Lincoln Doesn't Seem To Care About Tariffs

Despite more than doubling the price of the Nautilus, Ford isn't jumping to alter its production strategy. Outgoing Lincoln President Dianne Craig confirmed that shipments of the China-built Nautilus continue uninterrupted.

Speaking with Automotive News, Craig noted that Lincoln is monitoring the situation closely, trying to understand how the consumer is going to behave while developing contingency plans.

“Right now we’re just trying to learn more and scenario-plan for how we can work through it. At some point, yes, it might be likely that we’re going to have to take some level of pricing, but we also know we have to understand what happens with the competitive environment, we have to understand how much can consumers actually absorb, how much can we pass along, and it really comes down to where the tariff lands. It remains to be seen. The question will be how much and when?”

The current tariff only really affects Nautilus models shipped to the United States. Vehicles sold within China are built in China, except the low-volume Navigator. Not factored in is the potential long-term brand collateral Lincoln may deal with as a result of the trade war. A Lincoln may be built in China, but a Lincoln is not a Chinese car—it's American.

Meanwhile, Ford is lobbying for relief on duties applied to low-cost parts produced overseas, including components essential to its electric vehicle infrastructure. Although a 90-day pause on most tariffs was announced, the automotive sector was not included. Ford says that among the items at risk is the OEM EV charging adapter, which will see increased costs if current policies remain in place.

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