Honda Considers 2nd U.S. Plant for Acura Line

DETROIT — Honda, which has already developed the largest American manufacturing base of any Japanese auto maker, said Monday that it may build a second U.S. assembly plant in the Midwest to produce its upscale Acura cars, now imported from Japan.

Honda spokesman Shinichi Tanaka said the company will decide by the end of 1987 whether to build another plant. If it goes ahead with the plan, the facility could begin producing Acura models as early as 1990, Tanaka said.

But even if Honda doesn’t build a new plant, the firm may still move Acura production from Japan to the United States by expanding either its Marysville, Ohio, plant or a smaller facility in Canada.

In fact, Honda may decide to produce the Acura line only in the United States, exporting the U.S.-built cars back to Japan and other nations, Tanaka said.

Honda officials have been studying whether to build a second U.S. assembly plant for at least two years, but the sales success of Honda’s Acura division since its introduction last year--at a time when import quotas remain in effect--has given Honda a new incentive to enlarge its American manufacturing operations.

Honda has already shown a greater commitment to U.S. production than any other Japanese auto maker. While Toyota and Nissan are still gearing up their American manufacturing operations, Honda’s Marysville plant is scheduled to produce 320,000 Accord and Civic models this year.

The company has been rewarded handsomely as a result of its early gamble on U.S. production. With a steady supply of U.S.-built cars unlimited by quotas, Honda, which began building cars here in 1982, has been able to overtake Toyota for U.S. sales leadership among the Japanese auto makers.

Meanwhile, the rapid rise in the value of the Japanese yen compared to the dollar has given Honda another incentive to shift production of the Acura line to the United States.