Honda: Sales, Marketing and Financial News
02-21-2014, 11:45 AM
#521
Safety Car
2013
Honda says its Accord sedan was the best-selling passenger car in America last year based on retail sales.
Although the Accord finished behind the Toyota Camry in overall sales last year, Honda - citing data from Polk - says its mid-sizer was the most popular car of 2013 with individual consumers. 360,089 of Honda's 366,678 Accord sales went to retail buyers in 2013, while a large chunk of the 408,484 Camrys sold last year wound up in fleets.
"Our focus on retail sales to individual buyers has a direct correlation to the high resale value of Honda products, which is a key factor in the value proposition for our customers," said John Mendel, executive vice president of automobile sales for Honda. "We want to thank car buyers for making 4 Honda vehicles America's top choices, purchased 1 car at a time."
In addition to the Accord, Honda's Civic small car, CR-V crossover and Odyssey minivan were also the retail sales leaders in their respective segments.
The Ford F-150 was easily the best selling vehicle of 2013, racking up more than 760,000 deliveries.
01-09-2015, 12:19 AM
#522
Surprised no one has posted this yet.
https://autos.yahoo.com/news/honda-f...193743954.html
https://autos.yahoo.com/news/honda-f...193743954.html
Honda fined $70 million for hiding death and injury data from feds
Honda Motor Co. has agreed to pay $70 million to the U.S. government in penalties for failing to report hundreds of injuries, deaths and other consumer claims involving its cars, transportation officials said on Thursday.
Honda will pay two $35 million fines, making it the largest amount ever paid by an automaker as a result of an investigation by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration. The agency's fines are capped by law at $35 million per incident. Other automakers have settled civil claims with the U.S. government over safety defects for far more.
The automaker has been under investigation for violations of NHTSA's Early Warning Reporting regulations. The rules require automakers to report quickly any information about possible defects, deaths and injuries or damage and warranty claims made by consumers.
In November, Honda revealed it had failed to report 1,729 cases involving deaths or injuries between July 2003 and June 2014.
Eight of those incidents involved Takata Corp air bags that had ruptured and have been the subject of massive recalls and federal investigations.
"One thing we cannot tolerate and will not tolerate is an automaker failing to report to us any safety issues, because if we don't know about these problems, we're missing an essential piece of the puzzle in the recall efforts we use to fix them and to protect the public," U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said during a news call.
The automaker had earlier attributed its disclosure transgressions to data entry and computer programing errors, and also said it had relied on an "overly narrow interpretation" of its legal reporting requirements
"We have resolved this matter and will move forward to build on the important actions Honda has already taken to address our past shortcomings in early warning reporting,” Rick Schostek, executive vice president of Honda North America Inc, said in a statement.
The company said it was initiating new training regimens, changing internal reporting policy and enhancing oversight of its early warning reporting process.
Foxx said the $35 million cap per case need to be lifted, because a single violation could lead to a death.
"In this situation, we're talking about 11 years - 11 years of information we did not have. It's egregious and I think the penalties reflect that," Foxx said.
Honda Motor Co. has agreed to pay $70 million to the U.S. government in penalties for failing to report hundreds of injuries, deaths and other consumer claims involving its cars, transportation officials said on Thursday.
Honda will pay two $35 million fines, making it the largest amount ever paid by an automaker as a result of an investigation by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration. The agency's fines are capped by law at $35 million per incident. Other automakers have settled civil claims with the U.S. government over safety defects for far more.
The automaker has been under investigation for violations of NHTSA's Early Warning Reporting regulations. The rules require automakers to report quickly any information about possible defects, deaths and injuries or damage and warranty claims made by consumers.
In November, Honda revealed it had failed to report 1,729 cases involving deaths or injuries between July 2003 and June 2014.
Eight of those incidents involved Takata Corp air bags that had ruptured and have been the subject of massive recalls and federal investigations.
"One thing we cannot tolerate and will not tolerate is an automaker failing to report to us any safety issues, because if we don't know about these problems, we're missing an essential piece of the puzzle in the recall efforts we use to fix them and to protect the public," U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said during a news call.
The automaker had earlier attributed its disclosure transgressions to data entry and computer programing errors, and also said it had relied on an "overly narrow interpretation" of its legal reporting requirements
"We have resolved this matter and will move forward to build on the important actions Honda has already taken to address our past shortcomings in early warning reporting,” Rick Schostek, executive vice president of Honda North America Inc, said in a statement.
The company said it was initiating new training regimens, changing internal reporting policy and enhancing oversight of its early warning reporting process.
Foxx said the $35 million cap per case need to be lifted, because a single violation could lead to a death.
"In this situation, we're talking about 11 years - 11 years of information we did not have. It's egregious and I think the penalties reflect that," Foxx said.
Last edited by AZuser; 01-09-2015 at 12:21 AM.
01-09-2015, 03:59 AM
#523
2G TLX-S
Are those deaths and injuries related to the Takata airbags ?
01-09-2015, 09:25 AM
#524
Looks like 8 incidents involve the Takata airbags which means 1,721 cases are for something else.
