- The Honda Prologue and the Chevy Equinox EV were some of the best-selling non-Tesla EVs in the third quarter.
- They’re both assembled in Mexico and risk being affected by President-elect Donald Trump’s 25% tariff on all goods imported from Mexico and Canada.
- Teslas are all U.S. made. But roughly 20-25% of the parts content in all Teslas is Mexico-sourced.
President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to sign an executive order for a sweeping 25% tariff on all goods imported from Mexico and Canada when he takes office on January 20. Trump revealed the plan on Monday on his social media platform, Truth Social, and the move could disrupt global trade and potentially cause a significant blow to the U.S. EV market.
EVs are gaining momentum in the U.S. with automakers reporting consecutive quarters of record sales growth this year, driven by a wave of new, relatively affordable models. Now this growth risks stalling if Trump follows through his proposed tariffs. Several automakers, including General Motors, Tesla, Ford, Honda, BMW and Audi rely heavily on manufacturing facilities across the southern border, making them particularly vulnerable to a policy shift.
Popular EVs currently like the Ford Mustang Mach-E, Chevrolet Equinox EV, Blazer EV and Honda Prologue undergo final assembly in Mexico. While Tesla manufactures its EVs in the U.S., some of their components are sourced from Mexico, according to public records posted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). InsideEVs scanned these records to see which EVs and PHEVs could be the hardest hit.
This list covers model year 2024 EVs and PHEVs as many MY2025 cars are not listed yet. Regardless, the percentage of vehicle content sourced from other countries gives us an idea of how the tariffs may affect these EVs.
| Model Year 2024 EVs/PHEVs | Share of content from the U.S. or Canada | Share of content from Mexico | Share of content from China | Final Assembly |
| Ford Mustang Mach-E | 26% | 18% | 51% | Mexico |
| Chevy Blazer EV | 62% | – | 18% | Mexico |
| Chevy Equinox EV | 62% | – | 18% | Mexico |
| Honda Prologue | 38% | 16% | Mexico | |
| Acura ZDX | 63% | 19% | 16% | U.S. |
| Tesla Model 3 | 35-75% | 20% | 40% (LR only) | U.S. |
| Tesla Model Y | 70% | 20% | – | U.S. |
| Tesla Model S | 65% | 15% | – | U.S. |
| Tesla Model X | 60% | 20% | – | U.S. |
|
Cybertruck |
65% | 25% | – | U.S. |
|
Dodge Charger Daytona EV (Upcoming) |
– | – | – | Canada |
| Ford Escape PHEV | 32% | 25% | – | U.S. |
| Lincoln Corsair PHEV | 47% | 25% | – | U.S. |
| Chrysler Pacifica PHEV | – | – | 0 | Canada |
| Audi Q5 55 e | – | 51% | – | Mexico |
As you can see, Tesla isn’t immune to these tariffs. Still, it remains to be seen whether Trump will make an exception for the automaker. CEO Elon Musk is set to head the new Department of Government Efficiency and has donated millions to Trump’s campaign efforts.
Trump also said that he would increase tariffs on Chinese-made goods by a further 10%. The U.S. has already imposed a 100% tariff on EVs made in China and has also banned Chinese software from being used in cars sold stateside.
Some 2.55 million cars manufactured in Mexico were imported to the U.S. in 2023, as per researcher GlobalFleet. Now, the fear of tariffs making cars more expensive is sending shockwaves across the industry. Share prices of several U.S. and European automakers, including General Motors, Ford, Volkswagen and Toyota fell on Tuesday in the face of uncertainty.
Japanese and Korean EVs appear relatively more insulated from Trump’s tariffs, but not entirely as they still source a small percentage of components from China. But on a more positive note, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 is now manufactured at Hyundai Motor Group’s Metaplant in Savannah, Georgia. The Ioniq 6 is entirely made in Korea.
The Genesis G80 Electrified, GV60, Ioniq 5 N, Hyundai Kona Electric and the Kia EV9 and Kia Niro EV appear to use a small percentage of Chinese components. The Toyota bZ4x and Lexus RZ also use a small percentage of Chinese parts but are predominantly manufactured in Japan.
So if Trump goes through with his America-first tariffs, the big winners will be South Korean and Japanese automakers. It’ll be American EVs, trucks and SUVs that will bear the brunt of the new duties.
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