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WASHINGTON ? Rick Santorum preaches Made in America, but, according to his tax returns, he was driving a German-made luxury car just a few years back.

Santorum, now vying with Mitt Romney for frontrunner status nationwide and leading in the race to win the Feb. 28 Republican presidential primary in Michigan, has made American manufacturing a major theme of his campaign. He has called for tax breaks for U.S. manufacturers and one section of his campaign website is called ?Made in America: Empowering American Families, Building Economic Freedom.?

But his 2008 tax return, released along with three other years Wednesday night, showed he was started driving an Audi A6 that year as part of his consulting business, putting nearly 12,000 miles on the car. He claimed $241 in depreciation on his assets that year. The website Politico posted the tax returns Wednesday evening.

The Audi A6, manufactured in Germany, listed for $42,950 in 2008.

During the Iowa caucuses, Santorum, a former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania, drew attention as he crossed the state in a 2006 Dodge Ram pickup belonging to a campaign aide and dubbed the ?Chuck Truck: for aide Chuck Laudner. As was reported by the website autoguide.com earlier this year, ?Whether or not it was intentional, the Dodge Ram has become a symbol for Santorum to prove that he?s hardworking and has spent the time to travel across the state.?

The Santorum campaign did not immediately return a request for comment.

The auto industry has been a sore point for Romney as well, as Democrats have hit him for opposing President Barack Obama?s 2009 rescue of General Motors and Chrysler. Romney has argued that a privately financed managed bankruptcy would have been preferable ? even though experts including the head of Obama?s auto task force, Steven Rattner, say there was no private financing available at the time. Without government help, they say, the companies could have slid into bankruptcy.

The Free Press had earlier asked the Romney campaign for information on the former Massachusetts governor?s cars and was told he drives a red 2005 Ford Mustang and his wife Ann a gray 2010 Cadillac SRX. They also have a 2007 Cadillac SRX and a 2001 Chevrolet pickup truck.

Romney acknowledged owning a vehicle other than one built by the Detroit Three ? Chrysler, Ford and GM ? in the last 10 years following a meeting with the Free Press editorial board, but he did not provide additional details.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, another Republican candidate for president, has also released his tax return for 2010 but it did not include any vehicles. U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, also in the race, has not released his tax returns.

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Santorum drove Audi A6 in 2008, tax returns show