American Honda became a net exporter in the US for the first time in 2013 – exporting 108,705 vehicles compared with the 88,537 vehicles [mostly the Fit which is shifting to Mexico with the 2014 redesign – ed] imported from Japan.
Honda said it also sae record production of automobiles in 2013, both in North America (1,781,213 units) and in the US (1,309,917 units), enabling this first-ever net export achievement.
Go deeper with GlobalData
“Achieving net exporter status is a natural result of our commitment and investment in the US and North America,” said Honda North America president & CEO Tetsuo Iwamura.
“The achievement of this tremendous milestone is a result of the efforts of the tens of thousands of associates in America who develop and produce our vehicles and those who manage the export of these products to customers in global markets.”
In the past three years, Honda has spent more than US$2.7bn to expand its US and North American auto production operations. As a result, nearly 95% of the cars and trucks sold in the US are made in North America.
Honda also set new calendar year records for automobile production at its plants in North America and the US as well as at its plants in Ohio and Indiana.
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalDataProduction in North America rose 5.3% year on year to 1,781,213 units. US plant output rose 7.4% to a record 1,309,917.
Honda said it was the only automaker to have three car lines – Civic, CR-V and Accord – sell more than 300,000 units in the US in 2013 and all were manufactured in North America.
“In just a few decades, the expansion of free trade and growth in US operations has transformed Honda from importing 100% of the cars sold in the US to establishing the US as an export and production hub,” said Rick Schostek, senior vice president of Honda North America.
“Each vehicle we manufacture for global customers is unique to that country, and our [employees] are engineering and manufacturing automobiles that meet their expectations for quality and value.”
At Honda of America Manufacturing in Ohio, the Marysville Auto Plant shattered its previous record – 459,700 in 2008 – by producing 492,409 vehicles last year, up 12% from 2012.
The newer East Liberty Auto Plant in Ohio produced 242,363 light trucks last year, resulting in record production of 734,772 Ohio made vehicles at the two plants in 2013. This includes 69,680 vehicles for export to more than 40 countries, an increase of 69% compared with 2012.
Honda Manufacturing of Alabama produced 333,556 vehicles in 2013, just shy of its 2012 record, due to a model change for the 2014 Acura MDX. The Alabama plant produced 20,466 vehicles for export to 49 countries in 2013.
Honda Manufacturing of Indiana produced a record 241,589 automobiles last year, up 21% from 2012. The plant started vehicle production in 2008 and added a second shift in 2011. It produced 18,559 vehicles for export, an 82% increase from 2012.
Honda of Canada Manufacturing produced 408,124 automobiles last year, slightly behind its record production in 2012, with 2,867 of these vehicles exported from North America.
For the second consecutive year, Honda de Mexico in El Salto, Jalisco, also set a new record with production of 63,172 units.
Honda currently has the capacity to produce 1.72m cars and light trucks in North America at seven auto plants. Next month, production of the redesigned Fit will begin at the new plant in Celaya, Mexico, which will be the automaker’s eighth and newest auto plant in North America, boosting production capacity to 1.92m units a year.
With Celaya on stream, Honda will have the capability to build virtually every product in its model line in North America from sub-compacts to light trucks.
Honda began automobile exports from the US in autumn 1987 and reached the 1m unit mark in cumulative exports from in late 2012.
It began car production in the US – at Maryville, Ohio, three years after opening a motorcycle plant there – in 1982.
Honda now operates a total of 14 major manufacturing facilities in North America, which also make engines and transmissions, all-terrain vehicles, and power equipment products such as lawn mowers, mini-tillers and general purpose engines, using domestic and globally sourced parts.
