[UPDATE March 13, 2025: The European Association of Motorcycle Manufacturers (ACEM) issued a call to exclude the entire motorcycle category from the trade war. ACEM Secretary General said, "Whilst we recognize the need for a balanced response to trade disputes, motorcycles should not become collateral damage in broader trade conflicts. The motorcycle industry provides high-quality manufacturing and related jobs, mobility and access to employment for millions of people and is a fundamental economic driver. As nobody wins in trade wars, we strongly call for a return to reason and for both parties to reach a fair solution."
These are only words at this point, and no further action has yet been taken or announced. But it's unsurprising to see the industry speak out against these measures.]
Original piece follows.
"Tariffs are taxes. They are bad for business, and worse for consumers. They are disrupting supply chains. They bring uncertainty for the economy. Jobs are at stake. Prices will go up. Nobody needs that – on both sides, neither in the European Union nor in the United States," said European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen as she announced new tariff counter-measures on certain specific American imports into the European Union.
The news came on Wednesday, March 12, in response to new American tariffs of 25 percent against EU-made aluminum and steel. The European countermeasures will be levied against specific American-made goods, including peanut butter, whiskey, blue jeans, and motorcycles made in the US.
Since this isn't SandwichApart, SpiritsApart, or FashionApart, we'll stick to talking about the American-made motorcycle component of this announcement. Under the terms of these new European measures, American-made motorcycles will see an additional 50 percent tariff imposed, effective on April 1, 2025. Some additional tariffs on American-made goods will go into effect on April 13, but the motorcycle-related one starts at the beginning of the month.
As we've noted in the past, Indian Motorcycle has less reason for concern with regard to any potential EU tariffs. While Indian and parent company Polaris continue to manufacture motorcycles in the US for the US market, Indian also has a factory in Opole, Poland where it manufactures mid-size motorcycles for the European market. However, all of its large motorcycles are built in Indian's Spirit Lake, Iowa factory.
RideApart has reached out to both Harley-Davidson and Indian Motorcycle for comment regarding the coming European tariffs, and will update this piece accordingly if and when we receive responses. But while tariffs are frequently wielded as political tools, their effects are generally borne by the businesses who import the goods affected. Those businesses then pass those added costs on to their customers.
That's the math. They end up costing businesses more, and in turn, end up costing customers more—that is, assuming those customers aren't priced out entirely by the newly increased cost of ownership.
The ongoing tariff wars are a constantly evolving situation, with many moving parts. As and when this information changes, we'll be sure to update this piece.
