A black Peterbilt semi truck hauling wooden boards - Zryzner/Getty ImagesThe rise of global manufacturing has had a huge impact on the auto industry. For one, it makes it easier for companies to chase cheap labor around the world in an effort to maximize profits. But there's been plenty of pushback, especially recently. Nowadays, for instance, the government is focusing on how American-made cars can be made even more American. Remember, the only U.S.-based brands to finish in the top 10 of the 2026 American-Made Index were Tesla and Jeep.Now, there isn't the same sort of buzz around where big rigs get built — yet inquiring minds still want to know. And it turns out that quite a few are indeed manufactured in this country, including big names like Freightliner, Peterbilt, Kenworth, Mack, Western Star, and International. Speaking of international trucks, Volvo also has a huge plant in the United States. The flipside to the story — and an example of how hard it can be to parse a vehicle's origins –- is that foreign companies own a number of the so-called U.S. brands. With that in mind, we'll try to cut through the clutter and bring out some details, like the brands' respective Class 8 market shares. That way, you can see how things are playing out for semi trucks in the real world.Read more: There's A Good Reason Semi Trucks Don't Use V8sKenworthKenworth T680 Featuring the TourAmerica Commemorative Paint Scheme - KenworthThey say necessity is the mother of invention — well, either that or Frank Zappa –- and that's exactly why Kenworth came to be. It was founded by Harry Kent and Edgar K. Worthington in 1923 to meet the needs of lumber companies in the Pacific Northwest. Apparently, typical trucks were finding it too hard to navigate the logging roads in the area, as they were often not much more than narrow muddy trails. Kenworth came to the rescue, and, during the years that followed, it quickly earned a reputation for innovation.AdvertisementAdvertisementKenworth was the first American truck brand to offer a standard diesel engine, with that four-cylinder Cummins mill able to deliver 100 horsepower — while its exhaust was routed through the truck industry's first vertical exhaust pipes. The company would further introduce the first integrated sleeper cab. More recently, driven by the popularity of machines like the T680 — known for its efficiency, style, and modern technology — the Kenworth brand captured 15.1% of the 2025 market for Class 8 trucks.It's also worth pointing out that the company has maintained its roots in the same area where it was born, since it builds trucks in Renton, Wash. That said, it has another U.S. plant in Chillicothe, Ohio, and gets its engines from the PACCAR facility in Columbus, Mississippi. Indeed, just to be clear, the Kenworth brand is owned by PACCAR, a U.S. company that also owns other truck brands such as Peterbilt and DAF. Through PACCAR, which treats the two countries' operations separately, Kenworth Australia has an impressive business footprint of its own.PeterbiltThe Peterbilt Freedom 250 Special Edition Model 589 on the road - PeterbiltPeterbilt followed right in the tire tracks of Kenworth, from its origins on the logging trails of the Pacific Northwest to its acquisition by PACCAR. Al Peterman — another lumber baron of the 1930s — was running into the same trouble transporting logs in Washington as the Kenworth team. He would eventually buy California-based bus and truck builder Fageol Motors in 1939 to leverage its operations to make his own logging trucks. After that was accomplished, PACCAR would then purchase Peterbilt in 1958.As a result, there are still some differences between Kenworth and Peterbilt semis, but they can share many components under the skin, including powertrains and even warranties. The two are even well-matched on the current sales charts, where only fractions of a percent separate their 2025 market-share levels. Kenworth's was 15.1%, while Peterbilt came in at 15.3% last year. And yes, they share some production facilities, with each tapping into plants in Sainte-Thérèse, Quebec, Canada, and Mexicali, Mexico, for non-U.S. North American markets.AdvertisementAdvertisementZeroing back in on their home markets, both Peterbilt and Kenworth are getting in on the sesquicentennial action, too: Kenworth with a limited-edition TourAmerica paint scheme and Peterbilt with a special edition Model 589. Patriotically inclined customers can rest easy knowing that both brands build in America. U.S. customers generally get their Peterbilt trucks from the company's facility in Denton, Texas, which is also the site of Peterbilt's corporate headquarters.Volvo and MackA Volvo FH Aero pulling two trailers on road - Volvo ABTwo veterans of the international truck scene come next. Mack — founded by brothers Jack, William, and