If Honda reported 1,144 cases during that period and 1,729 cases were not, that means they under reported by over 50% of the deaths and injuries that occurred.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/...ewrs/70051658/
If Honda reported 1,144 cases during that period and 1,729 cases were not, that means they under reported by over 50% of the deaths and injuries that occurred.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/...ewrs/70051658/
Honda underreported deaths, injuries to feds
Honda said Monday that a third-party audit showed that it failed to make required reports to federal regulators of 1,729 written claims or notices concerning injuries or deaths in its cars over the past 11 years.
The audit found the automaker failed to file more than half of the so-called "Early Warning Reports" that it should have submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration under the TREAD act that took effect in 2003. The government uses the EWR data, which also included required reporting by automakers of warranty and property damage claims, to spot safety defect trends that can lead to recalls.
Honda says it found out that it hadn't been properly reporting its cases as a result of the audit. The underreporting, it says, was due to data and coding errors and also an overly narrow interpretation by Honda of what qualified as a written complaint that must be reported.
Honda says the reporting shortcomings, however, are a separate situation from the current case of defective Takata air bag inflators that are believed to be at fault in at least three deaths. It says that the audit total includes eight Takata air bag failures involving one death and seven injuries, but that NHTSA already was informed of these incidents through other channels.
Honda is one of 10 automakers with U.S. recalls related to the inflators, but it is the one with by far the most vehicles affected and has been at the center of the controversy. Last week, its executives went before a Senate committee to testify.
The automaker, thus, is under scrutiny and the audit revealing the reporting shortcomings won't help matters.
"It strains credulity that a sophisticated company like Honda could make so many data-entry errors, coding errors and narrow interpretations of what's a written claim," said Clarence Ditlow, executive director of the Center for Auto Safety, in a statement.
Honda says it reported 1,144 cases during the period. It says it didn't notice something was wrong with its reporting until 2011, when an employee reported a discrepancy that was believed to affect the count.
But Honda says it failed to follow up and the issue didn't resurface until the following year, when NHTSA asked about the accuracy of its reports.
Honda said Monday that a third-party audit showed that it failed to make required reports to federal regulators of 1,729 written claims or notices concerning injuries or deaths in its cars over the past 11 years.
The audit found the automaker failed to file more than half of the so-called "Early Warning Reports" that it should have submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration under the TREAD act that took effect in 2003. The government uses the EWR data, which also included required reporting by automakers of warranty and property damage claims, to spot safety defect trends that can lead to recalls.
Honda says it found out that it hadn't been properly reporting its cases as a result of the audit. The underreporting, it says, was due to data and coding errors and also an overly narrow interpretation by Honda of what qualified as a written complaint that must be reported.
Honda says the reporting shortcomings, however, are a separate situation from the current case of defective Takata air bag inflators that are believed to be at fault in at least three deaths. It says that the audit total includes eight Takata air bag failures involving one death and seven injuries, but that NHTSA already was informed of these incidents through other channels.
Honda is one of 10 automakers with U.S. recalls related to the inflators, but it is the one with by far the most vehicles affected and has been at the center of the controversy. Last week, its executives went before a Senate committee to testify.
The automaker, thus, is under scrutiny and the audit revealing the reporting shortcomings won't help matters.
"It strains credulity that a sophisticated company like Honda could make so many data-entry errors, coding errors and narrow interpretations of what's a written claim," said Clarence Ditlow, executive director of the Center for Auto Safety, in a statement.
Honda says it reported 1,144 cases during the period. It says it didn't notice something was wrong with its reporting until 2011, when an employee reported a discrepancy that was believed to affect the count.
But Honda says it failed to follow up and the issue didn't resurface until the following year, when NHTSA asked about the accuracy of its reports.
Last edited by AZuser; 01-09-2015 at 09:32 AM.
01-09-2015, 12:32 PM
#525
Team Owner
I heard honda was slapped with a 71 million dollar fine because of the above...
01-09-2015, 03:25 PM
#526
Team Owner
they said on the News that is like 3 days of profit for Honda.. big fuking deal
70 million bows of apologies are better.
70 million bows of apologies are better.
01-11-2015, 02:18 AM
#527
Team Owner
Honda makes 8.5 Billion per year? So that must mean Toyota makes close to 100 billion per year... I'm not saying no, but I dunno... Seems awfully high
01-11-2015, 09:29 PM
#528
Team Owner
based on 2013 Honda Financial report, their revenue was $29B in 2012-2013....
If i counted the #s correctly, Honda is a lot more richer than you think.
http://world.honda.com/investors/lib..._2012_4q_E.pdf
01-11-2015, 09:49 PM
#529
Azine Jabroni
no idea. that is what they said on the News that day. I guess they meant Revenue, not net income.
based on 2013 Honda Financial report, their revenue was $29B in 2012-2013....
If i counted the #s correctly, Honda is a lot more richer than you think.
http://world.honda.com/investors/lib..._2012_4q_E.pdf
based on 2013 Honda Financial report, their revenue was $29B in 2012-2013....
If i counted the #s correctly, Honda is a lot more richer than you think.
http://world.honda.com/investors/lib..._2012_4q_E.pdf
01-12-2015, 06:10 PM
#530
01-30-2015, 01:21 PM
#531
Honda Earnings Hammered by Recalls - WSJ
Honda Earnings Hammered by Recalls
Japanese Auto Maker Cuts Profit Forecast Despite Tailwind from Weak Yen
TOKYO— Honda Motor Co. cut its profit outlook for the second consecutive quarter, the latest indication of the growing toll from two recent recalls—one involving exploding air bags made by Takata Corp. , and the other related to the redesigned Fit subcompact.
