In a statement, the Japanese automaker said the shift to hybrids and electric vehicles is in response to a slowdown in sales of its Accord, with sales falling 10 percent last year and Civic sales were down 14 percent last year.
According to AutoData Corp, CR-V sales, however, are up 6.4 percent through March to 87,280. Trucks and SUVs have made up almost 70 percent of U.S. new vehicle sales this year.
Honda currently makes four hybrids within the U.S. and imports three more hybrids and EVs from Japan. Some production of the CR-V small SUV in Marysville will go to a factory in Greensburg, Indiana, where the production of the compact Civic will be reduced, reports CTV News Canada.
The line being temporarily shut down produces close to 55,000 vehicles a year – most of them Honda sedans. The company says there will be no layoffs of its 4,700 salaried and hourly non-union employees due to the retooling of the assembly line. Instead, Honda will find new roles for the displaced workers at the assembly plant.
Unlike the way some automakers handle their unionized plants, Honda has never resorted to layoffs in its 37-year history in this country, a fact that isn’t played up publicly, but one that is respected by Honda’s many employees.
Even though Honda hasn’t announced any new models in its lineup, the company is very clear that it will add hybrid powertrains to more of its current vehicles. Right now, the Clarity plug-in hybrid and electric models and the Acura RLX Sport Hybrid are imported from Japan. The hybrid Accord, Insight, Acura MDX Sport Hybrid, and Acura NSX—including their electric motors and batteries are all built within Ohio and Indiana.
