Stellantis working with suppliers and dealers to mitigate tariff impact

Stellantis has been moving swiftly to mitigate the short-term impact of tariffs, recently revealing that one course of action has focused on the automaker’s parts supply chain and the dealer vehicle order process. 

The details: The parts and dealer-focused strategies—the latest in a series of steps taken by Stellantis to minimize the damage of the levies—were detailed by Stellantis’ chief financial officer, Doug Ostermann, at the Wolfe Research Virtual Auto Summit held Tuesday.

• The automaker’s supply chain strategy has entailed working upstream with tier-one suppliers that might be impacted by U.S. automotive tariffs, by pulling parts stock, including safety buffer parts, from Mexico and moving them to U.S. plants.

• Stellantis’ dealer-focused strategy has involved working downstream with its retailers to collect orders for units that could be impacted, in order to try and produce them during the 30-day delay on the tariffs granted to Detroit 3 automakers.

Between the lines: Stellantis has also been engaged in ongoing discussions with the Trump Administration at various levels, in addition to putting measures in place to mitigate the impact of the tariffs. 

• Ostermann said part of those efforts has focused on helping the administration understand the issues within the auto industry and how they could help Stellantis meet its policy goals.

• Stellantis has already made several adjustments to its operations that align with President Trump’s policy goals, including plans to reopen its shuttered Belvidere plant in Illinois to make a mid-size truck and plans to build the next-generation Dodge Durango in Michigan. 

• The automaker has also committed to investing in its Kokomo plant in Indiana and in assembly and machining at its manufacturing facilities in Toledo, Ohio.

Bottom line: How long tariffs last will determine whether Stellantis’ strategy holds—or if price hikes become unavoidable.

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