While the air bag recalls haven’t had much impact on Honda’s U.S. sales in 2014, Executive Vice President Tetsuo Iwamura said the roughly four million vehicles recalled over Takata-made air bags between October and December had added to costs.
Analysts have estimated the costs at over ¥30 billion ($255 million), though Honda declined to specify the amount.
The second set of recalls over the redesigned Fit gas-electric hybrids that started in 2013 has led Honda to beef up its validation tests. That move has pushed back multiple vehicle launches in Japan, prompting Honda to cut its Japanese car sales forecast for the full financial year by 20%.
The weakening yen is set to benefit all Japanese auto makers because it makes exports cheaper and helps them convert money made overseas at a more favorable rate.
For Honda, “the boost [in profits] from the foreign exchange factor was offset by a decline in sales volume, and the increase in quality-related costs led to a cut in full-year profit forecasts,” Mr. Iwamura said on Friday. Sales were weak in Japan and China, he said.
Honda cut its net profit forecast for the year ending in March by 3.5% to ¥545 billion ($4.6 billion), down 5.1% from last financial year, the first year-over-year decline in three years. It also sliced its full-year global car sales forecast by 3.7% to 4.45 million vehicles.
In the October-December quarter, Honda’s net profit fell 15.1% from a year ago to ¥136.5 billion, slightly below analyst estimates.
Japanese Auto Maker Cuts Profit Forecast Despite Tailwind from Weak Yen
TOKYO— Honda Motor Co. cut its profit outlook for the second consecutive quarter, the latest indication of the growing toll from two recent recalls—one involving exploding air bags made by Takata Corp. , and the other related to the redesigned Fit subcompact.
While the air bag recalls haven’t had much impact on Honda’s U.S. sales in 2014, Executive Vice President Tetsuo Iwamura said the roughly four million vehicles recalled over Takata-made air bags between October and December had added to costs.
Analysts have estimated the costs at over ¥30 billion ($255 million), though Honda declined to specify the amount.
The second set of recalls over the redesigned Fit gas-electric hybrids that started in 2013 has led Honda to beef up its validation tests. That move has pushed back multiple vehicle launches in Japan, prompting Honda to cut its Japanese car sales forecast for the full financial year by 20%.
The weakening yen is set to benefit all Japanese auto makers because it makes exports cheaper and helps them convert money made overseas at a more favorable rate.
For Honda, “the boost [in profits] from the foreign exchange factor was offset by a decline in sales volume, and the increase in quality-related costs led to a cut in full-year profit forecasts,” Mr. Iwamura said on Friday. Sales were weak in Japan and China, he said.
Honda cut its net profit forecast for the year ending in March by 3.5% to ¥545 billion ($4.6 billion), down 5.1% from last financial year, the first year-over-year decline in three years. It also sliced its full-year global car sales forecast by 3.7% to 4.45 million vehicles.
In the October-December quarter, Honda’s net profit fell 15.1% from a year ago to ¥136.5 billion, slightly below analyst estimates.
02-12-2015, 06:50 AM
#532
Safety Car
AutoNews
Honda Motor Co. CEO Takanobu Ito, under fire for how he is dismantling the traditional way the Japanese car maker sources parts and technologies, has resisted moves for his ouster and will fight on for another two-year term, four people with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
Ito took over in 2009, and for the past 3 years has shaken up Honda's decades-old, tightly-knit supply chain, looking to trim costs while finding more cutting-edge technologies. That's rankled long-term local suppliers, and some former Honda chiefs, and the pressure on Ito has been ratcheted higher by mass recalls over quality issues. Some retired executives maneuvered to have Ito removed.
"Honda's group suppliers were thrown into disarray by Ito's actions. The way things are going, they're soon all going to become subcontractors with no technologies of their own," said one former Honda chief.
But Ito, a former super-car engineer, is determined to see his reforms through, and told his critics as much at a recent meeting with some former Honda chiefs, said two of the knowledgeable individuals. None of the sources wanted to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue.
"Since the start of this year, we've been operating on the assumption that Ito will continue as chief executive," said a Honda divisional head, adding Ito has a "70 percent" chance of keeping his job.
"Ito is determined to keep going as CEO," said another individual, who was a senior Honda executive in the 1980s. "We're generally okay with that."
Honda spokesman Kaoru Tanaka declined to comment on Ito's position, but noted the company "procures components in the most optimal way possible, taking into consideration cost, quality and delivery. That policy remains unwavering and unchanged."
R&D reset
One of Ito's moves to reset r&d priorities was to focus on vehicle electrification by courting global suppliers such as Robert Bosch, Continental and TRW Automotive. Contracts have even gone to Denso Corp., a supplier affiliated with rival Toyota Motor Corp., often bypassing Honda's local suppliers such as Keihin Corp. and Showa Corp.
Deflecting any talk of a crisis, Keihin spokesman Hidekazu Nagasawa said Honda's procurement reforms were "an opportunity to ... develop better technologies and more innovative, cost-effective ways to manufacture them, and sell them ... not just to Honda but other automakers."
