Ten American Carmakers That Need To Rise From The Dead

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These ten brands need to come back, for America.


10.) Saturn

Saturn was a beacon of light back in GMs dark days: they made great, innovative cars and offered a painless dealership experience until the rest of GM got jealous. They became increasingly badge-engineered and neglected until they fell victim to the financial meltdown.

America needs another honest economy car brand.

Suggested By: Neon – Smart Afficionado, Photo Credit: Saturn


9.) Stutz

Sure the Corvette is America's sports car, but it's just one car. Back in the day the Stutz Bearcat was a world-class machine, the equal of any European rival. Maybe that name should be revived for something to compete with Jaguar and Porsche.

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Suggested By: McLarry, Photo Credit: Bonhams


8.) International

Yes International still makes commercial vehicles but a new Scout or Travelall could easily slice in on Jeeps market share. The prices for old International Harvester trucks are climbing so the time is right for a new one.

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I'll be happy as long as there's a pickup.

Suggested By: Chairman Kaga, Photo Credit: International


7.) Hudson

There's a huge potential market for Hudson that isn't quite ripe yet, but soon will be. Who am I talking about? Every kid who watched Cars. Who wouldn't want to buy a Hudson Hornet after seeing that movie? Plus, I'd much rather see Hornets in NASCAR rather than Camrys.

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Suggested By: cazzyodo, Photo Credit: D. Miller


6.) All American Racers

It's great that America will have a F1 team again, but it's a little disappointing that it's going to be Ferrari powered. We need something in the spirit of Dan Gurney's All American Racers which gave us the incredible Eagle Mk. I, the only US made car to win an F1 Grand Prix.

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Suggested By: ThrillerWA09, Photo Credit: Getty Images


5.) Lincoln

Technically speaking, Lincoln isn't dead yet. But they might as well be since they're relegated to making rebadged Fords. They should be making beautiful cars like the Mk. IV Continental to compete with Cadillac and the rest of the world.

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Suggested By: TwinCharged - Hong Kong Jalop, Photo Credit: Lincoln


4.) Studebaker

Studebaker was always a bit esoteric and while that doesn't usually translate into huge sales, there's still a place for it. Plus, they're just so damn beautiful.

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Suggested By: Box1813, Photo Credit: Alden Jewell


3.) Pontiac

Now that Fiat Chrysler is positioning Dodge as a muscle-car brand, the time is right to bring back Pontiac to compete. They had quite the renaissance in the 2000s with the GTO, Solstice, and G8 but they never sold the way they should.

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Pontiac could easily slot above Chevrolet and below Cadillac as a premium performance brand. They could even cook up something to compete with the Hellcat twins — I'd call it The Judge

Suggested By: icanhazmoarpwrplznow, Photo Credit: Pontiac


2.) Tucker

The story of Tucker is one of the greatest tragedies in automotive history. The company was killed by other American automakers who didn't want competition with the help of the SEC, ending production of the innovative Torpedo after just 51 cars were produced.

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In a way Tucker was a precursor to Tesla, as a leader in automotive technology and that's why Tucker should still exist today.

Suggested By: CleverUsername, Photo Credit: Barrett-Jackson


1.) Duesenberg

As it stands right now the most opulent American made car right now is the Escalade, and while that's a fine car it's not opulent enough. America needs its own Rolls-Royce and it shouldn't be anything but a Duesenberg.

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Suggested By: 365Daytonafan, Photo Credit: Barrett-Jackson

Welcome back to Answers of the Day - our daily Jalopnik feature where we take the best ten responses from the previous day's Question of the Day and shine it up to show off. It's by you and for you, the Jalopnik readers. Enjoy!

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Top Photo Credit: Alden Jewell