicles. CRs vehicle reliability study is sent exclusively to subscribers of CR. This is unlike other major players who target/survey a random audience. This may explain why CRs reliability data does not correlate with the others.

[everett whitney]

TO: Mrpushrod- " C.R. Just Doesn't Get It ..?"

Perhaps "YOU" - not them - don't understand.

Much of those 1,001 pieces / parts / sub-assemblies for all the " non-USA " vehicles ARE manufactured within other factories, manned by Americans !

No corporation Is going to ever survive economically whenever it insists for 2 - 3 or longer decades that ".. their products are the only game in town .."

The initial '1980 Honda Hatchback adequately demonstrated that whenever all the Detroit 3 scoffed at the concept of Honda's ( 3 ) valve CVCC engine ! It was first offered to them & they refused . . . said it could not work!

So, the Detroit (3 ) have literally signed their own death warrant - - - just as certain as "Death & Taxes " .... one of these 3 will NOT survive yet, in spite of the horrible Billions wasted / putting off the inevitable !

everett

[Mrpushrod]

Everett,

You need to step back and look at the big picture. Honda, Toyota, Nissan are about to be spanked silly. When GM, or some other Chinese corporation, decides to start importing vehicles which are made in China by people earning 90 cents an hour, how do you think the American transplants are going to respond??? What are they going to do when they start losing $2000 on every small car they sell? Toyota has already started to lose money and they ain’t seen nothing yet.

Do you really understand what is going on here?

How did Seagate, the pioneers of Disk Drive technology, respond to competitors producing products in China??? I now own a Seagate drive made in China. Where do you call when your American nameplate HP computer requires tech support??? I can understand the accent now.

I don’t even have to address the 1980 Honda CVIC technology. Who cares? What I care about is that the Ford Fusion in the most popular mid-size segment obtains the highest MPG 41-36MPG when Ford has much less to spend on R&D than Honda. I never drove a Honda vehicle that put a smile on my face. That includes the torque poor Honda S2000, FWD, unbalanced TL, noisy Accord, etc, etc.

What you should care about:

That US companies are first to pattern an energy storage system for future green vehicles (be it electrical battery, chemical or other viable system able to be put in service easily) that is the best, most practical solution to wean us from being dependant on foreign oil, period.

That are kids get to be at the forefront of the next green technology wave the way we got a ride on the internet technology wave.

Sad, but most of our companies are in a too much of a crippled state to insure our prosperous future due to our own greed.

If you understand how a company breaks down, you would understand every department accounts a percentage of the pie (the whole company). If the big 3 spend 2 times as much on manufacturing labor, other departments (like engineering) are deprived and get less than their average percentage of the pie.

So now the new bankrupt GM (I imagine Ford and Chrysler will follow suit) will trim their labor costs to what is comparable to the Japanese transplants i.e. cut labor costs in half. Eventually, once things pick up, 100s of thousands of Americans will have to support their families on half their salary which is ~ $14 an hour.

Everett, don’t think you can escape---unless you are one of those older fat cats collecting a nice pension (including healthcare) that you really didn’t work long enough for. You know, one of those Government pensions or other retirement funds that are being paid for out of borrowed money from our kids. If not, some day you or your business may have to compete with a Chinese counterpart making 90 cents an hour. Let’s see if you like it.

A perfect example of what is going on with American companies would be for CR to setup the entire auto test facility in China. CR could then invest the huge labor costs savings on much needed enhancement of their cars section of the magazine. Just think, a weight could be applied to outcome of each of the individual tests. CR could equip vehicles with various options to inform their customers on the values and deficits (if any) on optional safety equipment such as High Performance tires, etc

Everett, bashing the big three and other battered American companies, praising Honda for the CVIC which is moot and refusing to buy American when they deserve the deal is just going to sink our economy further. I was just looking at the “2009 consumer top rated” survey in another very respected popular automotive website and you would be surprised the consumer picked the Fusion as the best sedan under 25k. And there isn’t a reliability survey around (one that surveys a random audience, not a target demographic of subscribers to a certain magazine) that does not show Americans tied or leading in reliability. Honda Not