While Ito's critics acknowledge a need to change how global automakers like Honda develop their technologies, they believe Ito has moved too hastily, and they have been quick to point to damaging product recalls as symptomatic of his rush to reform.
Besides having to recall more than 13 million cars for potentially lethal airbag inflators made by Takata Corp., Honda has been hit by 5 recalls of its Fit subcompact car and Vezel crossover utility vehicle since their 2013 launch. Ito's critics note the defects mainly involved German supplier Schaeffler's hybrid transmission technology -- and how Honda engineers integrated it with their other vehicle technologies.
Former CEO Nobuhiko Kawamoto was so concerned that he visited Ito in October and warned him about the quality and reliability slippage that he said risked damaging the Honda brand, the knowledgeable people told Reuters.
'Yaesu club'
In Japanese corporate culture, former chiefs retain more clout than in the West.
The Honda grandees, dubbed the "old boys," maintain a Tokyo office known informally as the Yaesu Club. Under an unwritten code, they don't intervene in day-to-day management, but some have ramped up the pressure on Ito by airing their complaints internally, 2 of the knowledgeable individuals said.
"We're all worried and irritated by Ito's audacious, not-so-well-thought-out reform moves," the ex-Honda chief said.
A company insider close to the CEO, said Ito understands where his critics are coming from, and would likely slow the pace of reform. On the credit side, Honda shares have risen 37 percent since Ito took over as CEO, and operating income has more than trebled since his reform drive began.
To provide some help to existing suppliers, Ito may follow Toyota's lead and seek to consolidate some of the supply chain, possibly combining transmission units of Musashi Seimitsu, Yutaka Giken and Atsumitec into a single entity. Spokespeople for those companies declined to comment.
While some suppliers have kept pace with industry changes, others have struggled.
"In a next stage, the possibility of a consolidation of Honda group transmission producers is definitely there and real," said a representative from one supply company, asking not to be identified.
Ito, meanwhile, remains committed to long-term reforms to Honda's r&d and technology procurement.
"He believes Honda needs new blood from outside to break new technological ground ... and make a new departure," said another of the Honda insiders.
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Legend2TL (02-12-2015)
02-12-2015, 10:52 AM
#533
Team Owner
no disrespect to all the engineers we have here.
But Engineers should not become CEO...
But Engineers should not become CEO...
02-12-2015, 03:36 PM
#534
AZ Community Team
^ yeah that's so true Henry Ford, Ferry Porsche, Lee Iacocca, Alan Mulally, Gordon Moore, Robert Noyce, Andy Groove, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Larry Page and many others all proved that statement
Dumb statement
Dumb statement
Last edited by Legend2TL; 02-12-2015 at 03:46 PM.
02-12-2015, 09:24 PM
#535
Senior Moderator
Ito sucks. He needs to go. The end.
02-13-2015, 01:47 AM
#536
2G TLX-S
Kick him out, and let's bring back all those inhouse programs he has torn up when he became CEO, such as the V8/RWD program.
02-23-2015, 06:33 AM
#537
Safety Car
AutoNews
TOKYO -- Honda Motor Co. President Takanobu Ito said he will step down and named an r&d executive with wide international experience as his replacement following a string of quality lapses that spurred a round of internal reforms.
Takahiro Hachigo, 55, currently a managing officer leading the company’s r&d, purchasing and production in China, will take office as president and CEO in late June, following approval at that month’s annual shareholders’ meeting, Honda said in a statement today.
The date of the meeting has not been announced.
Ito, 61, was tapped as CEO in 2009 and led Honda through a tumultuous period marked by the financial crisis, the 2011 Japanese earthquake-tsunami, a period of profit-eroding exchange rates and extended flooding that shut down Thailand operations.
More recently, the company has been broadsided by the global recall of millions of vehicles to replace faulty Takata airbags that have been linked to 6 deaths. And a string of embarrassing recalls in Japan forced Ito to delay several product launches and overhaul its r&d strategy.
Ito’s departure comes even though many of his reforms were only just underway, and Hachigo pledged to continue the strategy.
Ito’s retooling of the r&d division, for example, to slow development, add extra quality checks and reduce the onerous workload, was announced just last year. Meanwhile, the CEO’s plan to delegate power and responsibility to 6 global hubs for local production and r&d is also still a work in progress.
‘Going forward’
The appointment of Hachigo signals a psychological break with Honda’s stumbles and installs a leader with ample international experience in the United States, Europe and China, as Japan’s 3rd-largest automaker increasingly moves operations overseas.
“We are going forward,” Ito said at a hastily called news conference today at the carmaker’s Tokyo headquarters. “I believe this is a good opportunity to revamp our entire operations.”
Ito said he picked Hachigo because he was a key player in setting up the 6 regional hubs during his time abroad. He expects the reforms to begin delivering fruit this year.
“In 2015, Honda is ready to make a huge leap forward,” Ito said. “To do this, I believe, Honda needs to overcome challenges under a new, younger leader as a team.”
The abrupt shuffle was widely unexpected partly because Ito’s reforms were just gaining traction. Some observers thought he would stay on longer to shepherd them through.
Work undone
At the same time, Ito’s six-year tenure is typical for Honda chiefs. His predecessor, Takeo Fukui, also served for 6 years.
