U.S. ‘chicken tax’ tariff on imported pickups isn’t scaring this truck maker away

Posted by Talbot Payne on March 18, 2025

Aspen, Colorado — Undeterred by the United States’ stiff tariff on imported pickup trucks, the Ineos Quartermaster is coming to America.

British automaker Ineos announced this month that its premium, French-made truck will start at $83,988 and be the only foreign-made pickup sold in the United States. Significantly, Ineos will swallow the cost of the so-called 25% “chicken tax” tariff that has protected Detroit Three truck sales for decades.

Pickups assembled outside North America are subject to the steep tariff, a barrier that has long protected Detroit’s venerable cash cows and forced foreign rivals to build their competitive metal in the U.S. heartland — or, practically speaking, stay out of the lucrative market.

“The chicken tax has been around for a very long time and applies to light commercial vehicles” including the Quartermaster, Ineos CEO Lynn Calder said in an interview at the pickup’s national media test. “But we still think we’re coming to the market with an extremely competitive price, which is a lot of car for the money. We think the Quartermaster is perfectly placed for the pickup truck market. So absolutely, we will swallow (the tariff) because we want to be in this market.”

The 2025 Ineos Quartermaster pickup truck is made in France. Sold in 50 countries, its biggest volume is expected in the United States in markets like Colorado (pictured), where the truck maker is bringing it despite the six-decade-old "chicken tax" on light-duty trucks produced outside North America.

The 2025 Ineos Quartermaster pickup truck is made in France. Sold in 50 countries, its biggest volume is expected in the United States in markets like Colorado (pictured), where the truck maker is bringing it despite the six-decade-old "chicken tax" on light-duty trucks produced outside North America.Henry Payne, The Detroit News

Ineos debuted its rugged, off-road Grenadier (the SUV sibling to the Quartermaster) in 2023 to 50 markets around the world, and SUV-obsessed America has accounted for 60% of sales. Built on the same ladder-frame chassis as the Quartermaster, Grenadier won the coveted best Off-Road SUV award from the Texas Auto Writers Association, and Ineos expects the Quartermaster will also have appeal in Pickup Nation.

President Lyndon B. Johnson during a 1964 visit to Detroit. The Texas Democrat levied tariffs on goods including light-duty trucks that year, providing a protective boost to domestic pickup producers that endures to this day.

President Lyndon B. Johnson during a 1964 visit to Detroit. The Texas Democrat levied tariffs on goods including light-duty trucks that year, providing a protective boost to domestic pickup producers that endures to this day. The Detroit News Archives

The chicken tax is remnant of trade wars that long predate the Trump administration’s current trade-and-tariff policies. In 1964, Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson retaliated against France and West Germany for imposing tariffs on U.S. chicken exports by slapping tariffs on a wide range of products including potato starch, brandy, and light-duty trucks.

The so-called “chicken tax” on all trucks and commercial vehicles built outside the United States stuck, effectively shaping the manufacturing footprints and product development strategies of General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co., Stellantis NV and their foreign rivals.

“The chicken tax has made sure that U.S. truck makers are successful,” said Roman Mica, publisher of TFL Trucks and a longtime expert on the pickup market. “It has kept competition at bay.”

Republican President Ronald Reagan, with support from Michigan Democratic Rep. John Dingell, also led a tariff campaign against Japanese imports in the 1980s that resulted in carmakers like Honda and Toyota locating manufacturing plants stateside.

The 2025 Ineos Quartermaster pickup truck has a 5.5-foot bed, four-wheel drive and 115-inch wheelbase.The 2025 Ineos Quartermaster pickup truck has a 5.5-foot bed, four-wheel drive and 115-inch wheelbase.” data-c-credit. Henry Payne, The Detroit News

To avoid the chicken tax, Japanese manufacturers have built pickups in North America. Toyota assembles the Tundra and Tacoma in Texas, Nissan makes the Titan and Frontier in Mississippi, and Honda the Ridgeline in Alabama.

The chicken tax is a 25% tariff levied on the the base price of a truck before destination fee, so Ineos will pay the federal government $20,997 for each Quartermaster it sells.

That penalty is more easily swallowed by a premium truck like Quartermaster — though Ineos’ decision to eliminate the Quartermaster’s base trim and price its first Fieldmaster model at $84K may be influenced by the tariff. For the Grenadier SUV, which is unaffected by the chicken tax, its up-trim Fieldmaster model carries a similar price — but the base, Station Wagon model starts at $75K.

Smaller pickups like this 2018 Volkswagen Amarok, produced in South America, have not made it to U.S. shores, largely because of the 25% "chicken tax" on light-duty trucks the U.S. imposes on light-duty trucks made outside North America.

 “Smaller pickups like this 2018 Volkswagen Amarok, produced in South America, have not made it to U.S. shores, largely because of the 25% “chicken tax”  on light-duty trucks the U.S. imposes on light-duty trucks made outside North America. AP

The tariff has been a bigger deterrent against mainstream brands like Volkswagen, which has long teased a midsize pickup truck for the U.S. market. Volkswagen makes its Amarok truck in South America for global distribution but has never imported it to the United States.

“The chicken tax has really hurt consumer choice,” said TFL’s Mica. “Especially in small trucks. There are a lot of smaller trucks sold around the world that we don’t get here because of the tariff. For example, Stellantis sells small trucks in other parts of the world and VW sells the Amarok.”

In the early years of the 21st century, Mercedes disassembled fully-built commercial vans from Germany — then rebuilt them in South Carolina — to avoid the tariff.

Even U.S. automakers have struggled with the tariff. Spying a loophole in the law, Ford Motor Co. imported its Transit Connect commercial van from Turkey from 2009-13 with rear seats installed — then removed them after the vans passed customs. Ford eventually agreed to pay the U.S. government a $365 million fine.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

Comments are closed.