The circumstances under which Honda came to be are at least manga worthy. Torn by the second world war, the country was yet far from making a full recovery. Focusing all the resources that were left to rebuild what had been destroyed, Japan could hardly fill at once all the voids that had been created. The Japanese auto industry was dazed, many factories having had to convert to cater for demands in military vehicles and aircraft.
The open spots that war had created had to be occupied fast and Honda was quick enough to settle on grounds that would later witness its growth as the 5th largest automobile manufacturer in the world. Soichiro Honda founded the company in 1948. The timing was perfect as many car or bike plants were destroyed during the war.
Focusing on developing a cheap indispensable vehicle, Honda strapped an engine to a bike, delivering a very efficient means of locomotion. Cheap and versatile, it set the cornerstone in Honda's incredible expansion. Ten years later, Honda would reach American land and establish the American Honda Co. World domination would naturally follow, made easy through clever subsidiary locations and dealership settlements.
The company's latest car-engineering improvements are primarily fuel and safety oriented, the latter having become one of the major criteria in car buying choices especially in the United States. The company's involvement in developing new cleaner vehicles has finally paid off with the recent release of the FCX Clarity. Powered by hydrogen cells, the car does not emit any pollutants, the only by products being water and oxygen. When its not developing new fuel technology, Honda is busy with being the largest engine producer on Earth, with over 14 million engines manufactured per year. |
