Honda Motor declared that it is revising its production strategy at its Alliston, Ontario, plant to manufacture CR-V compact crossovers for export to markets outside the United States.
Honda has been manufacturing its highly sought-after CR-V compact SUV in Canada and the United States. However, in response to tariffs introduced by the Trump administration, the company is relocating CR-V production to the U.S. Honda CEO, Toshihiro Mibe, revealed the decision on Wednesday during a press conference.
He explained that shifting CR-V production from Canada to the U.S. is intended to ‘minimize the impact of tariffs.’ Since U.S.-built CR-Vs come from factories in Greensburg, Indiana, and East Liberty, Ohio, production capacity at these sites needs to be increased.
The Civic hatchback is manufactured alongside the CR-V at Honda’s Indiana facility. Additionally, the company has announced plans to discontinue production of the five-door Civic at its Yorii, Japan, factory and relocate manufacturing to Indiana later this summer. Meanwhile, the Acura RDX and MDX are produced alongside the CR-V at Honda’s Ohio plant.
Honda has stated that approximately 20% of the vehicles it manufactures in Canada are sold domestically, while the remaining 80% are exported, mainly to the U.S. The company will continue manufacturing certain models in Canada for the U.S. market.
Earlier this week, Honda revealed a two-year postponement of its proposed $15-billion electric vehicle and battery facility in Alliston, attributing the delay to slower-than-expected market adoption.
Honda Canada, which has been manufacturing the CR-V since 2011, will continue production of the model as part of its restructuring. Notably, the adjustment will not affect the plant’s overall production volume or workforce.
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