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Old 05-24-2018, 03:16 PM   #11
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Sweezy wins, lock the thread.

Tom, I agree, it sucks.


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Old 05-24-2018, 03:47 PM   #12
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Hey rock on. Seems we're on track to keep this thread "SMB Forum Friendly."
So....in the spirit of continuing this as an informative / non-political thread, how's this for some wacky Tariff Trivia:

25% Tariffs on imported vehicles are nothing new in the U.S. --- we already have one!

It's called the "Chicken Tax".....and it's been levied on on all imported light trucks since 1963, courtesy of then-President Lyndon Johnson.

Wikipedia - Chicken tax
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicken_tax

It's still in place, by the way......and that's why Toyota builds Tacomas/Tundras here in the US....and Honda builds the Ridgeline here in the US.......and Nissan builds the Titan/Frontier here in the US.....and it's why the new Ford Transit is made here in the US (even though it was designed in Europe and has been manufactured over there for decades....).....

......and it's why (most bizarrely), the Ford Transit Connect sold here (the little one) gets built in Turkey, but then in order to "duck the Tariff," it gets shipped to the USA with two rows of seats in place (which then legally classifies it as a passenger vehicle....) ....and this is done even if its going to be sold as an empty cargo version here in the US....

(THIS IS WHERE IT GETS WEIRD: )
....Once it arrives here, the seats are stripped out of the vans at the Port of entry and are either junked or shipped back to Turkey. Presto! One foreign-built light truck, successfully shipped into the USA and cleverly dodging the 25% Chicken Tax.

If a tax gets passed, a loophole is quickly invented......

(Super interesting details on that Wikipedia page of how various manufacturers get around the Chicken Tax, by the way. Mahindra was going to ship their India-built pickup trucks here in "Kit Form" for some simple final assembly in the US. Fascinating.)
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Old 05-24-2018, 03:49 PM   #13
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The new Sprinter will be manufactured in South Carolina, so tariffs won't apply directly (materials tariffs will however impact all OEMs), to the 2WD models.

I don't know if the 4x4 models will be made in SC. Currently, 4x4 is added across the street from the main factory.

FWIW - It's not the the auto sector being impacted. The company I was working for though last week, shut down due to cash flow issues, partly because large commercial customers are being denied financing for their capital projects, due the uncertainty in steel prices. Whether the tariffs are are implemented or not, the constant threats over twitter are enough to impact costs across entire manufacturing industry.
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Old 05-24-2018, 03:58 PM   #14
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The chicken tax is why the Subaru Brat had those weird but cool seats in the bed. It is also why import brand pickups are made here in the



Ever find that people don't know where their autos are even made? Even though it is right there on the monroney sticker they just understand where the brand is based.



It further amazes me how few people understand economics. Then again they don't even teach kids how to balance a checkbook or other basics in school. That may be why global or national economics discussions devolve into political arguments. Speculative ignorance. Americans are sure good at buying goods and supporting corporations but they rarely understand where that money goes beyond that.
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Old 05-24-2018, 05:10 PM   #15
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I think it's reasonable to say that we are a bit excitable these days. I have experienced some pointed conversations regarding my daily driver, a 2017 Chevy Volt. The accusation of which is if I'm aware that an electric (or part time electric in the case of the Volt) is in some way anti American. To which I direct their attention to the sticker in the door jam.



I also point out that one of the things I really like about the Volt is it gives me freedom to chose electricity or gas for fuel. And that, the freedom of choice is very American. Usually at this point the conversation things cool down and then questions arise about how the car works, what it's like, how do I charge it, ect. One time I even gave critical person a ride to which they were pretty impressed with the acceleration and quietness.

My point is so often things aren't as they seem and open mindedness is the key to any situation. I feel for those that an unexpected increase in cost on a long term project will hurt or even may put a new van completely out of reach. But, none of this is in writing yet. We'll see how this plays. My father would say when your in the cockpit, fly the plan and take a jacket because we might not be landing where we intend. I think that's good advice when feeling exited in life too.

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Old 05-24-2018, 09:09 PM   #16
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It is my personal belief that even our 'made in America' stickers are made in China.

The thing that comes to mind that America makes better than anyone else in the world........is bad politicians. We're simply unmatched at that.

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Old 05-24-2018, 10:16 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 86Scotty View Post

The thing that comes to mind that America makes better than anyone else in the world........is bad politicians. We're simply unmatched at that.


Nah, bad politicians are pretty universal, and have been around since man started organizing himself.
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Old 06-19-2018, 06:39 PM   #18
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I met with Brian for an hour on Mon. to refine the build plan. My first question was about the tariff. He said the chicken tax on preassembled imports is already 25% and that MB already gets around that via the disassembly and then reassembly in SC. He doesn't anticipate Sprinters being affected if new tariffs are enacted.
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Old 06-19-2018, 07:07 PM   #19
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Did someone mention overpriced 7.3?
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Old 06-19-2018, 08:42 PM   #20
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Did someone mention overpriced 7.3?
I'm afraid ya got me there. The only thing that comes to mind is the old Ford 7.3L diesel engine. Is this 7.3 related to the tariff (this thread), or is it related to another post I made today in another thread? Perhaps re. bringing a used E350 for conversion???
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