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by Chris Teague (IC: )
Published: April 11th, 2025
Due to its U.S.-heavy oper Add Anchor text here ations, Tesla is expected to weather the tariff storm better than other automakers, but reciprocal actions from the Chinese government have caused some headaches for the American company. Tesla recently stopped taking new vehicle orders for the Model S and Model X in China, a move that follows China’s announcement that it would enact 125 percent tariffs on imported U.S. goods starting April 12.
President Trump announced a 90-day pause on many tariffs, with the exception of those placed on China and some other imports, including autos. The latest “upgrades” to the U.S.’ tariffs on China bring the total to a 145 percent levy on Chinese imports.
The Model S and Model X are not Tesla’s volume leaders in China, as it produces the Model 3 and Model Y locally. Cutting the two more expensive models, which are made in California, wouldn’t dent Tesla’s Chinese sales numbers in any significant way, but the move doesn’t help the automaker gain any ground in its fight against homegrown companies in the country.
China’s BYD has taken over global markets and is the country’s top-selling car brand, outpacing Tesla’s popular Model Y in many regions. More than 20 percent of Tesla’s revenue came from China last year, making it an essential market for the brand, but it’s hard to see how it will overcome the national pride and significant government backing that local Chinese brands enjoy.
[Images: Tesla]
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Chris Teague
Chris grew up in, under, and around cars, but took the long way around to becoming an automotive writer. After a career in technology consulting and a trip through business school, Chris began writing about the automotive industry as a way to reconnect with his passion and get behind the wheel of a new car every week. He focuses on taking complex industry stories and making them digestible by any reader. Just don’t expect him to stay away from high-mileage Porsches.
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Published
April 11th, 2025 10:00 AM
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SCE to AUX 6 days ago Somehow, we're to believe this is a good thing.
Delta Airlines just paused delivery of 20 Airbus A350s due to the tariffs. Where else will they purchase a widebody airplane - Boeing? They abandoned Boeing after their string of problems.
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- Slavuta 6 days ago
As funny as it sounds... Russia does not have tariffs from US. And they are closing-in on completion to convert their 4-engine IL96-400 wide body to 2 -engine plane with the new PD35 engines. Delta will be able to buy those.
Scenario 2. When Russian airlines will start receiving these IL96 planes, Russia can sell back those Airbuses and Boeings they have arrested in 2022.
Sanctions are great. Its like tariffs. Since the sanctions, Russia has converted their MS-21 planes from Pratt-Whitney engines to the Russian equivalents. Domesticated parts for SuperJet100, restarted production of TU214 (100% Russan components). IL96 gets new look. New regional turbo prop is also flying last certification tests.
"Deputy Prime Minister and Head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Denis Manturov, stated that Aeroflot is planning to take more than 60 new aircraft in the next few years. The exact details for planes to be delivered to the state-owned airline are 34 Sukhoi Superjets, 18 Irkut MC-21s, and 11 Tupolev Tu-214, totaling 63 jets."
Somewhere in 2015 most of these would be Boeing and Airbus. And this is just one company.
- MaintenanceCosts 6 days ago
If some exceptions are not carved out of the tariffs pretty quickly Boeing airplanes, and especially the 787 which is the direct competitor for that Airbus A350, are going to get a lot more expensive.
(Delta hasn't abandoned Boeing, though - they have 100 737 MAX 10s on order and desperately want them delivered.)
- 28-Cars-Later 6 days ago
The IL96:
1. is still being built?
2. and it can be "converted" to fly with two engines instead of four?
On the second point if that were possible I would think the 747 would have undergone the conversion (then again maybe Boeing shouldn't be allowed to fuss with 50 year old airliner designs again).
- SCE to AUX 6 days ago
Ford - great idea!
- MaintenanceCosts 6 days ago
The two attempts that Western carriers have made to buy Russian aircraft in the last three decades - both involving the Sukhoi Superjet 100 -- were unqualified disasters because of poor reliability, service, and support. China may sell some jets to Western carriers in the next couple of decades, but there is zero chance of any Western carrier ordering any Russian aircraft.
- Slavuta 6 days ago
28-Cars.. There is plenty info online about Remaking of IL96. This is not that old soviet plane. It has been redesigned by 50% to satisfy all sorts of new demands. So, it would be like IL96-400S, considering that first was IL96-400A. A to S = many changes.
While the 4 engine version was improved already to acceptable fuel efficiency standards, it still has higher maint cost due to extra engines. And also ability of airports to land and take off for these jets.
MC - the biggest problem with introduction of new, certified for noise and fuel efficiency Russian planes is lack of skills in maintenance. All maint facilities know Boeing and Airbus so it is easy for a company to pick these planes because these can fly anywhere and get maintenance when required.
"zero chance of any Western carrier ordering any Russian aircraft." - politically may be. But not because planes are bad.
Quote: "...answer to the question of whether the Superjet is safe, it is, at least for now. It has undergone the same rigorous testing and certification as all commercial planes do and continues to be monitored for safety, just like every other aircraft in our skies."
https://www.aerotime.aero/articles/is-the-sukhoi-superjet-safe
I personally estimate that no plane today is as bad as Boeing
- MaintenanceCosts 6 days ago
The issues weren't with a lack of mechanic training or knowledge. They were with months-long waits for parts and very poor technical support from the mothership. One reason Boeing and Airbus have coalesced into a duopoly is that both of them have AOG (aircraft on ground) support absolutely down cold. If your Boeing is down for a non-catastrophic reason, it's not going to stay down for more than a day or two, no matter what is wrong or where it is in the world. The Russian makers don't even have a tiny fraction of the capital needed to set up a system that can guarantee that.
Oh, and the IL-96 is competitive in capability with the Airbus A340-300, designed in the early '90s. Western makers are now two generations of aircraft beyond that, with a third generation now on drawing boards. A Boeing 787-9 can do everything the IL-96 can do, and can also fly much longer routes, on two-thirds or less of the fuel budget. An Airbus A350-1000 can fly nearly twice the passengers, also much further, on four-fifths of the fuel budget.
- Slavuta 3 days ago
MC, and I thought, you could read. Even wikipedia knows this
"In February 2017, it was announced that Russia's United Aircraft Corporation had signed a contract with its subsidiary Ilyushin Aviation Complex for the development of a new version of Ilyushin Il-96-400 wide-body passenger airliner to compete with the Boeing 777-9 and Airbus A350-1000. ... The new interior planned seating capacity is 390 passengers"
And from what I know, this is still 4 engine. And once it is 2 engine plane, more passengers can go in, less fuel needed. It is all about the weight. And BTW, it is now flying test flights.
"The issues weren't with a lack of mechanic training or knowledge." -- really?? In any case, the problem is not that Russian planes are bad. Its in the 1990s some corrupt dudes in Russia decided that it is better to get kickbacks from western aircraft companies than invest into Russian industry. This all changes. Russian market will be closed to the enemies and hence domestic aircraft building will progress.
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- El scotto 6 days ago
Ford used to build airplanes. Henry Ford liked one of the test pilots. The test pilot died in a crash. Ford stopped making airplanes.
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