President Trump’s tariff scenario is making Mitsubishi press pause on imports
Japanese automaker Mitsubishi is the latest automaker to pause its shipments to dealers in the United States in response to the Trump administration’s 25% tariffs that are being levied on cars and car parts. A spokesperson for the manufacturer behind models like the Outlander SUV, the compact Mirage, the Outlander Sport crossover, and the Eclipse Cross said that the automaker is holding its vehicles at the port before any levies can be applied as it awaits more color on the tariff situation.
“We are holding vehicles at the port until we have additional visibility on tariffs and decisions made on next steps,” the spokesperson told AutoNews on April 11. “We have sufficient stock on the ground at dealers for the moment to not impact customer choice.”
Mitsubishi
Compared to its Japanese compatriots like Honda, Toyota, Subaru, and even Mazda, Mitsubishi is particularly unique, as the Trump administration actively encourages U.S. automobile production. While Honda has facilities in multiple states across the Midwest and American South, Mitsubishi imports every single vehicle sold in the United States from Japan, which raises a red flag for the 25% tariffs that could be applied at the border or the port of entry.
However, according to AutoNews, U.S. dealers won’t immediately feel any effects from any action in response to the Trump administration’s actions. According to an April 8 memo, Mitsubishi has a nearly 100-day supply of already onshored cars, and more than 80% of the 20,245 tariff-exempt cars are already sitting on dealer lots. The most tariff-free car it has is the Outlander, with 6,377 in stock at its 330 American dealers. Though pricing is not expected to increase, Mitsubishi slashed buying incentives and offers on the SUV, though customers can still claim $1,000 in customer cash. At the same time, qualified buyers can lock in financing at 4.99%.
Despite the uncertainty, Mitsubishi reported solid Q1 2025 sales. The automaker sold 31,637 vehicles in North America last quarter, an 11 percent increase compared to the same period last year. Sales were led by the Outlander SUV, which managed to move 11,992 units in Q1 2025 despite representing a 13% year-over decrease. Meanwhile, the recently discontinued Mirage was Mitsubishi’s second-best seller with 7,301 units, followed by the Outlander Sport and the Eclipse Cross.
Mitsubishi
Mitsubishi joins other automakers with import problems
Mitsubishi’s latest actions come as other prominent automakers make import adjustments to accommodate the current auto tariff situation. Volkswagen-backed German luxury mainstay Audi has been keeping cars that arrived in American ports after Trump’s 25% car tariffs went live on April 3, as it holds onto 37,000 vehicles in its U.S. inventory, or two months of back stock.
Jaguar Land Rover also confirmed last week that it paused shipments to the U.S. for a month to evaluate the situation. In a statement seen by The New York Times, the maker of Land Rovers, Range Rovers, Defenders, and Jaguar-branded vehicles, said that “The U.S.A. is an important market for JLR’s luxury brands. As we work to address the new trading terms with our business partners, we are enacting our short-term actions, including a shipment pause in April, as we develop our mid- to longer-term plans.”
Final Thoughts
April 30 will mark the end of the first 100 days of the second term of the Trump Presidency, and already, he has heated up, shaped, and remolded policy that is key to one of the most important industries driving the United States economy. While it is one thing for “premium” luxury automakers like Jaguar and Audi to halt their shipments to the United States, it’s another for “pedestrian” brands like Mitsubishi to be affected.
If Mitsubishi, the same automaker whose dealers have been making more money selling used cars than new ones, is being affected, something is definitely wrong. From this point on, I can picture foreign automakers of all stripes being really decisive about what vehicles are worth stomaching tariffs on and which ones aren’t, much like Volvo and what they did with the S90 sedan. This could mean that bland, mundane crossovers could be the only kind of new cars we’ll be able to buy at the dealers. However, the U.S. has experienced a president who has enacted isolationist trade policies before, and only time will tell if these tariffs will have dozens of cutouts or be scrapped altogether.