“This is certainly sudden and 1 would have thought he’d be allowed some more time to resolve some of their issues,” said Chris Richter, an auto analyst with CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets. “Ito laid a lot of groundwork. Now that some of those assets are in place, it’s a matter of using them wisely.”
Rather than dwell on the recall problems that tarnished the end of his tenure, Ito ran down a list of major accomplishments.
They included surviving the Great Recession as one of the only automakers to avert a full-year loss, the return to Formula 1 racing, the revival of sports cars such as the Acura NSX, the realization of Honda’s commuter jet business and, of course, his 6-pole global regionalization push.
“It’s likely Mr. Ito was planning to step down anyway, but he expected to step down with glory and success,” said Takaki Nakanishi, an auto analyst at Jefferies Japan Ltd. “Now, he’s having to take some responsibility.”
Hachigo said it was time to start reaping Ito’s reforms.
“Mr. Ito set about making major reforms,” Hachigo said. “Now in 2015, we have reached the stage were we can deliver the results of these efforts in tangible forms to our customers.”
Other shuffles
After the change, Ito will stay on the company’s board as a director and adviser. Fumihiko Ike will remain chairman.
Ito also shuffled the board and senior management.
Tetsuo Iwamura, the executive vice president who currently oversees North American operations, will step down as chairman of American Honda Motor Co. but stay on the parent company’s board. Honda will not appoint a new chairman. Instead, Takuji Yamada, who is the currently president of American Honda Motor Co., will keep his title and take over Iwamura’s duties.
Iwamura will stay on the board.
Ito also retired the company’s current r&d chief. Yoshiharu Yamamoto was president of Honda R&D Co. during a period when Honda recalled the latest-generation Fit hybrid an embarrassing 5 times over a 12-month period in Japan.
Koichi Fukuo, the company’s newly appointed quality czar charged with fixing the problems, will be appointed new president of Honda R&D, the company said.
Separately, Yoshiyuki Matsumoto will take over as head of the company’s automobile arm. He is currently a managing officer in charge of purchasing and production for the Asia-Oceania region. Matsumoto will assume Fukuo’s role of policing internal quality.
Honda’s board will expand to 14 members after June, from 13.
Global resume
Hachigo joined Honda in 1982, beginning his career in its automobile r&d unit as a chassis design engineer, Honda said.
From 2004 to 2006, Hachigo worked in the U.S. as senior vice president of Honda R&D Americas Inc., where he helped lead localized development of Honda and Acura brand vehicles.
Before that, he spearheaded development of the 1st-generation U.S.-built Odyssey minivan, which was launched in 1999.
After his U.S. posting, Hachigo returned to Japan, where he worked at the global r&d center, as a purchasing executive and as a manufacturing manager the company’s Suzuka assembly plant.
In 2012 he became vice president and director of Honda Motor Europe Ltd. and was later appointed president of the company’s European r&d operations in Britain.
Hachigo shifted to China in 2013, where he has led development, purchasing, production and motor technology.
“He has the rich experience of different regions,” Ito said, “which will be indispensable as he leads Honda in the future.”
Ito, by contrast, counts a 2-year stint in the United States as the only overseas posting in his 36 years with Honda. He was executive vice president of Honda R&D Americas Inc. from April 1998 until June 2000.
02-23-2015, 07:46 AM
#538
AZ Community Team
^ hopefully for Honda, Hachigo will be better than Ito and Fukui. Neither of whom was stellar in the CEO role despite having impressive careers at Honda.
02-23-2015, 08:47 AM
#539
Senior Moderator
02-23-2015, 11:08 AM
#540
Feb 11, 2015:
Honda Motor Co. CEO Takanobu Ito, under fire for how he is dismantling the traditional way the Japanese car maker sources parts and technologies, has resisted moves for his ouster and will fight on for another two-year term, four people with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
"Ito is determined to keep going as CEO," said another individual, who was a senior Honda executive in the 1980s. "We're generally okay with that."
12 days later:
TOKYO -- Honda Motor Co. President Takanobu Ito said he will step down and named an r&d executive with wide international experience as his replacement following a string of quality lapses that spurred a round of internal reforms.
Honda Motor Co. CEO Takanobu Ito, under fire for how he is dismantling the traditional way the Japanese car maker sources parts and technologies, has resisted moves for his ouster and will fight on for another two-year term, four people with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
"Ito is determined to keep going as CEO," said another individual, who was a senior Honda executive in the 1980s. "We're generally okay with that."
12 days later:
TOKYO -- Honda Motor Co. President Takanobu Ito said he will step down and named an r&d executive with wide international experience as his replacement following a string of quality lapses that spurred a round of internal reforms.
02-23-2015, 11:18 AM
#541
Team Owner
.
Ito’s retooling of the r&d division, for example, to slow development, add extra quality checks and reduce the onerous workload, was announced just last year. Meanwhile, the CEO’s plan to delegate power and responsibility to 6 global hubs for local production and r&d is also still a work in progress.
Ito’s retooling of the r&d division, for example, to slow development, add extra quality checks and reduce the onerous workload, was announced just last year. Meanwhile, the CEO’s plan to delegate power and responsibility to 6 global hubs for local production and r&d is also still a work in progress.
