Donald Trump has launched a scathing attack against General Motors, accusing the automaker of making cars built in Mexico available tax-free in the US.

The US president-elect took to Twitter to criticise the car giant, which owns a number of brands including Cadillac, Chevrolet and Vauxhall, insisting General Motors should pay border taxes or build the cars in the US.

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"General Motors is sending Mexican made model of Chevy Cruze to US car dealers-tax free across border. Make in U.S.A. or pay big border tax!" he wrote on the popular social media network.

However, the Detroit-headquartered firm replied that most of its Chevy Cruze cars were produced in the US and only the hatchback model, which accounts for just a small percentage of sales, was made south of the border.

General Motors, the largest car producer in the US, added that all the Cruze sedans sold in the US last year were made in Lordstown, Ohio and that the models produced in Mexico were destined to its international market.

The automaker has already indicated it intends to cut approximately 1,000 jobs at the site, amid declining demand for its Cruze model, due to lower fuel prices which encourage customers to turn towards to SUVs and trucks.

According to market researcher WardsAuto.com, approximately 19% of General Motors's North American production in the 10 months between January and October 2016 was carried out in Mexico, compared to Ford's 13%.

The carmaker is not the first manufacturer to attract the ire of the US president-elect, who last month criticised Boeing, claiming the costs of developing a new Air Force One were excessive and threatened to cancel the F-35 jetfighter programme with Lockheed Martin.

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