Every Car Built Outside The USA Is About To Get 25% More Expensive

The maneuver could add thousands of dollars to the price of new vehicles at a time when shoppers are already balking at increasing vehicle costs and flocking to lower-cost options. The proposed tariffs could take effect as early as April 2.

Since the Trump Administration took office it has introduced a 10 percent tax on Chinese imports, a 25 percent duty on imported steel and aluminum, and announced but paused a 25 percent tariff on imports from Mexico and Canada.

The proposed vehicle tariff now extends this strategy to the entire global vehicle production sphere, including imports from South Korea, Japan, and the European Union in particular.

The European Union currently applies a blanked 10 percent tariff on all imported vehicles, compared to the U.S.’s current 2.5 percent rate. America has an existing 25% "chicken tax" on imported pickup trucks which will remain.

According to a report from S&P Global Mobility, nearly half of all new cars sold in the U.S. are imported. A 25 percent tariff could raise the price of a $25,000 imported vehicle by $6,250,. The impact would be widespread, affecting popular models and entry-level vehicles that many consumers rely on for affordability.

Already automakers are adjusting. Reports suggest that Porsche and Audi are exploring U.S. production to mitigate tariff impacts. Ford CEO Jim Farley openly called for this during the company's latest quarterly earnings call.

"There are millions of vehicles coming into our country that are not being applied to these. So if we're going to have a tariff policy that lasts for a month or it's going to be years, it better be comprehensive for our industry."

This certainly appears to be comprehensive.

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