Auto Care ON AIR
"Auto Care ON AIR" is a candid podcast dedicated to exploring the most relevant topics within the auto care industry. Each episode features insightful discussions with leading experts and prominent industry figures. Our content is thoughtfully divided into four distinct shows to cover four different categories of topics, ensuring collective professional growth and a comprehensive understanding of the auto care industry.
The Driver's Seat: Navigating Business and the Journey of Leadership
To understand organizations, you need to understand their operators. Join Behzad Rassuli, as he sits down for in-depth, one-on-one conversations with leaders that are shaping the future. This show is a "must listen" for how top executives navigate growth, success, and setbacks that come with the terrain of business.
Carpool Conversations: Collaborative Reflections on the Road to Success
Hosted by Jacki Lutz, this series invites a vibrant and strategic mix of guests to debate and discuss the power skills that define success today. Each episode is an entertaining, multi-voice view of a professional development topic and a platform for our members to learn about our industry's most promising professionals.
Indicators: Discussing Data that Drives Business
This show explores data relevant to the automotive aftermarket. Join Mike Chung as he engages with thought leaders in identifying data that will help you monitor and forecast industry performance. Whether global economic data, industry indicators, or new data sources, listen in as we push the envelope in identifying and shaping the metrics that matter.
Traction Control: Reacting with Precision to the Road Ahead
Every single day, events happen, technologies are introduced, and the base assumptions to our best laid plans can change. Join Stacey Miller for a show focused on recent news from the global to the local level and what it may mean for auto care industry businesses. Get hot takes on current events, stay in the know with timely discussions and hear from guests on the frontlines of these developments.
Auto Care ON AIR
Inside the Auto Parts Tariff Storm: Angela Chiang on 232, 301, and IEPA, plus refunds, cash flow, and how to stay compliant
Tariffs shouldn’t be a guessing game, yet policy shifts are hitting faster than inventory can move. We sit down with Angela Chiang, our Director of International Affairs, to decode what’s real, what’s next, and how to protect your business when 232, 301, and IEPA collide. From the new “inclusion” process under Section 232, where products can be added into tariff coverage, to the tightening landscape around Section 301 exclusions, Angela breaks down the rules, the timelines, and the evidence agencies actually weigh when you push for relief.
We also unpack the high-stakes IEPA fight now headed to the Supreme Court and what it could mean for refund rights. If you paid IEPA-based tariffs, tracking liquidation dates and filing timely protests can preserve your claims; miss those steps and potential refunds may be out of reach. And yes, Wall Street has noticed. Investment firms are offering to buy refund rights for cash today, a real option for businesses balancing uncertainty with working capital needs.
On the horizon, a possible 25% tariff signal on trucks and truck parts has everyone modeling scenarios. We share a practical playbook: map exposed HTS codes, simulate landed-cost ranges, prepare customer communications tied to official notices, and tighten documentation for melt-and-pour and supply chain traceability. Finally, we highlight tools and resources like our tariff calculator and trade updates hub that translate complex stacking rules into clear numbers you can act on.
If your team is wrestling with compliance, cash flow, and pricing in a volatile trade environment, this conversation gives you the steps to move from reaction to readiness. Subscribe, share with your ops and finance leads, and leave a review to help more industry peers find these insights.
Tariff Calculator: (https://www.autocare.org/tariff-calculator)
Trade Updates: (https://www.autocare.org/government-relations/current-issues/tariffs-and-trade)
To learn more about the Auto Care Association visit autocare.org.
To learn more about our show and suggest future topics and guests, visit autocare.org/podcast
Welcome to Autocare on Air, a candid podcast for a curious industry. I'm Stacy Miller, Vice President of Communications at the Auto Care Association, and this is Traction Control, where we chat about recent news from the global to the local level and what it may mean to the industry featuring guests on the front lines. Let's roll. Welcome back to another traction control. I'm Stacy Miller, and I have with us a very special guest. Her name is Angela Chang, and she's our Director of International Affairs here at the Autocare Association. Welcome, Angela. Thank you, Stacey. Um, how long have you been with the association?
Angela Chang:Um, it's actually my 11th year anniversary this month.
