COLUMBUS, Ohio — Right now, auto tariffs are not only targeting fully finished cars. One economist told Spectrum News 1 they will affect repair shops as well.
Those in favor of the tariffs say this will bring money into the country in the long run, but opponents say car prices are about to soar.
The Trump administration has said they want to put tariffs on any parts coming in, and it’s to protect the U.S. automotive industry.
Weber Road Auto Service is a 23-year-old, family-owned business in Columbus. Eric Easley, who has been in the business for more than 40 years, is the owner, and he's trying to help his customers.
“The opportunity came for me to open my own business and insisted that it be family,” Easley said. “I’m kind of preparing my customers, being a small business, I can kind of give them a heads up and things they can do to prevent high costs of maintenance and repairs to their cars.”
Easley works alongside his wife, daughter and son.
Because it’s a family business, he said, they make sure to take care of their customers, especially when auto tariffs are lurking around the corner.
About 80% of their products, he said, get imported from other countries.
“We are being warned that prices will go up, and it’s going to be passed on directly to the consumer,” Easley said.
Assistant Professor of Economics at Case Western Reserve University Jonathan Ernest said tariffs would make prices soar for mechanics and their customers.
He explained the situation would trickle down through the whole industry.
“But that also means that we’re taking parts that might be compatible with used cars that are a few years old that, you know, would want to put on your 2022 version of your car that are now more expensive to import,” Ernest said.
There are a few reasons the Trump administration is imposing auto tariffs.
One of those reason they’ve said is that it would help shrink trade deficits with different nations.
“There have been a few expressed goals for the tariffs overall, to stop the flow of illegal drugs like fentanyl across borders,” Ernest said. “The argument is that you know we don’t want to be fully dependent on another nation to provide all of the steel that we use in case there’s some kind of national emergency where we suddenly need a lot of steel.”
Ernest said the economy has been the biggest reason.
“Technically that’s associated with potentially we’ll have more manufacturing jobs in the U.S. and that will help keep people employed, earn wages, grow the economy,” Ernest said.
But the risk is huge, Ernest said, and many economists worry the country is going backward instead of forward.
While some in favor believe the quality of the products would be better and the costs would be lower in the long run, Ernest said that would be hard to happen if the choices are limited for the consumers.
“It’s sort of the opposite of where we’ve been trying to move to by lowering inflation,” Ernest said. “Typically, the strategy is much more of support, production long term by increasing efficiency or developing new technologies, things like that.”
Easley and his local shop have survived two decades and a pandemic, he said, because he has a lot of third-generation, loyal customers look for his shop.
The way to face this challenge, Easley said, is by not ignoring any signs and taking care of warning lights or if something sounds weird as fast as possible.
This is how people can prevent major breakdowns, hence, higher costs.
“Don’t panic, and continue your normal routine and together with your normal maintenance you can kind of breeze through this, hopefully without any major breakdowns, and won’t experience any major costs at all.” Easley said. “Stay on top of your maintenance, and your car will take care of you if you take care of your car.”
