Ford is reportedly expecting a hefty fine in the US for its creative way of circumventing the import tax on company cars there.
Ford could receive up to $1.3 billion, or just €1.1 billion, in fines and additional taxes, the brand reports according to Automotive News itself. Expectations are expressed towards the end of a long and drawn-out lawsuit over the matter, in which the compact Ford Transit Connect takes the lead.
The Transit Connect is not built in the US, but successively in Turkey (first generation) and in Spain (current generation). That is a problem for the American branch of the company, because an import duty of no less than 25 percent applies to commercial vehicles built abroad in the US. This levy is popularly known as the ‘chicken tax’ because it was introduced in the 1960s in response to similar tariffs imposed by European countries on US-originated chicken.
Since then, the import of company cars is no longer interesting, unless you come up with a smart solution. Ford has been doing this for years for the Transit Connect, the second smallest car in the European Transit line-up. The Connect is built as a passenger bus for the American market and imported as such. Immediately after the import, and before the buses are delivered to customers, the rear seats are removed again, so the Transit Connect is just a delivery van again.
The rear seat in question reportedly leaves no room for doubt as to the purpose of this addition. It would have been made of the cheapest possible fabric, did not match the front seats and was poorly finished. Ford objects that the Transit Connect with that bank simply meets all American safety rules and can therefore actually be regarded as a passenger bus according to the letter of the law.