Honda slashes N. American production in wake of earthquake, tsunami

Wednesday, Mar 30th, 2011 @ 3:23 a.m.

Honda has released a new statement regarding the latest statuses for all of its operations in Japan and North America, with the biggest news coming in the form of reduced output at its North American facilities.

As a result of “interruptions in parts supplies” coming from Japan, Honda said that it’s U.S. and Canadian plants have been notified that beginning Wednesday, March 30, the automaker will be making temporary adjustments at production plants to reduce output and conserve parts.

The temporary adjustments are not universal, and the automaker says that the level of change will vary by location. Honda builds about 80 percent of the vehicles it sells in the U.S. in North America, and claims that the vast majority of parts come from its 600+ list of tier-one suppliers in the region, but even one missing part can bring a halt to a model’s production.

In a memo distributed to Honda employees and obtained by Automotive News, the automaker reiterated that as of now Honda is “not shutting down anything.” The automaker went on to explain, “While we are continuing to keep all North American plants open, we will be reducing production selectively, on a temporary basis, to cope with parts supply issues.”

Some plants have already been notified that they will be at 50 percent output levels, and running half the normal shift durations as a result.

References
1.’Honda, citing parts…’ view

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Trouble looming? Saab stops production for second straight day

Wednesday, Mar 30th, 2011 @ 11:02 a.m.

Trouble could be brewing at Spyker-owned Saab as the Swedish automaker has been forced to stop production for a second straight day. The production stoppage is the result of a payment dispute between Saab and some of its main suppliers.

A Saab spokeswoman confirmed the production halt at the company’s Trollhattan plant but declined to give additionally details. However, several Saab suppliers say they have stopped parts shipments because they were not getting paid at all.

“The information that we got at the end of last week was that they (suppliers) have not been paid by Saab,” FKG chief executive Svenake Berglie told public radio. FKG is Sweden’s association of car industry suppliers.

Despite the work stoppage, Spyker says Saab has adequate finances to meet immediate liquidity needs.

“Saab Automobile has sufficient means to meet its immediate liquidity needs from existing and available sources,” Spyker said in a statement.

The automaker added: “Saab Automobile continues to work on longer-term solutions to further strengthen its financial position and improve its capital structure.”

Russian investor
Saab’s apparent money problems could open the door for Russian businessman Vladimir Antonov. Antonov once owned 30 percent of Spyker but was pushed out to clear the way for Spyker’s purchase of Saab from General Motors. Antonov was cut out of the deal due to alleged connections to organized crime.

However, with Saab now in need of immediate financing, Antonov could be allowed back in. Antonov currently owns Spyker’s sports car division and is looking for a 30 percent stake in Spyker-Saab. Antonov’s Convers Group Management reportedly has assets of $7 billion.

References
1.’Saab seeks to…’ view
2.’Output stopped…’ view

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Report: Nissan suffers 55,000 vehicle production loss in March

Wednesday, Mar 30th, 2011 @ 11:34 a.m.

Nissan has been one of the more vocal and forthcoming automakers in Japan, hardly shying away from sharing the sometimes ugly truth about the damage sustained from the recent natural disasters in Japan.

In the last week alone Nissan has revealed that some of its parts suppliers are still in dire straits, conditions may force the automaker to turn to U.S. plants to export engines back to Japan and even that the automaker is now checking its parts for unsafe levels of radiation as the nation of Japan suffers from a nuclear energy plant meltdown. To top it all off, Nissan has now revealed to Reuters that it will suffer a loss in vehicle production of 55,000 units just in the month of March.

To put the 55,000 vehicle number in perspective, the earthquake and tsunami hit Japan on March 11, meaning that just two-thirds of the month’s production was lost, creating the 55,000 unit shortfall. Nissan also suggested that a return to full production will take “some time,” but as with most automakers, it is impossible to truly know an accurate timeline due to the countless variables hindering production.

References
1.’Nissan: quake to cut…’ view

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Update: Honda joins Toyota, suspends production for the week

Wednesday, Mar 23rd, 2011 @ 5:36 a.m.

Despite very early reports that were possibly a bit optimistic that automakers may be able to return to production within days, Honda has now joined Toyota this week in announcing that it is formally suspending all new vehicle production in Japan at least through Sunday, March 27.

Honda’s announcement also came with a message concerning the automaker’s plans starting on March 28, proclaiming that “Honda will make decisions based on the status of recovery of Japanese society as a whole, as well as our supply of parts.”

Despite challenges in Japan, Honda says that North American operations are continuing on normal schedules, with “no impact.” On the whole, just over 80 percent of Honda and Acura vehicles sold in the U.S. are produced in the region, meaning that overall sales interruptions will be somewhat limited pending unforeseen parts shortages in the future – although Honda says that most of its parts do come from within North America.

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Toyota to resume Prius, Lexus hybrid production next week

Thursday, Mar 24th, 2011 @ 12:03 p.m.

After several weeks of shutdowns caused by the massive earthquake that ripped through Northern Japan, Toyota says it will finally resume production of one of its most important models, the Prius Hybrid.

Toyota says that production will ramp up on Monday at its Tsutsumi plant. The Prius is North America’s best-selling Japanese-built car; every week of halted production cost Toyota untold amounts.

The automaker also says that its Japanese-built Lexus CT 200h and HS 250h will also resume production at its Kyushu plant in Southern Japan on Monday.

Last week, Toyota restarted production of replacement parts for vehicles and earlier this week it reopened plants that produce parts for overseas production.

Production was halted at every major automobile assembly plant in Japan shortly after the March 11 earthquake.

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