Legacy Automakers Ford, GM, Stellantis Accuse EU Of Blocking Pickup Truck Sales: Report

The big three automakers from Detroit, Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F), General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM) and Stellantis N.V. (NYSE:STLA) have reportedly accused the European Union of intentionally blocking sales of pickup trucks in the bloc.

F-150, Silverado, RAM 1500 Affected

The automakers said that changes to the EU’s Individual Vehicle Approval scheme, which allows limited imports under less stringent standards, could shut out U.S. automakers’ large trucks like the Ford F-150 Pickup truck, Chevrolet Silverado and the RAM 1500 from the market, FT reported on Wednesday.

The trade bloc is looking to change some rules of the scheme, which would be implemented next year. U.S. automakers say the changes would negatively impact sales of their products despite the tariff agreement between Washington and the EU.

Andrew Puzder, the U.S. ambassador to the EU, in a different FT interview cited in the report, said that the safety rule changes could be detrimental to the agreement. “You can't have low tariffs and massive non-tariff trade barriers and claim you've got a functioning relationship,” he said.

Advocacy groups have sought to limit the number of “unsafe” U.S.-made cars on the road, with large-sized pickup trucks posing increased risk to pedestrians, cyclists and more, according to the Transport & Environment group cited in the report.

Trump Rejects Tariff Relief

Meanwhile, the President Donald Trump administration reportedly rejected appeals for relief on Aluminum tariffs by Ford and other automakers following a fire incident at a key supplier last September. The administration reportedly said that automakers were enjoying relaxed norms on other national security tariffs.

The fire at Novelis‘, an Atlanta-based company, Oswego, New York, facility last year rendered over 40% of the facility offline with Ford F-150 production taking a massive hit due to Aluminum supply constraints. The company also supplied Aluminum to Stellantis and Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE:TM), among others.

GM’s V-8 Truck Investment

GM recently invested $150 million into its Saginaw Metal Casting Operations, a move that would support the next-generation V-8 engine blocks that would power the company’s full-size pickup trucks. The move comes as the company has ramped up production of large pickup trucks, citing increased demand.

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