Honda Trims Civic Production Amid Dealer Glut
Shopping for a Honda Civic? You might have fewer cars to choose from over the next few weeks. Supply disruptions prompted Honda to announce production cuts at two plants — one in Indiana, another in Canada — by 5,000 cars next week, the Associated Press reports via U.S. News & World Reports. It comes on the heels of Honda cutting production by 20,000 cars at five North American plants this past week. Most of the cuts were Civic compacts, a Honda spokesman told AP.
Related: 2015 Honda Civic: What’s Changed
Cutting 25,000 cars is significant when you consider that Honda’s U.S. and Canadian plants built 35,802 Civics in January, according to Automotive News. The good news for car shoppers, however, is that dealers have more Civics than they know what to do with right now.
Low gas prices sapped demand for the fuel-efficient compact, and sales fell 14.3 percent in January. Honda began February with a 118-day supply of Civics on dealer lots or in the pipeline — way more than the industry’s 82-day average. The glut continues today: Cars.com lists some 62,000 new Civics on dealer lots, or about as much inventory as the Toyota Corolla and Ford Focus combined.
Production cuts should trim Honda’s current oversupply, and if shortages occur, the automaker can make it up later this year. After all, Honda’s North American factories churned out 418,315 Civics in 2014, according to Automotive News.
The delay stems from a labor dispute at more than two dozen West Coast ports, which has snarled supplies for retailers and manufacturers of all types. Imports from West Coast ports fell by a third in January, Bloomberg News reports. Some companies have shifted supply lanes to other ports of entry. Honda is reportedly shipping some parts by air, the AP reports, but the automaker says the disruption of electronics and larger parts — such as transmissions — forced the production curtailments, according to USA Today.
