New Vehicle Sales on the Rise in Canada as Trade War Begins
The fear of higher prices resulting from the trade war unleashed by the U.S. administration has prompted many Canadians to rush their vehicle purchases in recent weeks.
This partly explains the 3.7-percent increase in sales nationwide in the first quarter of 2025 compared with the same period in 2024, according to Automotive News Research and Data Center.
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Excluding Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Maserati and JLR (which have yet to report their numbers), and including an estimation of Ford’s sales (which reports annual sales only), 385,616 new vehicles were sold across the country from January through March.
General Motors led the way with 74,005 vehicles, an increase of 17.3 percent from a year ago. Conversely, Stellantis suffered one of the biggest drops, falling 18 percent to just 26,354 units. The automaker yesterday announced it will halt production in Windsor, Ontario—home of Chrysler minivans and the electric Dodge Charger Daytona—for at least two weeks in April.
What About the Rest of 2025?
DesRosiers Automotive Consultants is projecting a total 2.02 million vehicles sold for 2025, and AutoForecast Solutions has a similar prediction at 2.04 million. This would be an increase from the 1.86 million vehicles that were sold in Canada in 2024.
The next few months are rife with uncertainty, however. Luckily, many dealers have had the foresight to stock their inventories well in advance of potential price hikes, but the 25-percent U.S. tariffs on foreign-made vehicles and parts combined with the 25-percent Canadian counter-tariffs on U.S.-built vehicles will undoubtedly have a major impact.
According to the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association, around 40 percent of all new vehicles sold in Canada come from the U.S., led by the popular Ford F-150, GMC Sierra and Ram 1500. The Toyota RAV4, Honda Civic and CR-V, and Chevrolet Silverado are made in Canada.
