Buying American Cars Supports Local Industry, Right? Now What is an American car?

Remember how back in the 90s, American auto manufacturers, a bit threatened by the success of the Japanese imports, began to push the virtues of buying American and supporting American industry? You even got a little sticker on your car that you purchase was built in America by Americans. The 1994 American Automobile Labeling Act has required for years that all cars selling in the US come with window stickers to mention where the car was assembled, how much local content the car has and where the engine and transmission came from. Let's say that you are someone who has really taken that message to heart and you really want to only buy American cars so that you can support American industry. You think you deserve a little bit of luxury and you choose the 2011 Lincoln MKZ. You tell your friend who is a member of the United Auto Workers union and hope for some well-deserved praise. All you get for your trouble though is a dirty look. It turns out, your car is manufactured south of the border in Mexico.

What do you do when an American company like Ford wants to sell cars in America to make elsewhere? True fans of the Buy American movement certainly don't like your European, Korean or Japanese brands. But they also completely disapprove of cars that the Big Three assemble in other countries. Even if it is only the assembly that takes place elsewhere. With the Lincoln MKZ, high-value parts like the engine and transmission actually get completely made in America. If it gets assembled elsewhere though, it usually isn't considered to be domestic. A car that's made in America has a VIN number (that you find on the base of your windshield on the driver's-side) that starts with the numeral 1. What should you do if you are really trying to keep jobs in America whatever purchase you make? How are American cars supposed to be defined?

According to that AALA's labeling practice, a Honda Accord would be almost completely American since it is almost completely built with domestic parts in America. And a Buick Regal, that is built in Germany out of internationally-sourced parts is almost completely foreign. To the common buyer though, buying Honda feels like buying Japanese while buying a Buick feels like buying American. And then of course, there is the whole debate on what to do with Canada. The AALA's labeling practice considers anything manufactured in Canada to be domestic to the US. Basically, all you get is a sticker that tells you how much of the car was made where. The government has backed out of actually telling you which the American cars are. There is no sign that says "This is an American car".

The decision on what constitutes an American car ultimately comes down to the consumer. It is up to you to decide.

The 1967 Ford Mustang GTA: The Legend That Would Never Die

Basically, the Ford Mustang is a vehicle made by the Ford Motor Company. The Ford Falcon compact stands as the original "base" for the Ford Mustang line of vehicles which has become definitive of the quality of vehicles produced by Ford.

Mach 9, 1964 stands as the "birthday" of the Ford Mustang, which rolled off the assembly line on this day. The 1967 Ford Mustang GTA stands as an improved version of the Ford Mustang line of vehicles. Until today, the Mustang is still in production, and is known as the most successful vehicle launches in the history of automobiles.

Within an eighteen month period, the Ford Mustang sold over a million vehicles, truly defining the quality and standard of Ford as an automobile manufacturer.

These days, the 1967 Ford Mustang GTA, along with other vintage Ford Mustangs, are quite the collectibles, considering the history of the vehicle. Handed down from generation to generation, or sold to car dealers for restoration, the 1967 Ford Mustang GTA ranks quite popular as a collectible vehicle for tastes particular with class and quality.

The 1967 Ford Mustang GTA saw many revisions from its original 1964 release, the most major of which would be the installation of V8 engines. Bottom line the 1967 Ford Mustang is fast, making it quite the automobile. Three Ford Motor Company plants, Milpitas in California, Dearborn in Michigan and Metuchen in New Jersey, all produced 1.5 million Ford Mustangs in a two year period. This success sales figure left Ford Motor's competition quite unprepared, with General Motors and the Chrysler Corporation feeling the pinch of the Mustang's success.

Chrysler's Plymouth Barracuda, though being known as one of the most revered muscle cars, didn't exactly compete well with Ford's Mustang. It was released a few weeks before the Mustang came out. General Motor's rear-engine Corvair Monza was deemed by General Motors as their "Mustang killer", but it didn't actually reach sales figures close to the Mustang's.

Today the 1967 Ford Mustang GTA stands tall in the hall of fame for automobiles. As a collectible, automobile enthusiasts would turn their heads to the direction of such a magnificent vehicle, whose classic design has endured the test of time, still living in the present, giving us a glimpse of the days way back then.

All in all the 1967 Ford Mustang GTA is a legend that would simply never die, just as what legends are.

My Father's 1971 Ford Mustang

As a young boy, I used to hang out with my father a lot, and one of the things I remember the most was that he always liked to work on cars. He had many cars over the years, but the one that always sticks out in my memory as being particularly special was his black 1971 Ford Mustang.

My father would always brag about its Cobra Jet engine, and I loved the front end spoilers. I distinctly remember asking my dad why the 1971 Ford Mustang only had two doors. He explained to me that not all cars had four doors and how that just would not work on the Mustang, and from that moment on, I wanted a two-door car when I grew up.

Even with all of the interesting features that it had, I think the reason the 1971 Ford Mustang was so special for me was because of all of the time I got to spend with my father working on it. He would be changing the oil or checking the transmission fluid, and I would be sitting in the front seat of the car asking him questions, some about the car and some about other things.

I remember the long rides we would take in the Mustang and how much fun it was for me to get to ride in the vehicle that meant so much to my dad. It made me feel proud to see all of the admiring glances that we would receive and I distinctly remember listening to oldies radio as we cruised down the road with the windows rolled down.

My dad made it a point to wash his 1971 Ford Mustang every Sunday afternoon and then meticulously wax it to bring it to a nice shine. I loved to stand and look at the car after it was washed and waxed, and I especially loved the look of accomplishment on my father's face once the job was complete. I would help him with everything that I could, and he would always tell me what a good job I had done. I felt so proud.

Times got pretty rough for us as a family when I got into my teenage years and my father had to sell his 1971 Ford Mustang. He acted like it was not that big of a deal, but I could see the pain in his eyes as he handed over the keys, and I felt gutted. He gave the money to my mother, who looked quite relieved but sad at the same time. She knew how much the car meant to him.

A few years ago, I thought about purchasing a 1971 Ford Mustang, but I just couldn't. That was my father's car, and while I loved it and always imagined owning one myself one day, I think that is a memory I want to associate with him more than anything.