After Toyota, Honda is the next Japanese carmaker to announce significant production cuts at its North American plants due to component shortages caused by three months of disastrous flooding in Thailand.
And is the case with Toyota, the production cuts for Honda come just as the company was recovering from the effects of the March earthquake and tsunami.
Honda said that as the flooding in Thailand continues, a number of its suppliers in Asia are currently unable to maintain parts production to its assembly plants in the U.S. and Canada.
The Japanese carmaker added that while the vast majority of parts and materials used to produce cars in North America are purchased from local suppliers, a few critical electronic parts are sourced from Thailand and other regions of the world.
To deal with the problem, the company said that production at all six Honda auto plants in the U.S. and Canada will be at approximately 50% of the original plan from November 2 to at least November 10.
“Subsequent adjustments will be announced as they are determined based on the parts supply situation,” Honda said in a statement.
Furthermore, the company noted that all Saturday overtime work will be canceled through November while a non-production day is scheduled for Friday, November 11.
Honda added that the production disruptions may also “potentially delay” the U.S. December sales launch of the all-new 2012 CR-V by “several weeks” adding that it will announce the sale date in the near future.
