President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday threatened General Motors with a “big border tax,” claiming that the car company is making the Chevy Cruze in Mexico and shipping it to the U.S. tax-free.
“General Motors is sending Mexican made model of Chevy Cruze to U.S. car dealers-tax free across border. Make in U.S.A.or pay big border tax!” Trump tweeted.
In response, General Motors said all Chevy Cruze sedans sold in the U.S. are made in the U.S. at a plant in Ohio. It manufactures the Chevy Cruze hatchback in Mexico.
“General Motors manufactures the Chevrolet Cruze sedan in Lordstown, Ohio. All Chevrolet Cruze sedans sold in the U.S. are built in GM’s assembly plant in Lordstown, Ohio,” the company said in a statement on Tuesday, according to CNBC. “GM builds the Chevrolet Cruze hatchback for global markets in Mexico, with a small number sold in the U.S.”
The comments are the latest example of Trump attacking a company for moving manufacturing operations outside of the U.S.—an issue that he repeatedly raised during the campaign. Trump has threatened to impose a 35% tariff on products built in another country and shipped back to the U.S.
GM began making a hatchback version of the Chevy Cruze in Mexico last fall, Bloomberg reported. The carmaker previously announced it would temporarily shut down operations in January at five factories—including the Lordstown plant—due to an oversupply of sedans, Reuters reported last month.
