What about models built in two countries at once?

That is a common case, and it is exactly where the VIN becomes essential. Two Escape cars from the same model year can carry different rates, 0% and 10%, because they came off lines on different continents.

Can I check a car before the auction ends?

Yes, and that is the point of doing it. Enter the VIN from the lot while bidding is still open, read the assembly plant, and you know whether to count on 0% or 10% before you set the highest figure you are willing to go to.

Does a Escape get zero duty?

It depends on the car. The preference covers cars finally assembled in the States, and the Escape is also produced outside the USA. Type in the VIN and we read the country and city of the assembly plant, so you see whether this car meets the 0% condition.

Is a VIN prefix enough to establish the rate?

No. The first three characters point to the manufacturer and the country, but one prefix can cover several plants. The rate needs the country of final assembly tied to the full number, and that is exactly the reading you get after entering a VIN.

Ford Escape off an American line — what it changes in duty

Q: Where is the Ford Escape assembled?

We read plants from the production data of cars that have passed through our database, so the list shows the real origin of individual cars rather than a manufacturer's plan. One model can have plants on two continents, which is why the country is checked for a specific VIN.

EU–US Agreement on Reciprocal Trade has applied since 2026-07-01 and cuts duty to 0% for cars finally assembled in the States. The Ford Escape meets that condition only in the cars genuinely built at an American plant; the rest clear at 10%. Verification runs on the VIN, not on the version name.

Where is the Ford Escape assembled?

The split shows in the data: 149,490 Escape cars reached us with an American assembly plant, the rest came from plants in other countries. The first group qualifies for 0% duty, the second for 10%. The counts cover every car recorded in our database, not the current offer.

Plant	Country	VIN prefix	Cars in our database	Duty
Louisville	United States	1FM	117,415	0% duty
Kansas City	United States	1FM	26,119	0% duty
Claycomo	United States	1FM	5,696	0% duty
Avon Lake	United States	1FM	259	0% duty
Oakville	Canada	1FM	1	10%
Monon	United States	5V8	1	0% duty

Made in USA • Tax 0%

How do you check a specific car?

The quickest filter is the first three characters of the number — on a Escape with American assembly that is usually 1FM. A filter is not proof, though: we check the plant tied to the full VIN, because only that answers the condition. The check runs in seconds and costs nothing.

How much will you save?

The gap is 10% of customs value, plus a side effect: 23% VAT is charged on the value with duty added, so a zero rate also lowers the tax base. On a Escape assembled outside the USA neither effect fires. Work the result out in the calculator — the rates are fixed, the customs value is not.

Work out the import cost

What the import cost is made of

The bill is made of a few fixed percentages and one variable, which is the customs value of the car. Duty is 0% on a Escape assembled in the USA and 10% on the rest, excise is 3.1% or 18.6% by engine size, and 23% VAT is charged on the value with duty and excise added.

Component	Rate
Duty — car assembled in the USA	0%
Duty — everything else	10%
Excise	3.1% up to 2.0 l, 18.6% above 3.5 l
VAT	23%

Rates, not amounts — the calculator works the sum out on current data.

Zero-duty paperwork — our job

Our customs agency handles the formalities. We gather the assembly data for the Ford Escape, prepare the declaration and see the clearance through. The rate finally granted is the customs office's decision, taken on the documents submitted.

What to watch for when buying at auction

The most common damage on a Escape in our database is features.lots.characteristics.damage_type.front_end, so start the photos and the report there. Repairing that area can eat the whole advantage of 0% instead of 10%, which is why you count it together with duty rather than separately.

Damage	Cars in our database
Front end	74,603
Side	18,674
Rear end	17,289

From the USA or from Europe?

Europe hands you a car ready to register; the States hand you a wider choice of versions and of damaged cars. On a Escape origin joins the list: a car assembled in the USA clears at 0%, one from outside the preference at 10%. That is the first thing to check when you compare offers.

See current listings: Ford Escape