ABSTRACT
This chapter examines some of the significant impacts on the American motor vehicle industry resulting from the Japanese investment. The main impact of the quota was to increase profits for Japanese producers. Four elements of Japanese investment in the US motor vehicle industry are discussed. The four elements are the impact on the US motor vehicle market; the impact on production strategies adopted by American companies; the impact on location of motor vehicle plants within the United States; and the impact on communities where Japanese plants have located. A number of US and Japanese firms have cooperated to produce motor vehicles in the United States. Most of the parts produced at Japanese-owned plants were sold to the seven Japanese-owned or-operated assembly plants in the United States. Japanese plants built in the United States are more likely than American firms to produce body parts, such as glass, seats and trim, as well as electronics, such as radios, starters and wiring.
