By: SPEAKIN’ OUT NEWS
One of Honda’s most popular SUVs, built in Alabama, will soon be heading overseas, as the automaker prepares to export the Honda Passport to Japan later this year.
Honda plans to begin shipping the SUV from its Lincoln, Alabama, manufacturing plant in the second half of the year, marking another milestone for the company’s U.S. production operations.
According to Automotive World, the Passport will be sold in Japan exclusively in the TrailSport Elite trim and will feature left-hand drive, a configuration more commonly associated with vehicles produced for North American markets.
The Passport is powered by a 3.5-liter V6 engine produced at the Lincoln facility, and the launch will mark the first time Honda has offered this engine in the Japanese market.
The TrailSport version has become the dominant configuration of the SUV in the United States. Honda officials say the trim now accounts for about 80 percent of Passport sales nationwide. The company introduced a more rugged version of the TrailSport model last year to appeal to drivers looking for enhanced off-road capability.
Honda’s Alabama Auto Plant in Lincoln employs more than 4,500 workers and produces several of the company’s key vehicles, including the Passport, Pilot, Odyssey minivan, and Ridgeline pickup, along with multiple TrailSport models.
The sprawling 4.9 million-square-foot facility has an annual capacity of more than 350,000 vehicles and V6 engines. Honda has invested more than $3.1 billion into the plant since operations began.
“Since Honda began auto production in America more than four decades ago, we have been dedicated to delivering quality for the world, made in the U.S.A.,” said Jun Jayaraman, senior vice president of the Manufacturing Management Centre at Honda Development and Manufacturing of America.
“We are proud to export quality vehicles built by our associates in Alabama to Honda customers in Japan.”