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Honda exec says US market near capacity, could hurt subprime buyers

Is there a point in the US auto industry where companies should start considering the welfare of their customers ahead of selling more cars? American Honda Executive Vice President of Sales John Mendel thinks that level exists, and we may be getting very close to it.
According to Automotive News, Mendel believes that finding more customers in the market could require pursuing subprime buyers and offering longer-term loans. However, he refuses to use those tactics. While selling models this way can improve things briefly, the strategies hurt resale prices and lower vehicle profits over time. The company won't do "stupid things in the short-term that damage the person who bought yesterday," he said to Automotive News. "It's a very, very short-term tactic especially in the subprime area."
American Honda, which combines the Acura and Honda brands, has seen market share decline from 9.7 percent to 9.1 percent through July 2014, according to Automotive News, and Autoblog's By the Numbers stats showed it posted falling sales in five of the seven months with data this year. Though, Mendel claims that was partially because the company focused on retail sales over fleets. The delays of the launches for the Honda Fit and Acura TLX likely didn't help either.

Honda reports $1.9 billion profit in first quarter despite sales lag at home

Ford, General Motors and Chrysler have been living in a world of sunshine and buttercups after their April-through-June financials hit the newswire, and Toyota is doing pretty good as well. Honda? Not so much.
While Japan's third-largest manufacturer saw $1.9 billion in profits, the 5.1-percent jump was lower than expected thanks to a drop in its home-market sales. US sales also took a sting, as Honda hasn't been able to match the SUV and truck demand that are currently permeating the American market, despite an uptick in Accord sales.
Honda's initial forecasts targeted a take of 209.3 billion yen ($2.1 billion at today's rates), and while a $200 million shortfall is nothing to sniff at, we'd hardly take this as Honda being in trouble. And even with the dip, Honda hasn't adjusted its forecast for the fiscal year, which remains at 780 billion yen ($7.9 billion).

2017 Acura MDX Sport Hybrid goes on sale in April for $52,935

If you like the hybrid tech of the Acura NSX, but don't need a six-figure, 191-mph supercar as your daily driver, you might enjoy the extra room of the Acura MDX Sport Hybrid. It uses the same SH-AWD system with three electric motors as its racier stablemate – and puts a naturally aspirated 3.0-liter V6 up front – but seats up to seven people. It goes on sale in early April, and Acura has announced a starting MSRP of $52,935. The MDX Sport Hybrid starts at $7,910 higher than the base, front-wheel-drive MDX, but only $1,500 more than the comparably equipped, non-hybrid MDX SH-AWD. It offers 31 more ponies, for a total of 321 peak horsepower and of 289 pound-feet of torque. It's less expensive than the other Acura to use the Sport Hybrid system, the RLX sedan, which starts at $59,950. (That car incurs a price premium of $5,500 over its P-AWS-equipped FWD base model; there's no non-hybrid AWD RLX.) The MDX Sport Hybrid gets an EPA-rated 26 mpg city, 27 highway, and 27 combined. Compared to the conventional MDX SH-AWD's 18/26/21 mpg rating, its biggest fuel economy gains are to be found in city driving. The Sport Hybrid's figures are even slightly better than the 25/26/26 mpg Acura expected when the car debuted in New York last year. The MDX Sport Hybrid should be fairly entertaining to drive, too, at least for a utility vehicle. It's Acura's most powerful SUV to date, and it offers four driving modes: Comfort, Normal, Sport, and Sport+. A seven-speed dual-clutch transmission handles the gear changes, but the driver can take control via a pair of paddles on the back of the steering wheel. The SH-AWD system's torque vectoring feature promises to help make the MDX proficient in the twisty bits, too. Related Video: