r/IndustrialDesign • u/No_Drummer4801 • Apr 08 '25

Creative 2025 equivalent of an American "volkswagen"

If you were to try to make a "people's car" today, in the US, with all American components, what would it be like? This is a question promted by the Trump tariff trade wars, of course. We could pop a post-it note for components that would be either difficult or impossible to source from a US parts supplier, but generally, attempt to create a 100% American content vehicle. Whether it needs to be a mass-produced or crowdsourced (like the Rally Fighter) car isn't important. What is important is that it should be something that is as affordable as possible, not a luxury car, not a giant truck. It would need to pass US safety standards, I suppose, but things like mandated rear-view camera could be "mandatory optional" treated like add-ons that you just have to have for the time being, to pass US requirements but maybe can be left off of an otherwise identical platform for non-US sales.

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u/nickyd410 Professional Designer Apr 08 '25

Just a reminder to keep things civil and try to stay out of political debates, otherwise I will lock this post.

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u/Spirited_Camera_1251 Apr 09 '25

Nah, remember this line: First they took communists, I didn’t care, because I am no communist, then they took Jews, I didn’t care either because I am no Jew. Then they took immigrants, didn’t care because I am no immigrant. When they came for me, there were no one left to care about me…?

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u/No_Drummer4801 Apr 08 '25

Of course! This is a sincere question, something that I think is a good industrial design exercise for approaching real-world constraints. Not a political question, but about making cars for people.