Two of the best-selling nameplates in North American automotive are losing ground to SUVs, forcing Honda to slow their production for Accord and Civic.
Officially, the day has arrived. According to the Associated Press, Honda has decided to idle a production line in Marysville, Ohio that produced 55,000 vehicles, most of them being the Honda Accord and Honda Civic. As well, a production line in Greensburg, Indiana will see its output of Civics cut back in favour of more CR-Vs.
Way back in 2018, the Honda Civic was the second best-selling car in the US, behind the mighty Toyota Camry, while the Accord landed in the 4th spot, behind the Toyota Corolla. In the US, the Honda CR-V managed to beat them both however in Canada, the Civic still outsold the CR-V. Compared to the US numbers, Canadian volumes are peanuts.
The upside is that the Marysville, Ohio line will be upgraded for future electric vehicles, but this will take a few years. The current reality is that Accord and Civic sales are down so far this year by roughly 5% this year, from a drop of 10% and 14% respectively in 2018. In Canada, in 2018, Civic and Accord deliveries were flat while CR-V sales grew by just under 10%.
The Honda Accord was completely redesigned in 2018 while the new-generation Honda Civic arrived in 2017.
Honda Accord | Photo: Honda
2019 Honda Civic Sedan | Photo: Honda
