[doug]

The electric motor for Tesla's are made in Taiwan...

Initially Tesla had set up their own motor manufacturing plant in Taiwan but as production got rolling they moved it back to California. Many were made at the Tesla headquarters right here in Palo Alto.

[hr]

I wouldn't be surprised if the Tesla Roadster has less US parts than the Karma (which has 50%). The whole Roadster-body is already being imported. And I don't think the thousands of laptop-batteries are being produced in the US either. Still, a lot of people consider the Tesla an American car. I guess it's all about perception, not much about fact.

The cells are from Japan, but the battery packs are assembled in California (San Carlos and later Palo Alto). Roadsters sold in North America have US VINs because the drivetrain, which is more than 50% of the car's value, is made and final assembly is done in the US.