In July 2025, the Trump administration announced a series of bilateral tariff agreements. With Japan: The US reduced tariffs on Japanese cars from 27.5% to 15%. In return, Tokyo would open its doors to US SUVs and commit to investing more than $550 billion in US industry. With Vietnam: Trump agreed to impose a 20% tariff instead of 46% on US goods, while also inviting Hanoi to expand its imports of agricultural products and SUVs. Trump declared that “the US has full access to the Vietnamese market.” With Indonesia: The US agreed to a 19% reciprocal tariff if Jakarta bought more Boeing aircraft and US SUVs. In return, the US would ease some technical barriers and provide infrastructure support. All of these agreements have a notable commonality: opening the market to US-made SUVs.
This is no coincidence, but a special favor for the US auto industry, especially the sport utility vehicle line. Not only a strategic export item, SUVs have also become a tool in the “tariff diplomacy” strategy pursued by the Trump administration, aiming to consolidate industrial position and increase political and economic influence with trading partners.
Trump mentions SUVs not only because they sell well, but because they fit his personal brand: big, loud, tough. He uses SUVs to convey a message about America being strong, self-reliant, and not accepting unfavorable deals. On the other hand, SUVs have long been a symbol of the American auto industry – not only because of their massive size, powerful engines, but also because of their ability to adapt to many terrains and high fuel consumption – which suits the infrastructure and tastes of the American market. Moreover, SUVs are especially attractive to the emerging middle class in Asia, where large cars are seen as a symbol of success. Meanwhile, European countries focus on small, economical and environmentally friendly cars. This is why brands like the Ford Explorer, Jeep Grand Cherokee or Chevrolet Tahoe are widely used in both civilian and public service, becoming part of the image of American power both domestically and internationally.
The Trump administration has not missed this symbolic value. During the 2017–2021 period, the US has repeatedly put cars and parts, especially SUVs, at the center of trade negotiations, from the restructuring of NAFTA into USMCA to trade tensions with the EU and China. SUVs are not just products, but “negotiation leverage” that represents both the production capacity and the dependence of partners on the US consumer market.
When President Trump returns to the White House in 2025, the tariff strategy will once again be launched under the slogan “American Industry First”, with the goal of prioritizing products with high domestic content and spillover effects to the US supply chain. According to the tax plan released in June 2025, the Trump administration proposed to impose additional tariffs of 10–20% on many goods manufactured in China, while reducing import tariffs on components and fully assembled vehicles from friendly countries, especially those willing to open their auto markets to the US.
Among the products that enjoy “incentives” are SUVs with specific conditions such as: achieving a domestic production autonomy rate of over 60%, being produced in key industrial states such as Michigan, Ohio, Texas and having the ability to export to developing countries or emerging markets such as Southeast Asia, India, and the Middle East.
This strategy both promotes domestic production and puts trade pressure on countries that are negotiating FTAs or have trade surpluses with the US. Opening the SUV market becomes a “reward” for countries that are willing to make concessions on other issues such as reducing agricultural tariffs, importing US LNG, or adjusting the investment balance with China.
Unlike the Obama administration, where electric vehicles and green energy were promoted as the future of American industry, the Trump administration sees SUVs as a representation of traditional manufacturing, using fossil fuels, creating direct and indirect jobs for millions of American workers. SUVs are not only a tool of trade, but also a way for the US to “export its consumption model” and impose market standards on developing countries.
In Southeast Asia, the US has boosted exports of mid-size and high-end SUVs to urbanizing markets such as Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia. The push for US SUV imports comes with policy requirements: special consumption tax incentives, flexible fuel standards, and policies to protect US investors in the auto industry.
From this perspective, SUVs become a tool of “power diplomacy” that helps the US establish influence at the industrial policy level, regulate the competitive environment, and put pressure on rivals like China, where electric car companies like BYD are trying to dominate the ASEAN market.
However, the geopolitical implications of the SUV strategy in the new US tariff policy cannot be underestimated. When the US offers tax incentives to countries buying US SUVs, it simultaneously restructures its trade network in the direction of “friend-shoring” to cooperate deeply only with strategic allies. This helps the US reduce its dependence on China in the auto supply chain, while strengthening its influence in key countries.
However, this approach also increases pressure on developing countries. If they accept to import American SUVs, they will have to adapt to a high fuel consumption model, going against the green transition trend. If they refuse, they risk losing access to the US market or facing investment barriers. “SUV diplomacy” is therefore not simply a commercial choice, but a political choice and development strategy.
In a post-pandemic, post-conflict, polarized world, Trump’s “SUV diplomacy” strategy epitomizes the return of industrial power as a pillar of international influence. SUVs are not just exports, but “tools of influence” that embody the American philosophy: strong, independent, and unconstrained by mediocre standards.
The question is not just whether SUVs will be embraced by the market, but whether the world is ready to embrace a new commercial order where power lies not in the rules, but in the 3.5L engine of the Ford Expedition rolling into the developing capitals?
