High Grade Automotive: Weekly Road Trip

Research evidence excerpt

High Grade Automotive: Weekly Road Trip

J P M O R G A N North America Credit Research

10 July 2026

High Grade Automotive

Weekly Road Trip

North America Corporate Credit -

Autos & Auto Parts and

Manufacturing (IG)

Evan Piascik AC

(1-212) 834-4432

evan.piascik@jpmchase.com

Welcome to this week's edition of the Weekly Road Trip. The JULI Automotive index

Max Berman

tightened 4bp YTD to 97bp while JULI tightened 2bp YTD to 88bp.

(1-212) 834-2380

Topical This Week: max.berman@jpmorgan.com

J.P. Morgan Securities LLC

• On Monday, Toyota announced a $3.6 billion investment to expand its San

Antonio plant to support production of the Tacoma. The company will be

shifting production of the Tacoma truck in Baja California, Mexico to the

facility in San Antonio by 2030, when the expansion is expected to be

completed. Tacoma production at the Guanajuato plant will not be impacted

(currently producing roughly the same number of units as the Baja California

facility). As a reminder, Toyota planned to invest up to $10 billion in its U.S.

manufacturing over the next five years (from November 2025) following the

implementation of tariffs last year.

• S&P downgraded Harley-Davidson and Harley-Davidson Financial Services

to BB+ (stable outlook, previously BBB-/CreditWatch negative) on

Wednesday. The downgrade was driven by its expectation that it may take

HOG “a few years” to reach and sustain an adjusted EBITDA margin near 10%

as it adjusts the portfolio to include more entry-level products. S&P expects

HOG’s adjusted EBITDA margin to “remain depressed through at least 2027”

and end up in the 5-6% range in 2026 as it prioritizes market share over unit

profitability. We added Harley-Davidson and Harley-Davidson Financial