With tariffs in place, Honda Canada taking no immediate actions in Alliston
Posted March 4, 2025
The 'what if' or 'when' is yes and now as of 12:01 this morning when American President Donald Trump's 25 per cent tariffs went into effect on a long list of exports into the U.S. from Canada and Mexico includng its direct hit on Honda's manufacturing plants in Alliston, and its local parts suppliers and transport to market logistics. Honda exports 80 per cent of its Canadian production to the U.S. which means the tariff is charged each time parts and the finished product crosses the border adding thousands of dollars to the MRSP of its Civic and CR-V.
Further to immediate impacts on current production, Honda announced last April a $15 billion investment to electrify its operations in Alliston, including construction of a new battery plant. But in addition to tariffs, Trump has been cancelling all incentives and policies related to electric vehicles.
"As we work to understand the full impact of imposed U.S. tariffs on our business, we will take no immediate actions related to either our current manufacturing operations or future electrification plans in Canada," Laura Heasman, Honda's Senior Manager Communications & Foundation, told Free Press Online via email this morning. "We remain focused on protecting our more than 4,000 manufacturing associates and our long-standing business operations in Canada. Our path is for the long-term and with our North American powertrain production flexibility, we are confident we can pivot effectively."
In a published report March 3 by Reuters, out of Tokyo, marked "exclusive" it points to three unamed sources to suggest next-generation Civic hybrid will be made in Indiana, instead of Mexico, to avoid the tariffs.
"Regarding the Civic production rumours, what I can say is that Honda has made no such announcement and will not comment on this report," said Heasman. "Honda has made no such announcement related to production of the next generation Civic."
Asked if any production could move out of Alliston to skirt tariffs, Heasman said, "the Honda Civic has been made in our auto plant in Alliston, Ontario, since 1988 based on our longstanding approach to build products close to the customer. We have the flexibility to produce products in each region based on customer needs and market conditions."
