Honda Shifting Acura ILX to Marysville
As demand has been lower than anticipated, output at Honda’s Greensburg, IN, plant fell 43.1% last year.
March 3, 2014
Honda says it will shift production of the Acura ILX compact car from Greensburg, IN, to Marysville, OH.
The switch from Greensburg, which began building the ILX upon its debut in spring 2012, will occur early next year.
“This move will strengthen (the ILX’s) position in the Acura lineup and allow us to meet customer demand, as well as prepare for future production,” Jeff Conrad, Acura vice president, says in a statement.
As demand has been lower than anticipated, ILX output in Indiana slipped 43.1% last year, WardsAuto data shows, with 17,196 assemblies vs. 30,244 in 2012.
Acura wanted to sell 30,000 ILXs per year, but volume in 2012 and 2013 fell short.
Last year, more standard equipment was added to the car in an effort to grow demand.
“One of the issues we had with consumers was that they weren't seeing the (ILX’s) value and what they usually get with an Acura product,” Mike Accavitti, senior vice president-automobile operations for American Honda, told WardsAuto in May.
The ILX will be built alongside the new TLX sedan in Marysville, currently home to the TLX’s predecessor, the TL.
Marysville, Honda’s oldest and highest-output U.S. plant, also builds the Honda Accord sedan.
Greensburg will continue to assemble the Honda Civic sedan, hybrid and natural-gas models.
Employment levels at the Ohio or Indiana plants will not be affected by the ILX’s move, Honda says.
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