By Matthew Debord

Copyright jalopnik

I worked for an automaker that built cars in Europe but wanted to sell a lot of vehicles in the U.S.; it was a no-brainer that we would eventually do what Ineos is now considering, because it made better long-term business sense. And that was before the massive 2025 tariff shakeup! Ineos’ factory is in France (a former Mercedes plant that Ineos bought in 2020), but the vehicles the company is currently selling are a better fit with the U.S. market. The forthcoming Fusilier will be a smaller SUV with multiple powertrain options to better serve European customers, but an extended-range hybrid will precede a planned EV.

In fact, you could argue that although Ineos isn’t yet offering a definitive commitment to U.S. production, the writing is clearly on the wall. Calder also told Automotive News earlier this year that she wants to increase production to 30,000 units annually. Obviously, if more than half of that production is destined to be sold in the U.S., then it would be foolish to expose it to tariffs and potentially be forced to raise prices to cover the costs.