American Honda reported that Hurricane Helene spurred some short-term supply issues, but it did not significantly impact sales last month, according to an Oct. 1 press release.
Honda still saw sales momentum despite the challenges, noting that the company sold more than 105,000 vehicles in September, up 11.5% year over year. However, it warned that ongoing EV retooling projects in Ohio may impact vehicle production in the coming months.
Lance Woelfer, vice president of Auto Sales at American Honda, said in a statement that the issues were “due to the preparation for EV manufacturing and supply challenges related to the catastrophic Hurricane Helene in the Southeast.” However, the storm’s disruptions proved to be short-lived and are no longer impacting Honda’s supply chain, a spokesperson told Supply Chain Dive in an email.
Currently, a retooling at a Honda electric vehicle hub in Ohio is impacting production at its Marysville and East Liberty Auto Plants, the spokesperson said. They added that the challenges are expected to continue until preparations for the start of electric vehicle production are completed in 2025.
The manufacturing overhaul is part of a larger effort to revamp its processes at facilities in Marysville, East Liberty and Anna, Ohio, aimed to produce gasoline, hybrid-electric and battery electric vehicles on the same assembly lines. As part of the upgrades, Honda plans to install EV-specific manufacturing equipment at the Anna plant and retool the Marysville plant to help assemble Intelligent Power Units.
