Volvo Might Pull Its New EV From America Before Buyers Even Get A Chance

CEO Hakan Samuelsson also said consumers, not Volvo, would have to absorb the cost of tariff-related price increases

                                        https://www.carscoops.com/author/chris-chilton-cc/                                    

America waited what felt like an eternity to get its hands on the electric Volvo EX30 while European reviewers raved about it, but no sooner has it arrived than the EX30 is already at risk of disappearing. Volvo’s CEO has warned that he might be forced to pull the company’s smallest EV from the market because it’s simply not economically viable to import it under current US tariffs.

Hakan Samuelsson, who has returned to head the company after a three-year hiatus, made the revelation as Trump’s 90-day tariff pause nears its end. European carmakers are preparing for the possibility of a June 1 introduction of a 50 percent levy on cars imported to the US from the region.

Also: President Trump Just Dropped A Bomb On European Car Imports

Speaking to Reuters, Samuelsson said a 50 percent tariff would “limit the ability” of Volvo to sell the EX30 in America. Although Volvo builds the bigger EX90 in the US, American-spec EX30s are built in Belgium, with the company having moved export production there from China, which led to a delay in its US arrival. The automaker is believed to be considering moving production of the EX30, and potentially the XC60, to the US.

Buyers Will Feel the Price Hike

Samuelsson was also adamant that customers and not the carmaker itself would have to soak up most of the tariff-related price increases. Unlike high-end brands like Aston Martin or Ferrari, which cater to buyers with deeper pockets and much more tolerance for sticker shock, Volvo plays in a different league. Its buyers are much more sensitive to price increases, which makes tacking on a tariff-induced markup a risky proposition.

Volvo’s expectation that car buyers will have to shoulder the burden disproves Trump’s belief that tariffs will be “eaten up” by the exporting companies and their nations.

Hoping for a Diplomatic Detour

Even so, Samuelsson seems confident that some kind of resolution will be reached between Europe and the US. Under the terms of a deal secured between the UK and the US earlier this month, Land Rover, Mini and other British brands get away with a more manageable 10 percent tariff.

Related: Volvo’s EV Crash Hits Harder Than Expected As Buyers Walk Away From Batteries

“I believe there will be a deal soon,” Samuelsson told Reuters. “It could not be in the interest of Europe or the U.S. to shut down trade between them.”

Time is running out, but the industry is watching closely. If nothing changes by next month, the EX30’s American road trip could be cut painfully short.