Why Tesla can build in America, but Apple can't?

[JetFalcon]

So Tesla is an American company that has multiple factories in America. But why can't Apple manufacture the same amount of product like Tesla is?

I never seen Apple website have a page on the FoxConn factories where most their products are made. At least they are trying to go in the right direction in small steps. I recently heard about their new computer being built in America (I think Texas) and Donald Trump paid a visit.

But still, I would have thought a car is a more complicated consumer good to produce than a smartphone, laptop, tablet. But how come Tesla can make more of their products in the United States while Apple is known more for making their products at a factory they don't own?

Can we say for certain the Tesla makes more product in the USA w/ American workers than Apple does?

 

[jrmnet]

As I understand it, Apple hardware manufacturing is cyclical and labor intensive. When a new iPhone is about to be produced, they need many new workers (I assume in the thousands) to be instantly available for assembly work. That is something you just can't do in America.

 

[DOCAL]

Apple is a computer/devices company, so I think a fair comparison would be where Tesla makes the computers (autopilot and entertainment) that go in its cars.

I would suspect the answer is also China, maybe even the same contract manufacturers that Apple uses.

 

[MichaelP90DL]

Also, Steve Jobs had pointed out that component manufacturers are clustered nearby the assembly plants in China, something no longer possible in the USA. Doesn't exist anymore.

 

[srs5694]

Apple is a computer/devices company, so I think a fair comparison would be where Tesla makes the computers (autopilot and entertainment) that go in its cars.

I would suspect the answer is also China, maybe even the same contract manufacturers that Apple uses.

Your suspicion is correct, at least up to a point -- I don't know what manufacturers within China make Tesla's electronics, but at least some of those components do come from China. In fact, Tesla is being impacted by the Trump trade war. According to this Reuters report from June, Tesla applied for exemptions from new US tariffs, but that application was denied. I haven't seen any new reporting on how Tesla specifically is being affected by Trump's China tariffs in a while, but given the way the trade war in general is going, I expect not much has changed since June, or the tariffs may actually have gone up a bit. (I don't recall the exact timing on when the various escalations occurred.)

 

[SSedan]

Giant obvious issue is freight small consumer electronics are easier to move than cars especially since custom order is an option.

 

[JetFalcon]

Giant obvious issue is freight small consumer electronics are easier to move than cars especially since custom order is an option.

Is it because 40-60 $1000 iPhones take up less space than 1 Tesla Model 3 that costs $40-60k?

So the expense of shipping a single Tesla from China would not save much money?

It's amazing just a few of these Gigafactories can put so many Teslas on the road, to the point that I can see 2-4 Teslas that look exactly the same in a single viewable area of the freeway or local road. Especially in such a short amount of time of about 10 years, compared to other car companies that been around for much longer.