02-23-2015, 11:22 AM
#542
Honda should fire all executives who use hair dye products 
02-23-2015, 11:29 AM
#543
AZ Community Team
My biggest complaint on Honda has been lack of focus and direction of their hybrid powertrain. It took awhile but the new Accord Hybrid is a stunning powertrain, but it took over a decade while Toyota captured the hybrid car market. Someone (Denso?) sold Honda on the planar motor approach which had alot of compromise and lacked growth potential. Honda finally found the error of their ways and got back to a more scaleable hybrid drivetrain architecture.
02-23-2015, 12:44 PM
#544
Senior Moderator
Buh-bye Ito-san. Don't let the door hit you on your way out.
I don't think he'll be missed and in fact, he should be outta here right now rather than in June.
I think it will be interesting having a real engineer back at the helm. Even better is his international experience. I wonder if this will translate to better stewardship of Acura.
I don't think he'll be missed and in fact, he should be outta here right now rather than in June.
I think it will be interesting having a real engineer back at the helm. Even better is his international experience. I wonder if this will translate to better stewardship of Acura.
02-23-2015, 01:18 PM
#545
Senior Moderator
He may have had a rough start but things seem to be headed in the right direction lately as far a products and technology goes. He seems to have got hybrids right, the NSX looks good and nailed most of the new Honda products that have come out. Acura could use some work and the quality issues are troublesome but otherwise I wouldn't have been shocked or disappointment to see him stay on a couple more years to see it through.
02-23-2015, 02:29 PM
#546
You mean aside from the poor selling and now discontinued ILX hybrid, the poor selling RLX hybrid, the Fit hybrid that's been recalled 5 times (so far), and the Vezel/HR-V hybrid that's been recalled 2 times (so far)? Yeah, I suppose he got hybrids right. 
02-23-2015, 02:48 PM
#547
Senior Moderator
And the ILX was on the old IMA system so it doesn't count. As for that Accord, as good as the hybrid system is, why isn't it selling in big numbers? I see Camry Hybrids everywhere, Accords, haven't seen 1.
02-23-2015, 03:04 PM
#548
Team Owner
when you think commodity hybrid cars, you think Toyota. Honda has failed too many times that not a lot of people even know Accord Hybrid Existed.
Prius vs. all compact Honda hybrid
=
Camry Hybrid vs. Accord Hybrid
And the $3000+ price difference and availability/allocations between Camry Hybrid and Accord Hybrid, does not help either.
You can argue Accord Hybrid is a better car with more features blah blah, it does not matter when no one knows about it.
02-23-2015, 05:46 PM
#549
You'll Never Walk Alone
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He may have had a rough start but things seem to be headed in the right direction lately as far a products and technology goes. He seems to have got hybrids right, the NSX looks good and nailed most of the new Honda products that have come out. Acura could use some work and the quality issues are troublesome but otherwise I wouldn't have been shocked or disappointment to see him stay on a couple more years to see it through.
As for the Accord hybrid, sounds like it's a supply issue:
2014 Honda Accord Hybrid Still In Very Short Supply: Why?
02-23-2015, 08:40 PM
#550
02-24-2015, 06:49 AM
#551
Safety Car
AutoNews
ASAHIKAWA, Japan -- Honda Motor Co. CEO Takanobu Ito has a knack for reinventing his company. He did it after the Great Recession and again after Japan's devastating 2011 earthquake.
Now, the hard-charging engineer is in the midst of a new reinvention to fix a string of quality problems. What sets this effort apart from the others: The glitches were triggered in part by the ambitious overhauls Ito himself tried to implement.
The new thrust is aimed at relieving pressure on an overworked product development staff that routinely works until midnight and spends Saturdays at the lab trying to meet strict deadlines.
As a 1st step, Ito, 61, is downplaying numerical targets. Next, he will dial back on the onerous r&d workload.
The course correction comes as Honda recovers from a series of embarrassing recalls in Japan that forced the company to delay 6 vehicle launches in the home market to double-check quality.
The rework also saps resources as Honda tries to stoke momentum in the United States, the company's biggest market but one where combined Honda and Acura sales rose 1% last year, trailing the industry's 5.9 percent advance.
Ito conceded part of the problem was his tall target of hitting global sales of 6 million vehicles in the fiscal year that ends March 31, 2017. When Ito set the goal in 2012, it represented a 50% jump. By 2014, worldwide sales reached 4.45 million.
"It imposed considerable pressure on our r&d division," Ito said of the plan on Feb. 13. "Therefore, I have taken back the 6 million."
Ito said he is working on a new business blueprint that won't obsess on numerical goals: "We won't announce targets outside."
The CEO outlined the changes this month during a drive event at Honda's proving ground in northern Japan. It was his 1st major appearance to address the problems since they peaked last year with the fifth recall of the redesigned Fit within 12 months.
Back to basics
The hybrid versions of the hatchback and its crossover variant, sold in Japan as the Vezel, were plagued with drivetrain problems, blamed on rushing a complicated, new system to market.
Honda's breather from the breakneck development pace echoes that taken by rival Toyota Motor Corp. after its 2010 unintended acceleration crisis. Toyota slowed product development as a response, in a back-to-basics move to better root out glitches.