Stacey Miller:11 years today. That's a really amazing tenure. Congratulations. Thank you so much. I'm so proud to work with Angela. And for those who don't know, Angela really runs our trade and our tariffs department, which is obviously a very contentious topic right now. So thank you, Angela, for all that you do on a day-to-day for our members. Angela is literally working 24-7 through the night, tracking everything that's happening, every single tweet. Um, it's pretty amazing. So, one, I wanted to bring Angela on here to let members know that she's got your back and to kind of just distill a little bit of what's happening currently in the tariffs landscape. It's changing very rapidly. So this may go out of date really quickly, but Angela's really fantastic at keeping everybody up to date on the web, and we're gonna talk a little bit about how you can access those updates. So, Angela, let's just start with a little bit about what your day-to-day is like right now, because I think it's pretty crazy.
Angela Chang:Yeah, thanks so much, Stacey. Um, I I think there's a lot going on. It's very difficult for our members to navigate all the different trade policies and tariffs that are coming out and changing on an everyday basis. Um, so part of my role here at AutoCare is to monitor the changes through the president's executive orders, his announcements, um, monitor what our trading partners are doing with their trade policy and how it may impact um our international suppliers, and helping our members just navigate how these tariff changes are impacting their businesses.
Stacey Miller:Definitely a 24-7 job, especially in this landscape. And I mean, you have a wealth of experience even before AutoCare. What did you do before AutoCare that brought you here?
Angela Chang:Yeah, that's funny. Um, I was actually at a law firm in the International Trade Department as they're a trade specialist. At there, I focus more on anti-dumping and counterveiling duties, um, including some trade policy.
Speaker 02:And and countervailing and anti-dumping, those are also issues that impact the aftermarket too, right?
Angela Chang:Yes, there are a number of products in the auto parts industry that are subject to anti-dumping, counterveiling duty orders.
Stacey Miller:Oh my gosh. Okay, so we have a ton to talk about. There's gonna be a part one, two, three, and four. Um, but let's just start with the current landscape of tariffs. And obviously, there's a lot going on. There's a lot that's happened, there's a lot that could happen, but just give me a lay of the land and give our audience a lay of the land. Let's start with the two three two and kind of like what the current status is there.
Angela Chang:Sure. I know there's been a lot of changes um with the two three two. So let's just start with a background on the section two three two tariffs. Um, these authorize the president to restrict imports, and these are typically done through tariffs if it's uh determined that the imports are threatening US national security. So in the auto parts industry, we're seeing Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum and auto parts and copper. Um, and the goal is to protect industries critical for defense and economic stability. And over the past um couple months and over the past couple years, we're seeing uh more and more 232 investigations that are either in effect right now or on the horizon.
Stacey Miller:So 232 is affecting a lot of auto parts manufacturers currently, right? Mm-hmm. Okay.
Angela Chang:Yeah. And I think the most recent development that uh we're trying to navigate is instead of the exclusion process that we're kind of used to with the Section 301 tariffs, uh, where you can request a part to be excluded from the tariffs, the Department of Commerce has now announced an inclusion process where stakeholders can now submit comments to the Commerce Department for additional products to be subject to now the auto parts tariff and also the steel and aluminum tariff.
Stacey Miller:Wow. That's a complicated landscape to to navigate. So uh whether your parts are excluded from the tariffs, or say it or say it one more time, included in the help me summarize it.
Angela Chang:Yeah. It's an inclusion process. So currently there is a list of auto parts and a list of seal and a list of aluminum products that are subject to the tariffs. So now there's an opportunity to add more parts to that list that would be now subject to the tariffs.
Stacey Miller:And what's the advantage or the disadvantage of adding yourself to the inclusion list versus the exclusion list?
Angela Chang:Yeah. So right now there's currently no exclusion process. So members really need to monitor the inclusion docket to see if their products or um their products are being proposed to be added to the inclusion list. And if you see your product on the list, it's an opportunity for you to file comments in response to um to that proposal so that um you can make a determination if you want to submit a public comment.
Stacey Miller:And those comments are pretty important, right? If you're a manufacturer, you're gonna want to take the opportunity to do that, right?
Angela Chang:Yes, because um I mentioned earlier there's no exclusion process. So if you don't take this opportunity to make your voice heard um and submit a comment on the docket on why you want or don't want your part to be part of the inclusion, um, you may miss this opportunity. And in the future, your parts may be subject to the tariff.
Stacey Miller:Okay. Is there any date offhand that you know that that needs to be those comments need to be submitted by or is it TBD?
Angela Chang:Yeah, they um I think I will double check, but I think the window uh for auto parts starts actually on October 1st. And um uh stakeholders have two weeks to submit comments, and it's followed by um public uh comments.
