Honda to Move Motorcycle Production from Japan to Thailand

Honda, the worlds largest motorcycle manufacturer plans to stop making their popular bikes in Japan, and instead import them into Japan from Thailand. The move is expected to lower the typical price of a motorcycle for Japanese consumers by about $1500. This move is similar to what American auto makers did over the past several decades when they moved manufacturing plants first to Canada, then Mexico to reduce the cost Americans pay for Fords and Buicks. While the quality of U.S. automobiles was crap even before they started getting made in Mexican shanty towns, some Japanese are worried that Honda's reputation for quality might suffer if it moves production to Thailand, where they have a completely different concept of motorcycle riding:

The Hybrid Hoedown Continues

2011 Hybrid Supra

Not to be outdone by the other, Toyota and Honda are both rushing to release hybrid sports cars next year. You read that right, I used the words "hybrid," "sports car," and "Toyota" in the same sentence. Since Toyota has so thoroughly Prius-fied the entire automotive world, it is hard to imagine anything even remotely "sporty" to come out of that company. Toyota hasn't had a cool sports car since the Supra, and, perhaps not coincidentally, that is exactly the car they are bringing back, only in hybrid form. Don't get me wrong, I love great gas mileage, but I just can't get excited by a sports car with one of Toyota's ubiquitous, underpowered, and otherwise pathetically unresponsive "Synergy-Drive" engines.

2011 Hybrid Cr-ZX

Over at Honda, they are resurrecting their own classic sports car, the Cr-X, and giving it the hybrid treatment. I used to drive one, and I have to say I am a little more excited about that. Even the gas engine version from the late 80's got 30 miles to the gallon, so I'm not sure how the hell a hybrid engine will improve on anything. At least Honda knows how to build a sports car (NSX, S2000), and I have much more faith that they will be able to pull it off.

Both cars will be unveiled at the Tokyo Motorshow in October. I'll try to get some pictures of the production models, but it is so hard to get my camera over the heads of all the otaku clamoring to take pictures of- not the cars- the anorexic models standing by them. Weird.