A. Lee Graham
Reporter
Texas is neither the most patriotic state nor the least patriotic when it comes to buying cars from U.S. automakers, according to newly released car sales findings. To mark the Fourth of July, TrueCar Inc., an automotive pricing and analysis company, reviewed sales data to rank the “most patriotic” states in terms of buying new cars and trucks. Based on transaction figures, Michigan consumers purchased the highest percentage of vehicles from domestic automakers. About 79.2 percent of new cars sold were built by Chrysler, Ford and GM, or the “Big Three.” The next three states on the list are North Dakota, 68.1 percent; South Dakota, 65.6 percent; and Iowa, 63.2 percent, followed by Wyoming, 62.6 percent; and Montana, 61.1 percent. Texas does not appear on either top-10 ranking. “Despite Asian and European automakers having a number of factories in the U.S., many Americans still have strong loyalty to the brands they view as ‘domestic’,” said Jesse Toprak, senior analyst for TrueCar, commenting in a news release. “Even as the line defining what is or isn’t domestic has blurred, perception, attitudes and buying habits are more resistant to change, particularly in the heartland,” Toprak said. Eighteen states had more than 50 percent of new vehicles purchased from domestic automakers. Meanwhile, the bottom eight states had fewer than 30 percent of new vehicles purchased built by the Detroit Three. Hawaiians are the least likely to purchase a traditionally defined domestic vehicle at 19.4 percent, followed by the District of Columbia, 22.6 percent; California, 22.9 percent; Connecticut, 25.8; and Massachusetts, 25.8 percent. TrueCar Inc., based in Santa Monica, Calif., is an automotive pricing information and analysis company that publishes online new and used car transaction data. More information is available at www.truecar.com. lgraham@bizpress.net