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“Accelerating growth in the U.S. has been a top priority since my first day,” Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa said. “Success in America is not just good for Stellantis in the U.S. – it makes us stronger everywhere.”
The centerpiece of the project is the reopening of the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois. Stellantis will pump over $600 million into reviving the facility. By 2027, production of the Jeep Cherokee and Compass is expected to restart, bringing back around 3,300 jobs.
Meanwhile, the company is committing another $400 million to the Toledo Assembly Complex in Ohio. This will support midsize truck production and add more than 900 jobs by 2028.
In Michigan, the Warren Truck Assembly Plant is slated to receive nearly $100 million to launch a new range-extended electric vehicle and a large SUV — both expected to hit the market in 2028. That investment will support roughly 900 additional positions.
And in Kokomo, Indiana, Stellantis is pouring over $100 million into new engine production. Starting next year, the plant will begin building the GMET4 EVO four-cylinder engine, creating more than 100 jobs and making the U.S. the production hub for this critical powertrain.
This shift didn’t happen because Stellantis suddenly decided to wave the American flag. It happened because Donald Trump made their old business model unsustainable.
Stellantis currently imports more than 40% of its U.S. sales from Mexico and Canada. Under Trump’s newly enforced 25% tariffs on those imports, the company faced billions in extra costs. In fact, Stellantis had already warned investors in July that tariffs would cost them $1.7 billion in 2025 alone.
The financial pressure was crushing. Stellantis’ EBIT crashed 64% following a September warning, and the company bled over $10.6 billion in cash between 2024 and mid-2025. CEO Carlos Tavares resigned amid the crisis. Investment bank Jeffries estimated that Trump’s tariffs could have wiped out up to 75% of the company’s 2025 earnings.
Before the announcement, Stellantis stock had fallen more than 33% year-to-date.
Trump gave them a simple choice: keep building overseas and pay the price, or move production to America and save the company. They chose survival — and thousands of American jobs came with it.
Stellantis isn’t alone. Trump’s trade strategy is triggering a larger reshoring wave across the auto industry.
General Motors took a $4–$5 billion tariff hit this year and is now expanding domestic operations. Mercedes-Benz is preparing to build a new model at its Alabama facility by 2027. Toyota, BMW, Honda, and Nissan have either announced or are exploring major U.S. investments to avoid the same tariff pain.
Even the United Auto Workers, often at odds with Trump in the past, praised the tariff policy for bringing jobs back to the U.S. In February 2025 alone, 8,900 new auto manufacturing jobs were created — a sharp reversal from the steep job losses during the Biden years.
For decades, politicians promised to revive manufacturing, but factories continued to shut down and jobs fled overseas. Trump took a different approach: make offshoring too expensive to ignore.
And it’s working. Belvidere, Illinois is set to roar back to life with 3,300 jobs. Toledo and Warren are gearing up for expansions. Indiana will lead in engine production.
Stellantis could have stayed overseas. Instead, faced with Trump’s 25% tariffs, the company found $13 billion to reinvest in America.
The message is clear: tariffs change behavior.
Companies that once ignored the American worker are now racing to build here again. And if Trump’s strategy continues, Stellantis won’t be the last automaker to come home.
