The Dodge Hornet hasn’t exactly stung the market the easiest way Dodge had hoped. Now the subcompact crossover, one in every of merely three fashions throughout the mannequin’s lineup, goes via a good higher downside: Tariffs.
Dodge has merely confirmed that it’s going to be suspending manufacturing of the Hornet for the 2026 model yr. The reason is the charge to the automaker and to the patron as a result of the Italian-built model is matter to the 25% levy on cars imported into the US.
Tariffs To Blame For A lot much less Sting In Dodge Lineup
The official assertion reads that the company plans to “assess the outcomes of US tariff insurance coverage insurance policies” on the Hornet. That means that there is not a scheduled start to manufacturing for model yr 2026, Automotive Data experiences.
Dodge builds the Hornet at a producing unit near Naples, Italy. The small crossover is a frivolously reskinned mannequin of the Alfa Romeo Tonale, which is why it is constructed at that Alfa plant. It has been imported, along with the Tonale, as a result of it was launched in late 2022.
Some automakers are going via the tariffs with worth will enhance. Others, along with Volvo, are reportedly dropping fashions from their lineup. Product sales of the Hornet are most likely behind the selection to position the model on preserve in its place of worth will enhance.
In its first full yr, the Dodge Hornet purchased 9,314 objects. In 2024, Dodge moved 20,559. An enchancment, nonetheless nonetheless unlikely what Dodge was looking out for. For comparability, that amount is a tiny fraction of product sales of the Toyota RAV4, the best-selling SUV throughout the US at 475,193. The underside of the best 25 best-selling SUV guidelines was nonetheless higher than 5 events what Dodge managed with the Ford Bronco at 109,172.
Product sales this yr have been even worse. Dodge moved merely 5,647 Hornets throughout the first half of 2025, down 52 % from remaining yr. The Tonale is not going to be exactly selling like hotcakes each, transferring 1,156 throughout the first half, down 28% from 2024 and transferring 3,383 in all of that yr.
Subcompact Hornet Had Suboptimal Impression
Dodge pitched the Hornet as a muscle automotive for the subcompact crossover part. To help once more that up, the aggressively-styled model is in the marketplace as a result of the GT, which comes with a 268-horsepower turbocharged four-cylinder and the R/T, a plug-in hybrid with as a lot as 288 horsepower and 383 pound-feet of torque.
In case you occur to’re looking out for a Dodge Hornet, it may very well be sturdy to look out already. Dodge’s inventory search web site displays that there are at current 537 objects of the 2024 model yr Hornet on the lot, and easily 1,298 copies of the 2025. That means Dodge stopped importing the car some time previously, and inventory has dwindled. Low inventory can be chargeable for sluggish product sales this yr.
Within the meantime, Alfa Romeo has 903 copies of the 2025 Tonale on vendor heaps, and easily three from 2024. The Tonale will value a bit additional, though, with a starting worth of spherical $36,000 for the luxurious model versus $31,000 for the Dodge.
This isn’t the one model Dodge has put the brakes on this yr. It moreover not too way back discontinued the R/T trim of its Charger Daytona electrical. As with the Hornet, Dodge talked about on the time that it might “proceed to guage the outcomes of US tariff insurance coverage insurance policies.” The Charger Daytona is inbuilt Windsor, Ontario, in Canada.