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President-elect Donald Trump turned his bully pulpit gun sights on BMW, and threatened to slap a 35% tariff on BMWs sold in the US if BMW builds a manufacturing institute in Mexico. Trump complained auto sales are a ane-manner street: "How many Chevrolets do you lot encounter in Germany? Maybe none," he said. In verbal retaliation, Germany'due south economic system minister said the US needs to build ameliorate-quality cars if it wants to sell overseas.

The reality is that BMW already builds a lot of cars here — thousands more than it sells in the US. Another reality is that four US nameplate automakers actually have better long-term reliability than BMW, Audi, or Mercedes-Benz. Including Chevrolet.

BMW X5 in body and paint booth, Spartanburg, SC

BMW X5 in torso and paint berth, Spartanburg, SC

Charge and counter-charge

Trump took time off from picking his chiffonier and blasting Saturday Nighttime Alive to requite an interview with The Times of London. "Germany is a corking country, bang-up manufacturing land — y'all go downward Fifth Avenue everybody has a Mercedes-Benz in front of their edifice, right — the fact is that it's been very unfair to the U.s.a., it's not a 2-style street," he said, adding, "How many Chevrolets do y'all see in Frg? Perchance none — not likewise many — how many — yous don't see annihilation over there — information technology's a one-way street — it'southward gotta be a 2-way street."

When asked if German automakers should exist building more cars in the U.s.a., Trump said, "I would tell BMW if they think they're gonna build a found in Mexico and sell cars into the The states without a 35 pct revenue enhancement, it'due south not gonna happen, it's not gonna happen — so if they want to build cars for the world I would say wish them luck — they tin build cars for the US only they'll be paying a 35 percent tax on every car that comes into the land."

In an interview with the German newspaper Bild, Sigmar Gabriel, Deutschland's economy minister and vice-chancellor said, "The American car manufacture is getting worse, weaker, and more expensive. … The US needs to build better cars" if Americans are choosing German cars over American.

BMW exported almost 300,000 cars from the US in 2015.

BMW exported almost 300,000 SUVs from the Us in 2016. Every X3, X4, X5, X6 comes from SC.

The reality: BMW is America'due south biggest car exporter

What Trump apparently didn't know is that BMW Group (the umbrella for BMW, Mini, and Rolls-Royce) is a model for exporting cars from the Usa. The BMW factory in Spartanburg is BMW's largest facility in the world, with the most volume: 411,171 BMWs congenital there terminal year, versus 365,204 BMWs and Minis sold in the Usa. Nobody exports more cars from the Usa — not Ford, not GM, not the Chrysler arm of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 287,700 BMW vehicles last twelvemonth, or 70% of production, and 3.vii million vehicles since the plant opened in 1996.

Every BMW SUV (except the subcompact X1) is congenital in one factory – Spartanburg — then shipped to the 140 countries where BMWs are sold. Mercedes builds SUVs and compact C-Form cars at a factory in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and is building a mill for Sprinter vans in Charleston, SC.

Nobody is like the Germans when it comes to creating sport-luxury vehicles that handle well at insanely high speeds, which may play against more softly sprung Buicks selling well in Federal republic of germany (in China, they sell briskly). Merely Americans exercise brand some US-flagged cars that are more reliable. The J.D. Ability 2016 Vehicle Dependability Written report, which measures problems encountered per 100 vehicles after 3 years of ownership, has Lexus and Porsche running 1-2. Audi, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW are clustered at 11-12-14, slightly amend than average. Merely the vehicles of five United states-flagged companies are meliorate on VDS: No. 3 Buick, No v GMC, No. 6 Chevrolet, No. 9 Ram, and No. 10 Lincoln.

If in that location's a reason why US-flagged cars aren't selling well in Europe, information technology may be that Ford and GM have cars specifically designed for international markets. Many U.s.a.-designed cars are besides built to be softer-riding and bigger inside and out to accept account of our expanding waistlines, when Europeans want cars that make it through narrow streets. Americans are virtually 25 pounds heavier than in the 1960s.

Among BMW, Michelin (US HQ and manufacturing plant nearby), and hundreds of suppliers, BMW and Michelin account for more than 75,000 jobs out of a South Carolina noncombatant workforce of but over 2 million.

If the President-elect wants to pick a fight with BMW in a state than went 55-41 for Trump, he may get push-back from Palmetto State residents and voters hoping nobody upsets the condition quo.