Illinois Loves Cars But Which Brand Excites Residents Most?

Fact Checked by Jim Tomlin

Ford’s deep-rooted ties with Michigan and Tesla’s initial origins in California prove that automobile brands have become synonymous with certain states.

Historical context and successful economic production are among the factors that push Michigan and California as leading figures in the automobile industry in the United States.

But across America, preferences can evolve over time as new models, features, technology, and marketing campaigns impact consumer decisions. 

And according to research from IllinoisBet.com – your source for Illinois sports betting coverage – the state of Illinois surprisingly favors a non-domestic car brand as their preference, despite its close proximity to General Motor’s headquarters.

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How We Determined This List

In fact, we determined that international car brands are favored over American brands across the country. However, we wanted to dig further into which car logos have gained greater prominence and preference in their respective states.

IllinoisBet.com used CarLogos.org’s list of the Top 50 most popular car brands in the United States as a starting point. We then turned to Google Trends, which listed each car brand’s level of interest in all 50 states over the 12 months between July 25, 2022, and July 25, 2023. We averaged the results to arrive at the top car brand for each state.

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Favorite Car Brand By State

  • Honda (7 states): Alaska, Delaware, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina 
  • Dodge (5 states): Arkansas, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico
  • Audi (4 states): Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York
  • Ford (4 states): Michigan, Montana, South Dakota, Wyoming
  • Buick (3 states): Indiana, Iowa, Wisconsin
  • Chevrolet (3 states): Kentucky, North Dakota, Oklahoma
  • Hyundai (3 states): Alabama, Arizona, Illinois
  • Mercedes-Benz (3 states): Florida, Georgia, Virginia
  • Mazda (3 states): Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Washington
  • Volkswagen (3 states): New Hampshire, Oregon, Utah

One state each: Alfa Romeo: Rhode Island; BMW: Nevada; Jeep: West Virginia; Kia: Ohio; Lamborghini: Texas; Land Rover: New Jersey; Lincoln: Nebraska; Nissan: Tennessee; Subaru: Vermont; Tesla: California; Toyota: Hawaii; Volvo: Maine.

Illinois Residents’ Preferred Car Brand Revealed

The findings indicate that Honda emerges as the top-choice car brand in the United States among the companies on the CarLogos.org top 50 brands list. A total of seven states – Alaska, Delaware, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina and South Carolina – chose the Japanese automaker as their preferred option.

Following Honda’s dominance, American car companies secure the second and third spots. Dodge, a brand under the Fiat-Chrysler umbrella, is favored in five states: Arkansas, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri and New Mexico. Trailing Dodge is Ford, which is more prevalent in Michigan, Montana, South Dakota and Wyoming.

Tied with Ford is the German automotive manufacturer, Audi, as the favorite brand in four states. Then, six vehicle manufacturers are tied for fifth place, each with three states. That includes Mercedes-Benz, Chevy, Mazda, Volkswagen, Buick, and Hyundai.

In the Land of Lincoln, the South Korean automobile brand, Hyundai, was the top choice for residents. The same holds true for Alabama and Arizona.

Curious to learn more about Illinois? Make sure to follow IllinoisBet, the state’s resource for online gambling news and developments.

Author

Felix Veletanga

Felix Veletanga is an experienced reporter who has covered local news, politics, and sports in Northern New Jersey, and now lends his expertise to the Illinois sports betting market. He previously covered the Saint Peter’s men’s basketball team’s 2022 NCAA Cinderella run for HudPost. Felix specializes in combat fighting and soccer betting analysis with a focus on the Premier League.

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