Canadian trucking protests causing car companies to halt production, no effect for Australia

Major automakers in North America are beginning to feel the impact of the anti-vaccine mandate protests in Canada.

Ford, General Motors, Honda, Stellantis and Toyota have reportedly scaled back production across each side of the border, with ongoing blockades at border crossings making it difficult to source components and parts for vehicle production.

The protests are an additional blow for an automotive industry currently grappling with the global semiconductor chip shortage and other issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic, causing existing production headaches.

Ford Canada is this week running its factories at Oakville and Windsor in Ontario at a reduced capacity, while its plants in the United States have enough components to keep production steady – at least for now.

There is no current impact for the local Ford line-up, with the Mustang being the only US-built model – albeit with a Canadian-sourced 5.0-litre V8. The recently-discontinued Endura large SUV was produced at the Oakville factory.

As reported by Reuters, a spokesperson for Ford's Canadian division said the brand is "looking at all options to keep our plants running.” The company is believed to be considering freighting parts into Canada by air to combat blockades at the border crossing, ensuring it can continue producing engines at its Windsor plant.

Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada says its production lines in Canada have been affected, with its facilities in Cambridge and Woodstock, Ontario — which build the Toyota RAV4 and Lexus RX for North America — likely to remain idle for the rest of the week.

Australian examples of the Toyota RAV4 and Lexus RX are produced in Japan.

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Industry group Global Automakers of Canada said, "owing to the integrated nature of the automotive industry, US assembly plants are also being adversely impacted by a shortage of parts from Canada,” in a tweet published on Friday (Australian time).

Toyota temporarily took its plants in Kentucky and Ottawa offline due to the supply chain chaos, while General Motors also cancelled a shift at its plant in Lansing, Michigan. The Toyota Kluger (known as Highlander overseas) is currently unaffected, with the large SUV produced in Indiana for the global market, including Australia.

Meanwhile, Stellantis was forced to cut production on two shifts earlier this week at its plant in Windsor, which produces the Chrysler Pacifica, Voyager and Grand Caravan minivans.

Honda was also affected by the issue on Wednesday and Thursday. The Japanese company does not sell any vehicles built in North America for the Australian market.

With aid from several hundred heavy-duty trucks being used to block traffic, the protesters are demanding an end to Canada’s vaccine mandates and COVID-related restrictions, including the requirement for businesses to check for proof of vaccination.

The crossing that has the auto industry and American government officials concerned most is the Ambassador Bridge, which connects Windsor and Detroit. It typically handles approximately 7000 commercial vehicles and more than AU$420 million worth of goods – AU$70 million of which is estimated to consist of vehicle parts.