Geely’s Lynk plans 2019 US and Europe car launch, watches over Trump border tax

Geely Auto Holdings, the owner of Volvo cars, prepares to present its mid-priced Lynk & Co brand in the United States and Europe during the start of 2019, however alerted those plans could change if U.S. President Donald Trump imposes a border tax on imported vehicles, a senior company executive informed Reuters.

Senior vice president Alain Visser stated Geely prepared to introduce the Lynk & Co brand in San Francisco and Berlin before broadening within months to other cities. The possibility that the United States would enforce a tax or tariff on imported cars is a risk, Visser informed Reuters on the sidelines of the National Automobile Dealers Association convention in New Orleans.

“That’s an open question but we’re going to use employment in the U.S. so we believe there’s a positive business case to let us in,” Visser stated.

Geely has stated Lynk is aimed at the middle of the marketplace where it would likely compete with established brand names like Toyota and Honda. Volvo, which Geely purchased from Ford, will continue to concentrate on premium automobiles, company executives have stated.

Lynk is likewise planning to create collaborations with car dealers that would permit it to sell its electric and hybrid cars through company-owned stores, however get them fixed through a franchised dealership network.

“Our target is not to distress the dealers or say their model does not work,” Visser stated. “The dealer model can exist and we’re going to provide them business.”

The brand’s first vehicles in Europe and America will likely be plug-in hybrids or perhaps even totally electrified.