Does anyone know the details of the new tariffs? It seems like they’re going to hit everything coming from the EU. Not looking forward to $300 sets of tires.
It’s seems to be changing daily. The 10% overall tariff was announced too. I have no idea what’s going on.
I mean it seems to have been done fairly simply. 20% on everything from the EU, 10% everywhere and some countries have tariff upon tariff.
So the first thing is I don’t think they’ve got rid of the minimum exemption. I can’t remember what the value is but basically they don’t bother collect tariffs on things less than a set dollar amount (let’s say $1000 because I can’t remember what it is). So your tires should be ok, components should mostly be ok.
Chassis and engines are probably not, and they are all (with a few exceptions) built in the EU. So you could expect them to increase by at least 20%. Arrow karts should increase by 10% (that’s what Australia got). Factory Kart, Margay, Coyote and the myriad of other US made lo206 karts shouldn’t change, unless they use Euro or Chinese steel or (as is expected and did last time) US steel producers increases their prices because they can now as steel and aluminum from everywhere went up by 25% with those particular tariffs.
That’s my apolitical response. Good luck karters.
Edit: did the research. De minimis limit is $800. Except China for which an executive order went through yesterday.
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Thanks for the information! I also just heard MG tires are made in Brazil, so they should be fine. It seems like this is going to affect the overall cost of karting though, hopefully not for too long.
Tires should be below the de minimis but anything more than 800 would be subject to 10%.
Biggest chunk of cost in a kart is not the frame, it’s the components, which in many cases come from Europe or abroad so even the “made in US” karts (depending on which brand you are looking at) are not really “made in US” for their entirety, as people intend. Some times even the tubing is not always sourced in US.
As a comparison, any US chassis or component shipped to EU gets taxed. Every time I shipped to Italy I get taxed 10% import duty on the value itself PLUS 20% VAT on the sum of value+shipping…so it’s over 30% overall.
Interesting times for sure! Trade goes both ways 
In my experience, it’s based on the country of origin. If I buy electronics that were made in Germany but are substantially Chinese components and declared as Chinese made, then I pay China tariffs. If its marked as made in Germany, then I pay German tariffs.
When I ship to other countries, the tariffs vary the same way. I have to declare the country of manufacture and the customer is tariffed appropriately.
I think that is only true if you are purchasing direct. I think the importer will pay the tariff and his order will be much larger than $800.
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You’re absolutely right, thanks for correcting me. It’s $800 per person per day. So I’d think almost everything (thats sourced from the EU) is going to go up 20% then.
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To be fair, VAT is just Europe’s sales tax. Same as your state sales taxes or our provincial and general sales taxes ( in Canada).
Plus why do you pay those taxes, the customer in Italy should be paying it.
And it was already being collected in both directions:
EU-US Trade: In 2023, the US collected approximately €7 billion of tariffs on EU exports, and the EU collected approximately €3 billion on US exports.
On the kart piece, now we’ve worked out the di minimis laws, they’ll definitely get hit regardless of the frame vs components debate.
I don’t know if it’s worth mentioning because maybe everyone doesn’t know, but the EU is heavily regulated, I’m sure US would in general so too much but it’s effectively blocks a lot of products because they are deemed unsafe. Canada is similar to a lesser extent.
Hoosier tires should be ok 
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Apparently the formula being used is:
[(trade deficit amount)/(foregn nation’s export value)]/2
where trade deficit amount = import goods value (of a foreign nation) - US export goods value (to same nation)
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I feel like I’m closing in on getting political with my next statement but:
Is that using the current administrations export/import values or the factual values?
Factory has a fairly large number of imported parts, Margay a few less.
Its not how it works, on some items there is 10 on others 2%, the VAT is charged on everything sold including stuff made inside the EU, In some places VAT is 18% others 25%.
VAT is not a import tax In any way, its just a sales tax.
That Trump some how calculated that EU have 39% In import taxes is so far of, no clue how he calculated that one. I hate to be political but In my opinion Trump is making our prime minister looking like Einstein, and no i did not wote for her.
And why do you say you are being taxex? Its the one importing that has to pay import tax and VAT.
Best get those welders out chaps. 
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The tariffs are to correct a decades long trade imbalance that no president, save Eisenhower, had the courage to take on (or perhaps they were corruptly benefiting in Congress?). So I give him props for courage to do so.
However…
If your thing is being a disruptor, you’re going to cause a lot of damage short-term with everything you blow up. And you’d better hope that end result is better than the previous conditions.
In this case, I’m not sure what to think – tariffs actually stimulate domestic investment (good for long term) but if you use them as a bargaining tool and they disappear with reciprocity, then you lose that leverage (good for short-term). There will be short-term pain regardless, I think.
Perhaps it will help US kart companies?
Too bad Shockwave isn’t still around…what are the remaining domestics? MARGAY, Ionic, MGM, Trick (has a short run of sprinters), Coyote, is MXK still producing?, NITRO, Comet EAGLE, Invader, Factory, JM (Jamie McMurray - produced on demand.), RollSpeed (VA mfr. Scott Heath)
RIP Emmick, Shockwave, Trackmagic (US domestic)
Nitro is in the US as well.
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Added. Thanks!
Edited to add in
But the Nitro Mini kart isn’t made by Parolin?