Honda Worldwide Vehicle Sales : 2013

The CR-V is a successful model for Honda

It seems all is well in Hondaland, with new records achieved in total sales, China and Asia/Pacific. However, some explanation is required of the chart below.

Putting North and Central America together gives that region 41% of all Honda sales, but most companies put 'Central' sales under Latin America. Europe, the only area to decrease excludes the CIS countries, or Russian Federation. The CIS is part of the Rest figure, which also encompasses the Middle East and Africa. Asia is covered in three listings; China, Japan and Asia Pacific.

Region	2013	Share	2012	+/-
Nth/Cen America	1,764,000	41%	1,639,000	8%
China	764,000	18%	603,000	27%
Japan	763,000	18%	745,000	2%
Asia/Pacific	573,000	13%	432,000	33%
South America	160,000	4%	159,000	1%
Europe	147,000	3%	148,000	-1%
Rest	106,000	2%	89,000	19%
Total	4,279,000		3,817,000	12%

Data source: Thanks to Honda.

Observations: The Asian continent would be the largest for sales if combined. China's 27% growth is a partly a returning to normality after the Chinese political backlash of 2012.

Honda doesn't have the global coverage to really challenge the top car makers. It's European penetration is 1.1% according to ACEA, paltry any way you look at it. North/Central America and Asia combined would amount to about 90% of sales, the rest of the world showing great potential for Honda.

Summary: Honda make well engineered cars, but not with enough passion for the true driver. I have driven virtually all the range and they seem to be more focused on economy than performance. Too much so. That will have to change if the want a bigger slice of the pie in Europe. I like the look of the Civic hatch and new wagon in Europe, but they need to drive well too. The handling feel has been enhanced for the Euro Civics so it is something they are addressing.

So yes, most is well in Hondaland.

The Civic Tourer just released in Europe