From the New York Post:

Chinese-made cars have quietly arrived in North America for the first time, but without the bamboo dashboards and quirky names that have adorned them at recent auto shows.

The cars, in fact, are not even from the myriad Chinese automakers whose North American ambitions have been stymied by inferior quality and sometimes laughably poor performances in crash tests.

Instead, the Japanese automaker Honda is crossing the threshold by importing subcompact cars into Canada from one of its plants in China. This month, Honda Canada began receiving its smallest model, the Fit, from China instead of Japan, as part of a strategy to produce more vehicles outside its home country.

The decision allows Honda to eke out higher profit in a segment of the auto market where margins are extremely thin, especially since the high value of the yen cuts into all Japanese automakers’ overseas operations.

“The yen has been getting stronger and stronger,” Jerry Chenkin, executive vice president of Honda Canada, said on Tuesday.

Few car shoppers are likely to notice the change, and there is no expectation that Chinese-made cars are destined for the United States anytime soon. But the Honda imports are significant because vehicles are among the few categories of consumer products in North America for which manufacturers had not turned to China to try to cut costs.

“There’s been much talk about Chinese cars being sold in North America, but we hadn’t seen that yet,” said Michelle Krebs, a senior analyst with Edmunds.com, an automotive research Web site. “These are from a well-known, major global automaker, so that eliminates some of the challenges that face Chinese automakers.”

All the major automakers have plants in China, which they generally use to make vehicles to sell there. Only 3 percent, or 580,000, of the vehicles built in China last year were exported. Many automakers are reluctant to use that capacity to supply other countries because they want to maximize sales in China, now the world’s largest car market.

Mr. Chenkin said that the move had relatively little to do with direct costs. He declined to comment about wage differences between Japan and China.

“From what I understand, in terms of the cost of production for the Fit, the difference between China and Japan is not significant,” he said. “But the exposure of the yen exchange rate is of concern to Honda and other manufacturers.”

Lower disposable incomes and higher gasoline prices in Canada mean that small cars like the Fit are more popular there than in the United States. Honda’s profit on the Fit is further squeezed by a 6.1 percent import duty, while many competing models enter Canada duty-free because they are made in Mexico or the United States.

Honda is building a plant in Mexico that is scheduled to start assembling the Fit for the United States and other countries in early 2014. Honda is likely to use that plant to supply Canada as well, most likely making the importing from China a temporary measure.

Honda has been exporting the Fit from China to 27 countries, mainly in Europe where it is sold as the Jazz, for about five years, so there is no concern in Canada about the quality of its production, Mr. Chenkin said.

“We are fully confident that these vehicles meet all Honda standards,” he said. The company has imported electrical power generators to Canada from Honda plants in China for some time without encountering quality issues or customer resistance, he said.

John Mendel, executive vice president of American Honda, said that there were no plans to supply dealers in the United States with Chinese-made Fits.

Ms. Krebs said Honda and other automakers would have a more difficult time selling cars assembled in China to Americans than to Canadians and Europeans. Although made-in-China products are common in the United States, most cost a small fraction of the price of a car. Even established automakers like Honda are hesitant to risk turning off buyers with Chinese imports, particularly because the United States is an important source of profit and prestige.

“Canada’s always been much more open to cars from places that it was not acceptable for the U.S.,” Ms. Krebs said. “Honda has a production system that it uses every place in the world. Consumers can be pretty confident that the same standards apply.”

Analysts note that American car shoppers were largely skeptical of Japanese and Korean vehicles in their early days here and would tend to react similarly to models made in China, at least initially. A study earlier this year by the consulting firm GfK Automotive found that about one-third of Americans were open to buying a car from China. Younger respondents were more amenable.

The Fit is a relatively small-volume car in Canada, with sales of 2,802 through November. That is down 55 percent from the same period in 2010, largely because of supply shortages in the wake of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan in March.

Honda has a large manufacturing presence in Canada, where it builds the Civic, several Acura models and engines. It is hiring an additional 400 workers in Alliston, Ontario, where production of CR-V sport utility vehicles will begin next month.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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Honda Crosstour launched in China

The Crosstour has not been a successful car for Honda China, the 3.5L V6 Crosstour was introduced in to the Guangzhou-Honda joint venture and saw initial sales in the high hundreds but quickly tapered off into the 100 cars per month area, it seems that demand for the V6 is just not there – especially when the larger Toyota Highlander with similar engines are being sold a few doors down.

Honda’s next gamble to save the Crosstour is to install the 2.4L engine from the Honda Accord and CRV into the crossover to make it more affordable and possibly more attractive to consumers who don’t want to pay the added sales tax for a large engine or the added running costs. Where will the 2.4L be priced at? Chinese auto media are guessing that it will be somewhere between Accord and CRV pricing obviously, and should be in the 250,000-270,000rmb price bracket when launched .

