Japanese Manufacturers Can Add Small Cars Faster than Detroit 3

But First Snide's Remarks Once again the big buck boy$ in Detroit are creamed by the guys from Japan(and Korea)...hey Detroit guys, our children and grandchildren need you to do your jobs right...if you can't do it, then let others try...because you have gotten us into a real mess...tell me what you think. - msnide@theautochannel.com

Washington DC June 9, 2008; The AIADA newsletter reported that Toyota and Honda are better positioned than the Detroit 3 to quickly adjust their production to U.S. consumers' sudden shift to smaller cars.

The international automakers have two advantages over the Detroit 3 in the hunt for more small and mid-sized cars. They can more easily boost output because they long ago adopted flexible manufacturing strategies in North America, while the Detroit 3 are still perfecting theirs, says Anthony Pratt, an analyst for Pricewaterhouse-Coopers' Automotive Institute.

And, Pratt tells Automotive News, the slumping Japanese market leaves Japanese automakers the capacity to increase exports to the United States. "Toyota and Honda are well-positioned to continue to meet high demand for fuel-efficient vehicles because of their flexible plants and excess capacity in Japan," he says.

Honda spokesman Ed Miller says Honda will begin assembling the Civic at its new plant in Greensburg, Ind., in October. Until then, he says, Honda will rely on plant flexibility to meet demand. "We've built a lot of flexibility into our system," Miller says, "so we're in a good position to take advantage of the shift to the small cars."