* US lawmakers in both parties oppose Chinese car

factories in US

* In January, Trump said he supported Chinese vehicle

factories here

* Biden-era rule banned Chinese hardware, software on

cars in US

By Nora Eckert and David Shepardson

WARREN, Michigan/WASHINGTON, April 9 (Reuters) - U.S.

Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Thursday that President

Donald Trump's administration does not plan any changes to a

crackdown on vehicle hardware and software from China, which

effectively bars Chinese cars from the U.S. market.

The rules were adopted in January 2025 under President Joe

Biden, based on national security concerns linked to the ability

of vehicles to collect sensitive data on American owners.

The rules imposed a sweeping ban on the use of key Chinese

software and hardware in vehicles on American roads. The

software prohibitions took effect in March, and those on

hardware take effect n 2029.

"We don't see any change in that -- so it seems like it

would probably be difficult for certain countries to establish

new production here, given those sets of rules," Greer said.

He said U.S.officials plan a video conference with Chinese

officials to discuss "deliverables" for President Donald Trump's

meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in May but the auto

sector is not on the agenda.

"We really coalesced around a handful of areas where we want

to have outcomes, nothing really directly on the auto industry,

specifically right now," Greer said.

Lawmakers from both parties in Congress oppose letting

Chinese automakers open plants in the U.S. In January, Trump

said he was open to Chinese automakers building vehicles here.

"If they want to come ​in and build a plant and hire you

and hire your friends and your neighbors, that's great, I love

that," Trump ​told the Detroit Economic Club.

Last week, Democratic senators Tammy Baldwin, Elissa

Slotkin and Chuck Schumer urged Trump to bar Chinese automakers

from building vehicles in ‌the U.S. and to prevent Chinese cars

assembled in Mexico or Canada from entering the country.

"We must be clear-eyed that inviting China's automakers to

set up shop in the ⁠United States would confer an insurmountable

economic advantage impossible for American automakers to

overcome, and it would trigger a national security ​crisis that

could never be reversed," the lawmakers said in a letter to

Trump first reported by Reuters.

Greer said it was unclear if Chinese vehicles operated by

Canadian consumers could be driven across the border.

"I don't know how that will be resolved," Greer said.

The ban has the strong backing of major carmakers

--including General Motors ( GM ), Toyota ( TM ), Volkswagen

, Hyundai -- and other auto groups. Last

month, auto trade groups representing nearly all major car

companies urged the U.S. government to keep Chinese carmakers

out of the country.

Last week, Republican Senator Bernie Moreno said he will

propose legislation ​to seal off the U.S. so "there's never a

scenario where a Chinese automobile will enter our market,

that's hardware, that's software, that's partnerships."