Maybe if US automakers had not been disadvantaged with metals tariffs which make their products less competitive in the export markets.
Long term I think more production will shift to China and SE Asia, like BMW is probably going to do with highly profitable CUVs, in order not to be subject to US political whim. US production will end up being for only domestic consumption. Foreign investment in the US is a greater risk now than any time I can remember in my lifetime and the metrics are cratering as you'd expect.
Good note on steel tariffs too.
In an ideal production system, production occurs close to the customer and suppliers so inventory and transportation costs are minimized.
That's why any appreciable increase in foreign car purchases in China will likely result in the manufacturer setting up plants and supply chains in that market. It's the reason we have Toyota, BMW, etc plants in the US.
Ie.. it's not going to restart the GM plants that were scheduled to be shuttered. Only local consumption will do that.
Neat history fact, Lean manufacturing techniques were revolutionized and championed by Toyota with the Toyota Production System. It's
the standard in auto manufacturing and it's logic has spread to many, many other industries since it was developed by the Japanese.