The American automotive industry is best known for its large vehicles, be they pickup trucks, large SUVs, or big muscle cars. Most American automakers sold small cars in the past, but some folks may not be aware that many small “American” cars were actually designed and/or built by other companies in other countries. American imperialism forced itself upon the shores of Eastern countries like Korea and Japan under the guise of “civilizing” and “helping” them out, and these countries conveniently helped Americans get cheap, efficient, well-built products in return. The latest MotorWeek Retro Review showcases how Ford’s Festiva was actually designed by Mazda in Japan and produced by Kia in Korea, and previous Retro Reviews show how the other two players in America’s Big Three carmakers have done the same for over 50 years.
Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler do not sell any small cars in the U.S. anymore. Consumer purchase habits have shifted enough that the three companies don’t see much, if any value in selling non-crossover vehicles. Even now, small and affordable American vehicles, crossovers or otherwise, are hard to come by. GM is the only company of the big three that sells a subcompact vehicle in the U.S., the Chevrolet Trailblazer crossover, and it’s actually designed and built by GM Korea.
Aside from the Ford Festiva, there were many other small cars sold by American automakers that were actually designed and/or built in other countries. The Chevrolet Sprint of the ‘80s was a rebadged Suzuki, the Chevrolet Spectrum was a rebadged Isuzu, the Chevrolet Nova was a rebadged Toyota, and the Chevrolet Spark and Aveo were rebadged Korean Daewoos. The Dodge/Plymouth Colt was a rebadged Mitsubishi, and the Chrysler brands were once deeply intertwined with Mitsubishi, using its engines and rebadging other models for decades. Ford also used its foreign entities to produce other models over the years, including the Ford Aspire and later versions of the Ford Escort.
American automakers did occasionally produce successful small cars of their own, like Chrysler’s Neon, Ford’s Focus, and Chevrolet’s Cavalier, but each company relied heavily on the respective lessons learned from their colonized Eastern counterparts. The history of American car companies and the American automotive landscape is heavily intertwined with the proliferation of American imperialism. Ever since we realized that the Ford Pinto and Chevy Citation were garbage compared to their imported market competitors, American companies used the old adage, “if you can’t beat ‘em, colonize ‘em.” In the words of Biggie Smalls, if you don’t know, now you know.