Tariffs: Canadian dealers want more access to foreign vehicles

One solution to help Canadian consumers and the auto industry in the context of a trade war with the U.S. would be to broaden and relax regulations to allow more models to be imported from Europe, Japan and Korea that would be suitable for Canadian drivers.

That's the view of the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA), whose leaders were in Ottawa this week to urge federal party leaders to take action to protect the country's auto industry.

This measure is one of five included in CADA's “Competitiveness Framework for the Automotive Sector”, which CADA believes should be implemented by the next government. Here are the others:

• End unnecessary federal and provincial electric vehicle mandates;
• Keep Canada's big banks out of the direct-to-consumer car leasing market;
• Abolish the luxury tax on vehicles;
• Refund to dealers the electric vehicle purchase incentives they lost when Ottawa ended its program.

“The Canadian auto sector is in turmoil over the U.S. customs tariffs, and while we applaud the current Canadian government for its restraint and willingness to avoid making the situation worse, it's clear that we're hurtling toward an affordability crisis for consumers as the additional costs of the tariffs make their way through the various supply chains of all manufacturers and will soon translate into higher prices in the marketplace,” said CADA President and CEO Tim Reuss.

As for importing more vehicles from other countries, he pointed out that certain models, such as hatchbacks, are popular in Canada but not as much in the USA. “If we didn't have to follow the same standards as the rest of North America, Canadians could enjoy a wider choice of vehicles,” he insisted.

In Tim Reuss' view, dealers are adapting to this difficult environment, but remain concerned about the impact of the customs tariffs and other economic pressures on vehicle prices.

"Will they still be able to offer vehicles at prices Canadians are willing to pay? What will happen to used-vehicle appraisals? All these questions remain unanswered," said CADA's president.