Japan Report: Honda to Build Unique Vehicle for Chinese Market in China

[Honda News Feed]

Japan’s business press is reporting that Honda’s Chinese arm – Guangzhou Honda – will develop its own new model for launch in 2010 and that a concept to point the way will appear at the Beijing Show this April.
What will this new Honda be? Honda predictably is not saying. But Honda already sells the locally-made Fit, Accord and Odyssey minivan in China, so something else, perhaps a small minivan or crossover SUV to rival the Nissan Livina Geniss could be a possible, although right now that’s yet to be confirmed.
One thing Honda is saying is that this Guangzhou-designed model will be the first Chinese unique model to appear from a foreign-funded company.
(Click through to read more about Honda’s plans for China.)

In April, a new Honda R&D subsidiary will be set up and 2 billion yuan invested to fund that and Honda’s new own brand vehicle.
Honda, ever the pioneer, became the first non-Chinese company to build an export-only factory in China, building and shipping locally made versions of the Fit to Europe.
In time, given the way Global Honda now works, it’s not inconceivable that Chinese-made Hondas would make their way to the US, although given Honda’s massive production investment in the US, that’s surely not going to happen tomorrow.
Going the other way, there are now suggestions that Honda is already thinking about building the next Pilot (which debuts at Detroit and will be built in Alabama) in China.
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