Honda Tears Up its Old Product Plan

Washington DC October 25, 2009; The AIADA newsletter reported that according to Automotive News, Honda Motor Co. is reviewing its entire lineup with the aim of building less expensive and more fuel-efficient vehicles.

In the case of some next-generation products – including the crucial Civic platform used on a variety of vehicles worldwide – that means making major changes to vehicles already well along in the development process.

Specifically, Honda executives told Civic designers and engineers to make the car smaller, lighter, and more fuel efficient than originally designed. The next Civic originally was planned to be larger than the current model, but now its exterior will be smaller.

Honda aims to create a perceived sense of increased roominess inside without increasing the vehicle's overall size. The planned changes could have an impact on the release of the new Civic, which was originally due to arrive in less than a year if Honda were to follow its typical five-year cycle. Delaying the Civic platform would have a ripple effect across Honda's lineup, as other vehicles share the Civic's basic architecture: the CR-V and Element, Japan's Stream small minivan, and Europe's FR-V.