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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The CRV regularly sells more than 10,000 units per month in the Chinese market, so it comes as no surprise to learn that the SUV is getting lots of attention in China. Chinese auto sites were speculating if the Chinese CRV would get the new improved 2.4V-Tech engine in the Chinese version, but it all fingers seem to be pointing to the fact that the old CRV and new CRV will be sharing the same engine, at least in China. The same 5 speed gearbox is likely to stay in place for the time being also.

FrankF

Frank entered the automotive industry via his father's instructions. He grew up with cars around him, especially as his father was a major auto restorer, Frank's childhood was spent passing beers, tools and coffee to his father whilst he explained the ins and outs of engines. Frank now works in the Chinese car industry at a specific manufacturer.

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Honda have applied for patents for the Odyssey which usually indicates the imminent importation of the car and does not yet show that Honda are pushing to produce the car in China, although they could if demand is there. Engine power is of course the same, with a 3.5L engine under the hood, the GL8 now uses a 2.4L and a 3.0L engine, so is a 3.5L V6 too big for most users?

FrankF

Frank entered the automotive industry via his father's instructions. He grew up with cars around him, especially as his father was a major auto restorer, Frank's childhood was spent passing beers, tools and coffee to his father whilst he explained the ins and outs of engines. Frank now works in the Chinese car industry at a specific manufacturer.

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The Honda Fit has proven to be a popular car in the Chinese market for Honda, and they are keen to continue development of it to keep the likes of the Ford Fiesta and Suzuki Swift away from its sales. The Honda Fit will continue to be sold in 1.3 and 1.5L form, the 1.5L model is good for 120bhp which is unusually peppy for a small car. It is unlikely that the Fit RS and recently launched hybrid model will make it into China.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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The Crosstour will be built by the Guangzhou-Honda JV, and Guangzhou Honda CEO Mr. Yu Jun is eager to see the Crosstour launched in China and further Guangzhou Honda’s plans for the Chinese market, Guangzhou Honda is one of the few car makers in China to reach their middle of year sales goals, whilst their end of year sales goal is still set at 380,600 vehicles.

Last week the Ministry of Industry and Communications awarded Guangzhou-Honda the right to produce the Crosstour in China. An initial run of 2000 vehicles is set to commence soon which will then be sent out to dealers for assesment and receiving deposits, the Crosstour will officially launch in October this year.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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The Crosstour has been codenamed the Accord QE, which might also be its final production name as well. The Honda Accord is already built by Guangzhou Honda, and the Crosstour is also likely to call Guangzhou a home as soon as production starts. Guangzhou Honda currently has no SUV offerings, whilst the most popular SUV in China, the CRV, is sold via Honda’s other JV, Dongfeng-Honda.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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Honda SR-9

The recently launched Honda SR-9 is set to take on the popular Audi A4 in the Chinese car market place after its initial launch at the Shanghai Car show last month.

The SR-9 will be powered by a 2.0 and a 2.4l engine, which is the same as the Acura TSX.

Pricing of the SR-9 is yet to be announced, but it is expected to be slightly more than the current Honda Accord, and will go up against the Audi A4 and BMW 3 series.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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The SR-9 may look like an Acura TSX with a slightly different nose job, but it was actually designed between Honda and Guangzhou Auto in an effort to make cars that are more suited to local tastes.

The SR-9 will be getting the choice of either a 2.0L or a 2.4L 4cylinder engine when sales begin.

The SR-9 measures (LxWxH) 4730x1840x1450mm with a wheelbase of 2705mm. The regular Accord on the other hand measures 4945 x 1845 x 1480 and has a wheelbase of 2800mm.

Pricing of the SR-9, or a launch date have yet to be announced, but it is expected to hit the market in the second half of this year and will give salary men all over China something else to buy, inevitably in black.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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You can check the new Honda City advert out here

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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The design of the Honda City certainly looks interesting, the front grill gives us the impression that the Honda City is trying to become the ‘Baby Accord’.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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These pictures, taken from pcauto.com show the Honda City being taken around Chengdu on the back of a flatbed truck. The Honda City appears to have taken on an entirely new design, which is a departure from the previous rebadged Honda Jazz/Fit sedan. The new City looks like a cross between the new 8th Gen Accord, and the Honda Civic.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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Rumors of Guangzhou Auto wanting to purchase a smaller rival for quite some time, with Guangzhou Auto being linked to buying Beijing Auto. Talks between Changfeng and Guangzhou Auto have been reportedly going on for over a year, Changfeng currently produces trucks for the Peoples Liberation Army, as well as certain Mitsubishi SUV’s from CKD kits imported from Japan. By gaining control of Changfeng, Guangzhou sets to gain Changfengs automobile production factories which are located in the South of China. Changfeng have also been linked to buying the stricken Hummer brand from General Motors, although new further news on this situation has risen.

Guangzhou Auto executives will be feeling confident about purchasing Changfeng Auto, as a recent press release showed that Guangzhou Auto was sitting pretty after making over 6 Billion RMB profit in the first six months of 2008.