Stacey Miller:Okay. Does autocare help with the filing of those comments if members need help figuring out or navigating how to submit those and what to say?
Angela Chang:Auto care can definitely help um with how to um file the comments, where to find the docket, um, and what information to include on the submission, so that's something we can help our members do.
Stacey Miller:Amazing. So you mentioned 301 tariffs uh earlier as well. So tell me a little bit about those.
Angela Chang:Yeah, the session 301 tariffs, um, many of you maybe remember, they were um imposed back in uh the first Trump administration in 2018, and there were lists 1, 2, 3, 4a. Um and they span across multiple product categories, multiple industries, and those are still in effect, and those tariffs range from anywhere at like 7.5% to 100 plus percent. Um and right now, most of those exclusions that were previously approved have now expired. A very small handful are still in effect, the exclusions. And currently USTR has a process for um members affected by by the exclusion to file comments to request an extension of that exclusion.
Stacey Miller:Do you know offhand any trends in those exclusions, like what they allowed to be excluded?
Angela Chang:Yeah, they look at domestic production, if they're able to source that product outside of China, um, if they've made any attempt on sourcing outside of China, and all of these factors will be taken into account when they review the exclusion process.
Stacey Miller:Okay. That's really helpful because I wonder how many, how many parts manufacturers are applying, how many parts have been um applied for exclusions, and then you know, what percent of those actually get through would be something interesting that we should monitor and share. So and then tell me how to pronounce this. I think they say AIPA, I e P A. That's kind of like a newer one for me. So let's let's break that down.
Angela Chang:Yeah, the AIPA tariffs were announced um earlier this year, and they were on fentanyl-related uh AIPA tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China. Um, we also know the reciprocal tariffs, those are also AIPA tariffs, and they were imposed on a number of our trading partners.
Stacey Miller:Is this is the Supreme Court case related to the AIPA tariffs?
Angela Chang:Yeah. Um there's been some media coverage about the AIPA tariffs being heard now at the Supreme Court. There's two cases that have been consolidated and are being heard at the Supreme Court with oral arguments due in um early November. So we may get a decision by end of December or early 2026. And if let's say the Supreme Court strikes down um the IEPA tariffs as being outside the president's authority to impose tariffs, importers may be eligible to seek refunds on the tariffs that they've paid under IEPA.
Stacey Miller:Wait, they could get a refund for the tariffs that they have already paid and get that money in full or in part? Do we know?
Angela Chang:So while the Supreme Court cases move forward, um we're advising our members to preserve their refund rights. Um, first is to identify shipments that were subject to the IEPA tariff and also tracking the liquidation dates closely. Liquidation cycle is generally 314 days from import. So we uh importers need to file a protest within 180 days of liquidation so that you remain eligible for any potential refunds.
Stacey Miller:Wow. And then related to that refund, I heard we were in a meeting earlier and there was a Washington Post article that was talking about like buying the rights to the like explain to me what's happening because this is really interesting, and I didn't even know that this was possible.
Angela Chang:Yeah, this is where it kind of gets interesting, where Wall Street has entered the picture. Um so in the Washington Post, there was an article recently saying investment firms are now buying refund rights to from importers for that uh refund claim in case in the event that the Supreme Court strikes down the tariff. So for example, if an importer paid a million dollars in IPA tariffs, some firms are some firms are offering, let's say, 20 cents on the dollar. So they are offering you roughly $200,000 to um to have claims to that refund. So you can either take that $200,000 and walk away. And you know, we don't know what may happen with the Supreme Court decision, um, then the investment firm will have the rights to claim that refund if uh the Supreme Court strikes down the the tariffs.
Stacey Miller:Aaron Powell This is like gambling with tariffs, right?
Angela Chang:Yeah, it's very interesting that this um this has now emerged. Um so it's something very interesting that we're watching.
Stacey Miller:Wow. I mean, I don't know what the parallel is that we're about to head into Apex and go to Vegas and now we're gambling on whether or not we're gonna get the tariff refund. So that's really interesting. Um really looking forward to see what comes of that because that that seems pretty positive, right?
Angela Chang:Yeah, I guess it's a sign that Wall Street is betting that the Supreme Court will strike down Vaipa tariffs, I think.
