Celebrating the American Car Industry & Americans Who Build Our Cars

Happy 236th Birthday to the United States of America!

Unlike a couple of decades ago when some of the American car brands had some pretty poor examples of quality and "imports" started stealing the scene, 2012 is seeing a resurgence in American manufacturing: both for American brands and the collection of Japanese, German and Korean automakers who have built manufacturing plants on American soil and employ American citizens. Now, it is more difficult than ever to look askance at a car and question its foreign origin and the manufacturing plants represent a a nice sample of the American map - not just Michigan any longer - ranging from locations as varied as Ohio (Honda CR-V), Tennessee (Volkswagen Passat), Texas (Cadillac Escalade), Kentucky (Chevrolet Corvette) and Alabama (Mercedes-Benz).

The American automotive industry saw some pretty bleak times a few years ago but the comeback in sales is just an indicator of improvements that came in leaps and bounds in design, manufacturing, technology and fuel-economy sectors of automotive manufacturing. All of these improvements add up to a lot of sales to some pretty happy buyers with new cars that have lifespans that are some of the longest in recent history. But quality of the build and how a car is bolted together doesn't always equal buyer satisfaction because the actual experience of the design and technology can very often not be pleasing to the person making the car payments.

This year, to celebrate the 4th of July, we have highlighted the best of American automotive manufacturing by sharing our Autobytel and AutoPacific lists of the cars that are made in America and have the best ratings from actual owners in their respective categories. With AutoPacific surveying more than 75,000 car buyers, Autobytel has taken those consumer ratings and compiled lists of some of the most satisfying cars that are made in America, by American brands and by foreign car companies.

Here are our celebratory lists of the cars made by Americans that American car owners like best:

Some Favorite Great American Cars for 2012

Some Favorite Foreign Cars Made in America