By Nora Eckert
DETROIT, Aug 12 (Reuters) – Ford Motor plans to move production of some Lincoln models from China to the U.S. beginning in 2030, Ford’s CEO told Reuters on Wednesday, saying the move was difficult but necessary to strengthen the U.S. auto manufacturing base.
Gasoline-powered cars and electric vehicles imported from China are subject to hefty duties. The U.S. tariff on the Lincoln Nautilus, the main vehicle Ford imports from China, is 52.5%, Ford confirmed.
“We made this decision as soon as the policy of the administration was set,” Ford CEO Jim Farley said, referring to the tariffs. “We knew exactly what they wanted to do, and we knew exactly what it meant for Ford,” Farley said in a joint interview with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
The U.S.-made Lincolns would be sold in the domestic market as part of a significant effort to scale up output, Farley said, although the company did not disclose where they would be produced.
Lutnick added: “Ford’s got an edge. Domestic manufacturing has an edge.”
Crosstown rival General Motors has announced it will move production of its Buick Envision to the U.S. from China starting in 2028.
Along with tariffs, automakers have faced restrictions under the Connected Vehicle Rule, which bans some Chinese technology and hardware in U.S. models. Farley said that both regulations prompted Ford to make the decision, although he pointed to tariffs as the driving factor.
Ford was one of several companies requesting authorization from the U.S. Commerce Department to continue selling vehicles potentially restricted under the rule. Automakers denied an authorization, such as EV company Polestar, face bans from selling certain products in the U.S. market.
A spokesperson for the Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker said on Wednesday that, after discussions with the Commerce Department, it realized the Lincoln Nautilus no longer needed an authorization to sell in the U.S.
The company had previously said the Nautilus software was developed in the U.S. but installed into the vehicle in China, requiring government approval to continue selling it in the United States. Ford sold about 34,000 Nautilus vehicles in the U.S. last year.
U.S. lawmakers have sought to further tighten prohibitions beyond those introduced in the Connected Vehicle Rule. One such push, approved by the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee in July, would bar companies that are more than 15% owned by Chinese entities from selling vehicles in the United States. If implemented, it would prevent Mercedes-Benz from selling new vehicles in the U.S.
Ford said the move announced on Wednesday builds on Lincoln’s U.S. production base. Lincoln assembles the Navigator at a plant in Louisville, Kentucky, and the Aviator at the Chicago Assembly Plant, and exports both models to markets including Canada, Mexico and the Middle East.
(Reporting by Nora Eckert; Editing by Rod Nickel and Edmund Klamann)
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