The Family Tree of Cars
There are so many different car brands it is hard to keep track of them all. However, many of these brands are actually connected through a confusing family tree.
Written by Ru Chen
Reviewed by Kathleen Flear
The world of cars and car brands can be confusing. Sometimes everything is as it seems, for example
BMW
is owned by the parent company, BMW Group. No surprises there! But did you know that Volkswagen owns Porsche, Bentley, and Audi? For many brands, it’s harder to tell who owns them than that. That’s because the auto industry’s
history
and family tree have some of the most tangled branches you will ever see. Why is the car family tree so confusing?
In just the past decade, car companies have seen a slew of partnerships, separations, bankruptcies, and even gotten completely killed off.
Every single year, the automotive industry makes big changes, as well as lowkey ones that might fly under the radar.
Consumer Reports
mentions how we have had to bid goodbye to storied names such as Mercury, Oldsmobile, and Pontiac. Other brands have even migrated and found new homes in foreign countries. No wonder it’s hard to keep up with who owns what.
Here is a roadmap that will, hopefully, clear up the confusion once and for all (only until the next change switches brands around).
For the sake of those who are interested in the used car market, retired brands will also be included in this list.
List of who owns what
Consumer Reports has provided a handy list of who owns what.
Brand: Parent Company
Acura: Honda Motor Company
Alfa Romeo: Stellantis
Audi: Volkswagen Group
BMW: BMW Group
Bentley: Volkswagen Group
Buick: General Motors
Cadillac: General Motors
Chevrolet: General Motors
Chrysler: Stellantis
Dodge: Stellantis
Fiat: Stellantis
Ford: Ford Motor Co.
GMC: General Motors
Genesis: Hyundai Motor Group
Honda: Honda Motor Co.
Hyundai: Hyundai Motor Group
Infiniti: Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance
Jaguar: Tata Motors
Jeep: Stellantis
Kia: Hyundai Motor Group
Land Rover: Tata Motors
Lexus: Toyota Motor Corp.
Lincoln: Ford Motor Co.
Lotus: Zhejiang Geely Holding Group
Maserati: Stellantis
Mazda: Mazda Motor Corp.
Mercedes-Benz: Daimler AG
Mercury (retired): Ford Motor Co.
Mini: BMW Group
Mitsubishi: Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance
Nikola: Nikola Motor Company, with a supply relationship with General Motors
Nissan: Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance
Polestar: Zhejiang Geely Holding Group
Pontiac (retired): General Motors
Porsche: Volkswagen Group
Ram: Stellantis
Rivian: Rivian Automotive, with investments from Amazon and Ford, among others
Rolls-Royce: BMW Group
Saab: a brand owned by Saab AB; assets owned by National Electric Vehicle Sweden
Saturn (retired): General Motors
Scion (retired): Toyota Motor Corp.
Smart: Daimler AG
Subaru: Subaru Corp.
Suzuki (retired): Suzuki Motor Corp. Owns a small stake in Toyota
Tesla: Tesla Inc.
Toyota: Toyota Motor Corp.
Volkswagen: Volkswagen AG.
Volvo: Zhejiang Geely Holding Group
As you can see, there are a select number of major corporations that own a lot of well-known car brands.
This list is long, despite excluding European manufacturers that don’t sell in America.
Brand loyalty is a big thing for many companies and consumers alike.
It can be a shocker to find out that Stellantis owns the popular brands of Jeep and Chrysler, but also the luxurious Maserati. Maserati was associated with Ferrari for so long, yet has been owned by Stellantis since 2021.
How does changing parent companies affect car insurance?
The automotive industry is ever-changing. This list is updated but who knows what it will look like in a year as more mergers and sales take place.
Keep an eye out for who owns what. As for how these changes affect insurance, let
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