Gus — has been producing trucks since at least 1905, with the company building its first vehicle – a 20-passenger bus — five years earlier. Volvo got into the trucking game in 1928, after building its first car in 1927. Unfortunately for Mack, its head start didn't prevent it from being bought out by foreign rivals. Renault took full control of Mack in 1990, and Volvo then did the same to the French brand in 2001.Moreover, the biggest Volvo truck plant in the world is actually located in the United States, at the New River Valley (NRV) facility in Dublin, Virginia. Sprawling across 2.3 million square feet, NRV builds trucks for both Mack and Volvo brands. The bulldog brand, though, also produces trucks at its Lehigh Valley Operations in Macungie, Pa., and at Roanoke Valley Operations in Salem in the same state. Volvo unsurprisingly builds trucks elsewhere, but so does Mack — sort of. The Wacol factory in Brisbane, Australia, manufactures trucks for both Volvo and Mack alike.In terms of how they're doing back in this country, it looks like the brands' fates may be converging even closer. Volvo finished 2025 with a Class 8 market share of 9.1 percent after its sales fell by 22.7%. Meanwhile, the only major semi brand to increase U.S. sales in 2025 was Mack, which enjoyed a 9.7% spike in popularity to raise its share to 8.7%.InternationalAn International RH semi truck pulling three trailers on road - InternationalInternational Trucks is a relatively new name in the semi industry, at least in one sense. The brand's beginnings do go back to the founding of International Harvester in 1902. But International's history had some ups and downs, and the company had to sell off its agricultural business in the 1980s to Case IH. Its leftover truck operations were then put under the brand name Navistar.AdvertisementAdvertisementAbout 35 years later, the Volkswagen-owned Traton Group bought Navistar to add to its stable of semi truck brands. Of course, through that move, VW also ended up owning the rights to the name of a famed International Harvester SUV, the Scout — which will soon be back on the road with electrified assistance. In 2024, perhaps to cash in on the Scout's return, Navistar went back to the future by renaming itself International Motors. None of this directly affected the brand's production locations, however. International continues to build trucks for U.S. customers in San Antonio, and that's in addition to its engine factory in Huntsville, Alabama, and its dedicated bus facility in Tulsa, Oklahoma.Last year, those factories helped International Motors claim 11% of the Class 8 truck market — albeit with contributions from the brand's plants in Escobedo, Mexico, and Springfield, Ohio. International has since agreed to sell its Ohio plant to a defense contractor, Roshel, which is expected to take over following the end of International's contract with the plant, due to expire in September 2026.Freightliner and Western StarFreightliner Cascadia wearing Carolina Panthers livery at German NFL game - Daimler TruckThe Freightliner company was founded by Leland James in 1942 for a very specific reason: Perhaps following the lead of the defense industry, which had begun making airplanes from aluminum instead of steel, he wanted to bring the same innovation to truck making. After all, then, as now, fuel costs were a major factor in trucking, and a given piece of aluminum is about 2.5 times lighter than a same-sized chunk of steel.Roughly eight years later, that dream became reality with the launch of the 1950 Freightliner B42 — a cab-over sleeper truck capable of traveling across the country with a 35-foot trailer attached. The company built its 100,000th truck in 1972, and it still held some 35.2% of the U.S. market for Class 8 trucks in 2025. In fact, the Freightliner Cascadia is acknowledged as the best-selling truck in its class for all of North America. As for its U.S. production footprint, Freightliner currently has plants in Portland, Oregon; Cleveland and Mount Holly, North Carolina; and Fort Mill and Gaffney, South Carolina.AdvertisementAdvertisementThe thing is, despite its all-American roots, in 1981, Freightliner became one of the many truck brands owned by Germany's Daimler, which also owns companies such as Mercedes-Benz Trucks, Western Star, and Setra. The latter, as an FYI, continues to be a niche player in this country's big-rig market. While Freightliner's result led the way in terms of market share in 2025, Western Star brought up the rear with roughly 5.5% of the year's sales — backed by production in Portland, Oregon and Cleveland, North Carolina.Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox, and follow us or add us as a preferred search source on Google.Read the original article on Jalopnik.
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