At Honda, global r&d chief Yoshiharu Yamamoto thinks similarly.
He wants to trim the number of vehicle variants in Honda's global lineup by 20% to free more time for each product.
He offered no timeline or further details.
But he criticized Honda's workaholic mindset, suggesting that the r&d team needs to develop a culture of leaving the office by 7 p.m. at the latest. The pressure-driven grind, he says, leaves little time for creative thinking and cultivates tunnel vision.
"If you think something's wrong but follow the flow by saying it's OK because the logic and routine are OK, that's when errors pop up," Yamamoto said. "It's important to think clearly."
Ito shook things up in October with the unprecedented step of appointing a quality czar to clamp down on problems.
Honda's top executives also took pay cuts for 3 months to take responsibility for the recall-plagued Fit.
Honda's reputation for bulletproof quality was further dented by recalls of millions of older vehicles to fix faulty Takata airbags. But it was the embarrassing Fit glitches, linked to internal lapses, that spurred the soul searching.
Mr. Quality
Dubbing himself "Mr. Quality," Senior Managing Officer Koichi Fukuo began reviewing development companywide on Nov. 1 as Honda's newly appointed quality chief.
But even before then, Ito revised global r&d to use a prototype earlier in research to test how independently developed parts work together in a vehicle. Before, Honda never pulled the components together until after research was done and development was under way.
"At a glance, it looked like efficiency was improving, but reality was different," Fukuo said of the old development method. "This time, we had 5 recalls. That is very bad efficiency."
The changes will increase the cost and time of developing vehicles at Honda, just 2 years after Ito implemented a sweeping overhaul of product development aimed at speeding localization and better tailoring vehicles to local markets.
But Fukuo said Honda is ready to sacrifice sales targets in some markets if it means building better cars. "We need to straighten our collars and reduce the burden," he said.
The review also covers Honda's expansive North American r&d operations in Ohio. But Fukuo said it hasn't forced U.S. product delays because no vehicle was at a critical rollout juncture.
'Trying to go too fast'
Ito, who developed the aluminum body for the 1st-generation Acura NSX and has a penchant for driving his motorcycle to work, has made thinking outside the box a hallmark of his tenure.
"He has put a lot of changes into place," said Kurt Sanger, an auto analyst with Deutsche Securities Japan. "In my opinion, Ito's mistake was just trying to go too fast."
Taking the helm in 2009 at the height of the global financial crisis, he inherited a company with costs stripped to the bone. The V-8 Acura program was killed, as were plans for a follow-up NSX. The Formula 1 team was sold, while Honda canceled plans to build a minicar factory and delayed plans to open another plant.
Yet, Ito operated on a shoestring budget, making Honda 1 of the few carmakers to eke out full-year profits through the recession.
Ito began breaking down the company's traditional supplier network, in partial recognition that the medium-sized carmaker just didn't have the budget to pursue as many in-house programs.
Then, the yen's dramatic appreciation against the dollar spurred Ito to radically decentralize Honda's production and r&d operations to 6 global hubs, a work still in progress.
Japan's 2011 earthquake-tsunami only hastened Ito's push to broaden the supplier base and move offshore. And by 2012, Honda was back in growth mode with Ito eyeing sales of 6 million.
"The result was it pushed us over our capacity," Fukuo said.
The Fit's rocky launch belied the 1st kinks in the system.
Rather than developing the entire drivetrain independently, Honda sourced the innovative hybrid's dual-clutch transmission from German supplier Schaeffler Technologies AG. Integrating the outside design proved more challenging than expected.
Now, 5 recalls later, Honda is reinventing once again.
06-17-2015, 01:39 AM
#553
More.
Honda Adds 1 Million Cars to Takata Airbag Recall ? News ? Car and Driver | Car and Driver Blog
Honda Adds 1 Million Cars to Takata Airbag Recall ? News ? Car and Driver | Car and Driver Blog
Honda Adds 1.39 Million Inflators to Takata Airbag Recall
June 16, 2015
Honda is adding 1.39 million more airbag inflators as part of the ever-expanding Takata airbag recall.
The company said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, after reviewing Takata’s revised estimate of 34 million defective inflators, told Honda to increase its earlier May recall expansion of 350,000 cars. The new recall is for passenger-side airbags on 2003–2007 Accord and 2001–2005 Civic models -- two vehicles with the highest defect rates uncovered in Takata tests. This latest expansion brings Honda’s U.S. total to 6.28 million cars, including Acura.
Honda has been at the bull’s-eye of the Takata airbag recall. Last Friday, Honda confirmed the seventh death from a Takata airbag in one of its vehicles -- all of the recorded deaths have been in Hondas -- and last week took the unusual step of amending its 2014 annual report to include $363 million incurred from airbag repairs. The company has been recalling defective Takata airbags since 2008.
The replacement inflators, half of which are produced by Takata’s competitors, may take years to reach the market and also may be just as defective, according to a recent Congressional hearing.
June 16, 2015
Honda is adding 1.39 million more airbag inflators as part of the ever-expanding Takata airbag recall.
The company said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, after reviewing Takata’s revised estimate of 34 million defective inflators, told Honda to increase its earlier May recall expansion of 350,000 cars. The new recall is for passenger-side airbags on 2003–2007 Accord and 2001–2005 Civic models -- two vehicles with the highest defect rates uncovered in Takata tests. This latest expansion brings Honda’s U.S. total to 6.28 million cars, including Acura.
