Pres. Donald Trump’s tariffs will add billions to the cost of manufacturing vehicles in the U.S., as well as importing products from abroad. So far, however, automakers have been reluctant to pass those higher costs onto consumers, fearing that could trigger a sharp downturn in demand. How long they can continue swallowing those higher costs remains to be seen. More from Headlight.News.
Tariffs Drag Stellantis Deep Into the Red – and Will Get Worse in 2nd Half, Automaker Warns
On this week’s Headlight News podcast, we talk about President Trump’s trade deals, how the existing tariffs crashed Tesla’s and GM’s second quarter earnings, the new Honda Prelude as well as offering a review of the new Toyota Prius Prime. Check it out and tell us what you think.
U.S. and European trade negotiators reached the framework agreement on a new trade deal that will result in new, 15% tariffs on most European goods shopped to the States, including automobiles. That’s a sixfold increases from before and for buyers of products from brands like BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Fiat and Maserati, that could mean substantially higher prices. It could also hammer profits for those manufacturers – though U.S. negotiators hope the deal will see more production moved to the United States. More from Headlight.News.
After throwing its support behind Pres. Donald Trump’s 25% tariffs on imported autos and auto parts, the United Auto Workers admits is coming up empty handed in the administration’s new deal with Japan, which offers nothing for workers and could lead to lower wages. Headlight.News has more.
Tesla reported a 16% plunge in second-quarter net income as its worldwide sales continue to decline. CEO Elon Musk warned that there could yet be “a few rough quarters” ahead before the automaker gets its long-promised “affordable” EV into production. More from Headlight.News.
Volvo will trim its U.S. line-up as it copes with the challenges posed by Pres. Donald Trump’s import auto tariffs. Among the models going away: the S60, S90 and ES90 sedans. More from Headlight.News.
As part of a new trade deal, Japanese auto imports will now face 15% reciprocal tariffs, down from the earlier 25% levied as part of Pres. Donald Trump’s trade war. Japan also agreed to set up a $550 billion fund to back investments in the United States. More from Headlight.News.
General Motors reported a 35% decline in net income for the second quarter of the year, much of that due to the new Trump tariffs which took a $1 billion bite, the automaker reported. More from Headlight.News.
Stellantis reported a preliminary loss of $2.7 billion for the first half of 2025 – and the second half is looking to be even worse, the automaker warned Monday, putting much of the blame on Pres. Donald Trump’s automotive tariffs. Add program cuts and other issues and it creates some big challenges for new CEO Antonio Filosa. More from Headlight.News.
Detroit’s Big Three automakers are among those cheering the Trump administrations decision to end penalties for missing federal fuel economy mandates. Not so Tesla, however. The automaker stands to lose billions of dollars in revenues earned selling mileage credits. Headlight.News explains.
This week’s podcast covers Ford’s new recall record, buyers paying more than ever for new cars, Trump issuing a new tariff and we also review the Hyundai Ioniq 9. Check it out on Spotify or click on the link in the story.