Stacey Miller:I wonder what they're hedging that bet on to be seen. All right. That's wow. I'm learning so much during this episode about tariffs, and we're so lucky that we have Angela here to help us uh distill it into plain seek because there's a lot to keep track of. And one of the other things that Angela keeps track of is all of the executive orders that come out dealing with tariffs. So we know that um President Trump will share a tweet or you know, post on X about something that's gonna happen, and then immediately Angela's on the computer waiting for the next executive order to understand exactly what is being instated. So there's a new one, and it has something to do with truck and truck parts. It hasn't happened yet, but he said something about truck and truck parts, which is relevant to our industry, right?
Angela Chang:Yeah. So earlier this year, um the Commerce Department started an investigation on a Section 232 investigation on truck and truck parts and imports and whether that's threatening U.S. national security. Um and just last week, uh the president announced, I think on his social, that tariffs are coming on truck truck and truck parts, um, effective October 1st at 25%. So we don't know the details. We're awaiting to see the executive order once that comes out. Fantastic.
Stacey Miller:I mean, clarity is so important when there's so much information on the internet. One of the things that AutoCare strives to do is make sure that its members and the industry at whole have the most updated information, up to date as it happens on the minute, which is Angela's job. She does a fantastic job at it. Um, and really just making sure that businesses have the information that they need in order to operate, because you don't know if you're operating on a 10% or a 25% and how much money you're gonna have to front. Are you gonna have that inventory, right? These are all really important considerations for the industry. So you talk to our members all the time about this as you're helping them file comments, you're understanding the impact on their businesses. Just generally, what kind of feedback are you hearing? Because I would imagine that it's kind of across the spectrum in terms of how our members are reacting to the tariffs. Um AutoCare represents such a diverse membership, but I think we're hearing some common threads across our members. Um, one is just the administrative burden of the sheer amount of information that's coming out from the administration and trying to understand it, navigate the different changes that are that we're seeing on you know a weekly basis. Um and this is all information, this is all time that's and resources that's being pulled away from the company that would otherwise be dedicated towards reinvesting or or growing the company. Um another issue is compliance challenges, especially with the Section 232 tariffs on steel aluminum, where now it's based on content and requiring details like where the steel and aluminum are poured or melted and having that documentation readily available when customs requires it. Um so for companies with multi-tier supply chains, this could be information that could be time consuming to gather. And many suppliers are working to fill those gaps so that they ensure their information is compliant. Another issue that I'm hearing from members is the cash flow issue, where um tariffs are due once you import your product, but you don't get paid from your customer dependent on your agreement and your terms many months later. So you are stuck fronting the cost of the tariffs and it creates a huge cash flow issue for on the company. So this is a really time-consuming effort on behalf of our members, behalf of the entire industry, to distill the information, to figure out what they need to submit, and then to figure out how to run their business in this kind of uh landscape of uncertainty. But uh really thankful that they have you on their side and the entire autocare team. You're constantly producing some resources that our members can access on the autocare website. Um can you tell them a little bit about that?
Angela Chang:Sure. We've uh developed a dedicated trade uh website called autocare.org backslash trade, where we post information, background information on all of the um executive orders that come out uh in response to the different tariffs and trade programs that are um being that are affecting our members. Um we also have a tariff calculator. Um, because of the number of uh tariffs that are now in place, they stack and interact differently with each other, which um can be very difficult to understand. So the tariff calculator helps our members understand which tariffs stack on top of each other and which do not.
Stacey Miller:That's incredibly helpful. And I think I haven't seen a tool like that um across the internet. And I I kind of went and I played with it myself. And I was like, okay, if I have a break part from China that's this percent, this, and this percent that, then I immediately get returned what that tariff could be, and you can look it up by the HTS codes as well. So really cool tool. I really encourage our members to check that out. If they haven't heard of it yet, that's at autocare.org slash trade. Um, so Angela, thank you for joining us and giving us just a really brief overview of what's happening. She's gonna be tracking this on your behalf and answering your questions. You can visit the website. There's a way to reach out to Angela there. And if you have any uh comments, suggestions, questions, feel feel free to leave them in the comments for us, whether you're on Spotify or you're watching on YouTube. We'd love to hear from you. Let us know how we can help you navigate some of these challenges more. Here on Traction Control, I'm Stacy Miller. Thanks, Angela, for being here. Hey, thank you so much, Stacey. Thanks for tuning in to another episode of Auto Care on Air. Make sure to subscribe to our podcast so that you never miss an episode. And don't forget to leave us a rating and review that helps others discover our content. Auto Care on Air is a production of the Autocare Association, dedicated to advancing the autocare industry and supporting professionals like you. To learn more about the association and its initiatives, visit autocare.org.
