Honda has been of the few automakers to actually post sales gains in the new $4 a gallon world, but even Honda isn’t immune to the downturn in the light truck market in the U.S. The Japanese automaker announced on Monday that it plans to cut Odyssey and Pilot production by 10,000 units this year.
“Honda is not immune to the shift in the market,” Honda spokesman David Iida told Automotive News. “We don’t want inventories to get too high.”
Both the Odyssey minivan and Pilot crossover are made at the automaker’s Lincoln , Alabama plant. Despite the reduction in production, Honda says it has no plans to lay off any workers at the Lincoln plant. Production of Honda’s Ridgeline pickup will shift from Alliston, Ontario to the Alabama facility in 2009.
Conversely, Honda also announced that it will boost Civic production at its East Liberty, Ohio and Alliston, Ontario plants, but failed to mention how much production would be ramped up.
