Detroit Weeps, Land Rover Laughs

When the President of the United States is a man whose favourite meal is a well-done steak and whose favourite hobby is slapping tariffs on things, it was only a matter of time before he turned his attention back to the car industry. And so it happened. Last week, Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer struck a deal to cut tariffs on British car imports to the U.S. from 27.5% down to a mere 10%.

This means Land Rovers can now glide even more confidently into Beverly Hills clinic driveways, MINIs can shine once again in suburban New York, and even McLaren owners may start to believe their slightly-more-affordable supercars might actually be serviceable by someone other than a knighted engineer in gloves. Meanwhile, Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis are—put mildly—furious.

America’s “Big Three” are, in fact, absolutely fuming. To them, this deal feels less like trade policy and more like a rowing race where the Brit gets a paddle and the American is handed a teacup.

Of course, there’s a fine-print twist: the reduced 10% tariff only applies to the first 100,000 vehicles per year. Should anyone decide to flood the States with a tidal wave of Bentleys beyond that point, the tax shoots back up to 25%. Last year, British automakers sold around 133,000 cars in the U.S.—but according to the BBC, only about 100,000 were actually built in the UK.

And yet, back in Britain, they’re calling it a “historic deal.” And to be fair, it probably is—after all, it’s the first time in history a Rolls-Royce could cost less in the U.S. than a fully optioned Chevrolet Suburban.

Ford, GM, and Stellantis see all this as a dark omen. They fear that if this got through with Britain, the next stop on the “discount luxury express” is Japan, Korea, or Germany.

So yes, for the Brits, it’s a champagne-worthy win. For the Americans? It’s the kind of deal that might just make even a Mustang shed a tear.