The Stellantis assembly plant in Windsor, Ontario, temporary idled on April 7.
Photographer: Emily Elconin/Bloomberg
‘Like a Direct Attack:’ Canadian Auto Town Feels Heat of Tariffs
Worry grips Windsor, Ontario, as the city’s massive Stellantis plant temporarily shuts its doors.
The Stellantis NV assembly plant in Windsor, Ontario, rises like an industrial temple on the city’s outskirts. On a typical day, smoke drifts from its sprawling labyrinth of pipes as workers assemble Chrysler Pacifica minivans and Dodge Chargers. But the building has been eerily quiet since its doors shut last week.
The temporary closure followed US President Donald Trump’s imposition of 25% tariffs on imported vehicles. It is Canada’s largest such plant to shutter since the trade war began, and already a ripple effect is spreading across the city at the heart of the country’s auto industry. As Trump slaps tariffs on dozens of trading partners around the globe, other cities face the same disruption.