Mitsubishi have been losing money in the Chinese automarket place in recent years, with the takeover of Changfeng, Mitsubishi will get a certain amount of time in which to restructure their Chinese market offerings.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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The slightly modified looks of the Fit are mostly certainly sure to guarantee that Honda will continue to have a hit on their hands for the forseeable future.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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Dongfeng also suspended production of the best selling CRV and the Civic over the weekend, although the reason for suspension was due to a shortage of parts rather than the weather.

Reuters has the latest on the storms:

BEIJING (AP) — At least 55 people have died and seven are missing in flooding across a broad stretch of southern China, state media reported Sunday.

More than 1.2 million people have been forced to flee their homes across nine provinces, including Sichuan, which is still reeling from last month’s earthquake that killed almost 70,000 people, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

Heavy rain in Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan provinces will further raise water levels downstream, especially in the coastal manufacturing powerhouse of Guangdong, Xinhua says. Most of those areas are expected to receive more heavy rain over the next 10 days.

Just to the south, communities with tens of thousands of people were threatened by the swollen Xijiang River in the Guangxi region, where a 130-foot crack had opened in an embankment near Changzhou, Xinhua said.

Nearly 120,000 people fled to high ground in the nearby town of Longhua when river water began to pour through the gap, it said.

“If the crack widened and the dike collapsed, the flood would directly threaten the safety” of the city of Wuzhou on Guangxi’s border with Guangdong, Zhang Jinshen, a regional flood control official, was quoted as saying by Xinhua.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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Honda may well be on the way to following in Nikes footsteps. Honda has factories in China via a joint venture with its Chinese partners, Dongfeng and Guangzhou Autos. Guangzhou Autos and Honda are already making Honda Fit super minis for the Chinese market and interestingly enough, exporting them to Europe as well. A Japanese Honda executive once visited the Guangzhou Honda factory, and could not tell the difference a Chinese built Honda, and a Japanese built Honda,  presumably the contrast would have been as easy as looking at what side the steering wheel was on. Honda representatives at the Beijing Auto Show last week mentioned that Guangzhou Honda could potentially sell their wares to the American market if market demands required more cars, and also stated that Honda factories in Japan and China are at the same level of quality.

Chinese made Hondas in the USA? Perhaps sooner than you think.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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Hondas factories in Southern China are reportedly churning out 800 Accords per day to keep up with the demand.  Late last month, Honda launched the 3.5 V6 version of the Accord priced at 48,000USD.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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A while back we posted about Guangzhou Auto, and Honda getting ready to launch a brand new indpendent brand in China using Guanzhous workforce and Honda technology together for the common good, the brand is going to be launched at next months Guangzhou auto show, where we will be able to see their first sedan – we are told that the sedan is based around the 2007 Honda Accord.

Guangzhou Autos own brand, one to look out for!

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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China Car Times was just reading good old Autoblog, especially an article about the 2008 Honda Odyssey being released onto the market, our first reaction was just ‘wow’, what an ugly vehicle! The Chinese edition of the Honda Odyssey is quite a slick looking 7 seater station wagon with a beautiful interior (at least on the top end model) and a ride so smooth yet powerful it will make your mouth water. The American model looks like a dull run of the mill soccer mom MPV, the Chinese edition looks like it means BUSINESS!

Compare for yourself:

American Odyssey:

Chinese Odyssey:

More info? Click continue reading!

The US Odyssey actually has more power with it being a 3.5 V6 motor, the Chinese one is a smaller 2.4 engine giving 161BHP.

The Odyssey in China has been a run away success for Honda especially this latest edition, China Car Times would estimate that it sells more than the Honda Accord.

What do China Car Times readers think, is the American one better looking or the Chinese one? You can see more of the American version of the Odyssey here on Autoblog.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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The above picture shows the newly updated dash and integrated stereo, a whole unit that looks a thousand times better. The Fit has proven to be popular with small families and the fairer sex in China, it looks like the Fit will continue on this path.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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GUANGZHOU Honda Automobile Co Ltd today announced it will set up a wholly-owned research and development subsidiary, paving the way for new models under its own name as early as 2010.

The two-billion-yuan (US$263 million) Guangzhou Honda Automobile Research and Development Co Ltd will build R&D facilities that cover an area of six-million square meters. It will have a full-range of testing equipment, Honda’s Chinese venture said in a statement today.

Japan’s second-largest car maker along with its Chinese partner Guangzhou Automobile Industry Group plan to make the subsidiary to share responsibility for rolling out self-designed models under an original brand that differs from existing Honda models, the statement added.

It would be the first time for a joint venture of an overseas car maker to develop models under its own brand in China, where car makers aim to boost sales by meeting more local demands in the world’s second largest auto market.

Guangzhou Honda also produces Accord sedans, Fit compact cars, Odyssey multi purpose vehicles and City economy cars in China.

Ash

Ash came to China at 18 on a whim and never left. Some 10 years later he collected a degree and a family along the way and now focuses his time on watching the Chinese car industry develop. He has witnessed the market change from being minor backyard market in to the world's biggest and most important market for all car manufacturers. You can contact or connect with him via Linkedin by clicking the 'Website' link.

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