Tariffs are confusing so we will take a look at how they have impacted car audio since February.
Since the Supreme Court ruled all the taxes under the Emergency Act were invalid in February, tariffs on car audio have fallen by about 10 percent for some 12 volt categories.
The car audio speaker tariff dropped to 17.5 percent from 28 percent (including all duties), said industry members.
The amplifier tariff fell to 35 percent from 45 percent, said one freight analyst.
But certain accessories are now carrying particularly high tariffs–audio coaxial cable carries a 40.3 percent tariff (including all duties). Prior to February it carried a 51 percent tariff. Amp wiring kits today carry a 52.6 percent tariff. Fuses carry a 58 percent tariff, said the freight analyst.
If you are expecting prices to come down now that some car audio products have seen a reduction, you will likely be disappointed. If anything, prices are expected to increase.
Why There’s Uncertainty
Why? Because there’s mass confusion. See if you can sort this out:
Shortly after the Emergency Act tariffs were outruled, the Trump Administration instituted a new blanket global tariff with some exceptions under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 of 10 percent. But in May, this action was ruled illegal by the U.S. Court of International Trade (plus those tariffs were due to expire in July). To complicate the matter further, the Administration has also appealed the ruling. However, the Administration is readying new tariffs resulting from what it calls “goods produced with forced labor,” citing 60 world economies where this is the case. These tariffs, under Section 301, are expected at 10 or 12.5 percent. Public comment was open through July 6.
Expect Price Increases and Possible Shortages
When we ask suppliers about their future plans, most say that prices are likely to climb, not because of tariffs, but because of the rising cost of raw materials and digital memory.
You may have read that Apple raised prices by several hundred dollars on some Macs with basic iPads seeing increases of $150 to $200.
Automotive News recently reported that DRAM spot prices soared by about 450 percent from September 2025 to January 2026. It’s caused hundreds of millions of dollars in losses for car makers.
Bill Crutchfield, founder and CEO of Crutchfield said all consumer electronics prices may rise in the future due to soaring materials costs. He noted, “Tariffs are no longer a major concern for us. The cost of semiconductors is. Due to the reduced supply of helium reaching Asia, chip production has slowed. Helium is used in the etching of chips. Since Qatar is a major producer of this critical gas, its export through the Straits of Hormuz has been greatly curtailed. On top of that, the AI boom is driving the demand for memory chips way up. As a result of these developments, we could experience large increases in the cost of consumer electronics products in the future. Tim Cook recently made that clear when he announced that the next generation of iPhones will be priced much higher.”
Crutchfield added that product shortages are also a possibility due to the chip issue.
As reported earlier, Kicker’s Tom Heath said the company plans ” to hold our pricing as long as possible; the real impact is felt by the consumer in the end. They are being squeezed from many directions for their discretionary income. We will remain conservative and absorb what we can, and then do what is only necessary to keep product moving to our dealers, then to their customers. In the end we all rely on the consumer for our business to do well. We must be careful not to price products out of reach.”
