President Donald Trump announced Saturday that Audi plans to build a $4 billion assembly plant in Georgia to produce 200,000 SUVs annually, as he seeks to convince Americans to back Republicans in the Nov. 3 midterm elections.
Trump, who has pressured automakers to move production to the United States and has raised tariffs on autos, steel, aluminum, and parts, made the announcement at a rally in Perry, near Macon, in central Georgia, where Volkswagen's premium subsidiary plans to build its first U.S. assembly plant.
Last year, Trump's tariffs dealt Audi a 1.2 billion euro ($1.4 billion) blow, as it imports all its vehicles for the U.S. market from Europe or Mexico.
Georgia has competitive election races for U.S. Senate and governor. Trump is eager to argue that his auto tariffs are helping the U.S. economy. Critics say they have boosted vehicle prices and that the trade uncertainty has delayed some automaker investments.
"We are planning to bring our biggest and most premium SUVs, and produce them here in Macon, Georgia," Audi CEO Gernot Doellner said at the event. "This is a long-term investment because we believe in the American market."
Audi said the investment will create approximately 4,500 jobs. Construction is scheduled to begin next year, with production starting in the early 2030s, Audi said.
The plant is expected to assemble the Audi Q7, Q8 and Q9 SUVs, a U.S. official told Reuters.
Audi also plans to build 25,000 vehicles a year in neighboring South Carolina, the official said. Some of the vehicles, now built in Europe, would be exported, the official added. VW will assemble those vehicles at a $2 billion plant for its off-road brand, Scout Motors, under construction in Blythewood, near the state capital, Columbia, the official said.
Trump has cut government incentives for electric vehicles, significantly reducing U.S. EV and battery production. U.S. employment in vehicle and parts manufacturing has fallen since Trump took office last year.
A gold Audi with manufacturer license plates was parked outside Trump's rally.
U.S. Senator Bernie Moreno, an Ohio Republican, said late on Saturday that "with this investment, Audi will build all of their SUVs exclusively in the U.S." He said the Audi plant "would never have happened without tariffs, without common sense regulations and without eliminating California's ability to regulate fuel economy standards."
Audi sales have fallen for two consecutive years and slid 7% in the first half of 2026 as fierce competition in China and U.S. tariffs hit demand. Audi's U.S. sales are down 16% this year.
Audi's Neckarsulm plant in southwest Germany is one of four German Volkswagen plants that could close after 2030.
In July, Japan's Toyota Motor said it would spend $3.6 billion to build a 2.5-million-square-foot (232,000-square-meter) truck assembly line at its San Antonio, Texas, manufacturing campus and shift some truck production from Mexico to the U.S. The Japanese automaker said it would complete the expansion by 2030, creating 2,000 jobs.
Honda Motor is considering building a US assembly plant but has warned it may not unless the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade is extended. Last year, South Korea's Hyundai said that if it had certainty about USMCA, it "would immediately unlock over $20 billion in new American investments."
