Has the cost of a new Caterham gone up 25% in the USA with Trumps tariffs on foreign parts?

[PipeNslippers]

This is what I got from Google AI:

Kit cars (as vehicles assembled from imported parts) are impacted by President Trump's tariffs on imported auto parts and finished vehicles. The tariffs, including a 25% duty on imported vehicles and parts, increase costs for both manufacturers and consumers, leading to higher prices or reduced profits for companies reliant on imported components for vehicle assembly. While domestic parts are not directly taxed, the tariffs disrupt the global supply chain, driving up overall costs for the automotive industry. 

• Has anybody bought a new Caterham recently?
• Is this likely to hit the used Caterham's prices?

[Vovchandr]

I would contact the dealers on the forum. They would know best. Time Machines in NY and Rocky Mountain in Co if I recall 

[Christopher smith]

I ordered a new  190 mm 1 inch 23 spline clutch disc to hopefully mate my Ford Pinto gearbox to my Ford Cortina GT motor.It was from  from a UK dealer ordered Thursday just before the tariff went into effect Friday AM our time. I was surprised it came so quickly. I guess UPS had already put in place a system. I had to write a check at my door for 50% of the stated price ( not including freight). So I guess I was one of the first to be hit with a tariff.

[wdb]

50% ?!?! UK tariff is supposed to be 25%. Maybe you got in before the new agreement.

[wdb]

https://hts.usitc.gov/

 

"The Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS) sets out the tariff rates and statistical categories for all merchandise imported into the United States. The HTS is based on the international Harmonized System, which is the global system of nomenclature applied to most world trade in goods."

 

Short version: virtually every single part of an automobile has a separate entry.

[PipeNslippers]

1 hour ago, wdb said:

https://hts.usitc.gov/

 

"The Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTS) sets out the tariff rates and statistical categories for all merchandise imported into the United States. The HTS is based on the international Harmonized System, which is the global system of nomenclature applied to most world trade in goods."

 

Short version: virtually every single part of an automobile has a separate entry.

and if you look closely every HTS code related to Automotive parts (beginning with 8708.29.XXXX) is now 25%. I import classic Land Rover Defender parts from the UK as my daily job and they are all impacted

[PipeNslippers]

Still interested to hear from anyone who has bought a Caterham since Trumps tariffs were implemented in the USA

 

[Xhilr8n]

On 9/13/2025 at 12:32 PM, PipeNslippers said:

Still interested to hear from anyone who has bought a Caterham since Trumps tariffs were implemented in the USA

 

Or if anyone will.   Thing is we don’t know how long it will take for Trump’s schemes to be passed over.  If Congress or Nature don’t stop all this, the party might be over for some of our hobbies.  And the businesses that support them.

 

Might be that the cars and parts we have now are all we’re going to get for a while.

[PipeNslippers]

Honestly, based on the current process, the consumer will never be hit with a 25% increase.

The Tariff is based on the cost of parts coming into the country, not including shipping.

The retailers will have already put on a considerable mark up on the price cost price + shipping, so the impact to consumers is around 10% from what I am seeing.

[Xhilr8n]

Maybe you’re right, no one knows.

 

But that explanation seems nebulous.

 

Not a lot of companies can give up 5% of their profit and still make payroll.   10%?  What companies that supply our hobby can do that?  Educate me.

[MV8]

No.

[MK Sportscars USA]

It's a 10% tariff with the UK on auto parts. 

No additional compounding tariffs for aluminum, steel, etc which is quite nice compared to some of the issues I've had with other countries I import from.  

 

I had a container of MK kits arrive a few weeks ago, and had to cut a nice check.    

"The retailers will have already put on a considerable mark up on the price cost price + shipping"

This is not true in my case...

I just pass the tariff and shipping costs along to the customer.  Listed as line items are on the quotes.  Not a prayer I can cover the overages with my margins!

 

 

  

 

  

 

 

 

[anduril3019]

FWIW

 

I inquired about a set of wheels I'm thinking about from retroford.co.uk and got this reply:

 

We frequently send parts to the US and have had no issues with shipping the goods. We do not charge any taxes on the goods when exporting; you would need to organise the import taxes/duties to be paid with the shipping provider (typically UPS or FedEx).

 

Additionally, all goods imported in to the US from the UK will now be subjected to a 10% tariff on the value of the goods.

[KnifeySpoony]

I mentioned in another thread, I just paid 37.5% on a set of new wheels sold and shipped by Caterham.

 

[Christopher smith]

My new clutch disc came as one of the first imports from UK right after the tariffs were put into effect. Lucky it was only priced at 40 UK pounds as UPS made me write a check for 50% of that FOB price. I do not expect they will come back with a partial refund but I was happy it came so quickly.

[m2711c]

I live quite close to the border, so I got myself a mailbox at the UPS store in Kingston Ontario. It’s been useful for getting parts for my 2CV from France. The supplier I’ve used stop shipping to America altogether because of the uncertainties of the tariffs and how they were going to be applied.

Edited September 17 by m2711c

[theDreamer]

1 hour ago, Christopher smith said:

My new clutch disc came as one of the first imports from UK right after the tariffs were put into effect. Lucky it was only priced at 40 UK pounds as UPS made me write a check for 50% of that FOB price. I do not expect they will come back with a partial refund but I was happy it came so quickly.

Who did you order from, did you specify a specific type of shipping and how quick was it from ordering to shipping and from shipping to receiving?

[Xhilr8n]

So if all this were to stick and be the lay of the land going forward, does this make our cars more valuable or less?  Does it matter to the folks looking to buy these cars if parts and accessories become prohibitive, even more of a challenge?

[Christopher smith]

1 hour ago, theDreamer said:

Who did you order from, did you specify a specific type of shipping and how quick was it from ordering to shipping and from shipping to receiving?

The clutch disc was from Neil@105speed.com . Neil McCarty offered quite a bit of advice and what I thought was a good price for a part not available in USA. I think the 190 mm 1 inch 23 spline was a real oddball that might have been original to one of the milder Mk1 early rear drive escorts which Ford USA did not export to USA. But that is what I needed to mate up my Ford Pinto gearbox to a 1500 GT Cortina Mk1 motor ( similar to early Super 7) since I had 2 Cortina boxes that were beyond repair. I placed the order on a Thursday  just before the new tariff was set to kick in at midnight . I left the shipping up to Neil since he exports a lot and hoped it would work. I assume he specializes in old Anglia/Prefect and similar stuff that came to the USA in small numbers or not at all. UPS showed up the following Wednesday so very quick and figure UPS had already set up to handle the tariff crap. Used Pay Pal to pay Neil.

[Vovchandr]

What a circus. That is all