Honda has been at the bull’s-eye of the Takata airbag recall. Last Friday, Honda confirmed the seventh death from a Takata airbag in one of its vehicles -- all of the recorded deaths have been in Hondas -- and last week took the unusual step of amending its 2014 annual report to include $363 million incurred from airbag repairs. The company has been recalling defective Takata airbags since 2008.
The replacement inflators, half of which are produced by Takata’s competitors, may take years to reach the market and also may be just as defective, according to a recent Congressional hearing.
07-31-2015, 06:29 AM
#554
Safety Car
AutoNews
Honda Motor Co. said today its quarterly net profit jumped 20% as strong sales in the U.S. and a weak yen helped the automaker to absorb the impact of higher quality-related costs linked to a recall of cars equipped with Takata airbags.
Between April and June, net profit at Japan's 3rd-biggest automaker rose to 186 billion yen ($1.5 billion), from 155.6 billion yen a year earlier. Honda reported the 1st-quarter results under international accounting standards for the first time.
Like other Japanese automakers, Honda has benefited from the cheaper yen, which boosts the value of repatriated earnings.
Honda is still absorbing large quality-related costs as it continues to recall cars equipped with airbag parts made by Takata. The automaker has recalled tens of millions of cars globally since 2008 to replace potentially faulty inflators, including almost 5 million vehicles just 2 months ago.
Regulators have linked 8 deaths - all on Honda's cars - to Takata's inflators, which can explode with too much force and send metal fragments inside the vehicle. Honda, which didn't break out details of quality-related costs for the 1st quarter, restated its earnings for last year to reflect additional costs for the expanded recalls.
Honda said global car sales rose 4.9% to 1.14 million.
Sales in North America advanced 11% in the first quarter, driven by increased production of its popular HR-V compact SUV at its new plant in Mexico. The U.S. market - its biggest - has been buoyant, with a range of automakers reporting higher sales there.
Meanwhile, car sales in Asia jumped 19%, thanks partly to a strong performance in China helped by the refreshed Vezel SUV and other models. The gains in Asia and North America more than cancelled out a 27% drop in Japan and a 16% decline in Europe.
Honda left its financial forecast unchanged for the year ending March 2016, calling for a modest 3.1% rise in net profit to 525 billion yen.
09-07-2015, 10:24 PM
#555
Honda march in China.
Winning streak: Honda's China auto sales up 50% in August- Nikkei Asian Review
Honda's China auto sales up 50% in August
YU NAKAMURA, Nikkei staff writer
GUANGZHOU, China -- Honda Motor's new-car sales in China shot up in August from a year earlier despite the overall market decline brought on by a slowing economy.
Sales increased 50.7% to 78,277 units, rising for the sixth straight month. Sales of the CR-V sport utility vehicle, Honda's marquee model, rose 30% on the year. Two other SUVs launched last fall, the Vezel and XR-V, continued to sell well.
The January-August tally came to 612,276 units, up 34.9%.
Honda's China auto sales up 50% in August
YU NAKAMURA, Nikkei staff writer
GUANGZHOU, China -- Honda Motor's new-car sales in China shot up in August from a year earlier despite the overall market decline brought on by a slowing economy.
Sales increased 50.7% to 78,277 units, rising for the sixth straight month. Sales of the CR-V sport utility vehicle, Honda's marquee model, rose 30% on the year. Two other SUVs launched last fall, the Vezel and XR-V, continued to sell well.
The January-August tally came to 612,276 units, up 34.9%.
Hyundai, Kia suffer setbacks in China amid intensifying competition
SEOUL, Sept. 3 (Yonhap) -- Hyundai Motor Co. and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors Corp. continued to suffer a marked setback in China in August with their sales shrinking for a second straight month, industry data showed Thursday.
Hyundai Motor, South Korea's top automaker, sold 70,100 cars in China last month, down 16.6 percent from a year earlier, while Kia Motors saw its sales there shrink 44.7 percent over the same period to 26,008 units, according to the data
SEOUL, Sept. 3 (Yonhap) -- Hyundai Motor Co. and its smaller affiliate Kia Motors Corp. continued to suffer a marked setback in China in August with their sales shrinking for a second straight month, industry data showed Thursday.
Hyundai Motor, South Korea's top automaker, sold 70,100 cars in China last month, down 16.6 percent from a year earlier, while Kia Motors saw its sales there shrink 44.7 percent over the same period to 26,008 units, according to the data
09-07-2015, 11:09 PM
#556
Team Owner
^ Honda has newer models vs Hyundai has older models.
09-08-2015, 12:26 AM
#557
Team Owner
Mind = blown.
09-25-2015, 05:58 PM
#558
Senior Moderator
The following users liked this post:
Legend2TL (09-26-2015)
09-25-2015, 09:18 PM
#559
Azine Jabroni
Now the NSX is paperware and vaporware.
But seriously, why is that video necessary? Maybe they should worry about their product more?
But seriously, why is that video necessary? Maybe they should worry about their product more?
09-26-2015, 07:34 AM
#560
AZ Community Team
Cool video