On the heels of an announcement that Honda’s Alliston, Ontario plant will be the lead plant for the next generation Honda Civic, the same plant will also be responsible for building the next-generation CR-V for the European market.
According to the CBC, as many as 40,000 CR-Vs could be exported to Europe. While the CR-V is a hot seller in Canada and the USA, its success in Europe hasn’t quite matched the NAFTA zone. Nevertheless, the announcement is a boon for the Canadian auto industry, which sees most of its output go to Canada or the United States.
At the same time, Honda announced that the CR-V would leave its Swindon, UK plant to make way for the next-generation Civic hatchback. The Civic hatch is rumored to be coming to North America, and Honda’s own announcement states that “the Civic five door will be produced for the European market as well as being exported to key global markets.” So far, that’s the best hint we have about a 5-door hatch for North America.
Thanks to a pending but nearly completed free trade deal with the EU, production of the CR-V and imports of the Civic hatchback should result in minimal trade barriers for the Canadian market. In the United States, where such an agreement doesn’t exist, it might be a bit more complicated – but the low volume Si 3-door of the early 2000’s proves that it can be done.
This could potentially be awesome news for those who are still Honda enthusiasts on both sides of ‘the pond’. A lot of people have missed the hatchback at your side, and a dozen or so people at this side of the pond has missed more (and bigger) engine alternatives, not to mention the aftermarket support that usually comes with the better selling US model.
On the other hand, Honda has made one or two bad decisions since the old man himself kicked the bucket. I’m guessing the 1.6 diesel would not be popular in the US, as much as the 2.4 would be unsellable with European taxes (as it was in the TSX/Accord)
I have warmed up to the car since first seeing it. As in lots of cars, the more restrained look of the base version appeals more to me. The one with the wing is terrible. Hope they improved it inside though. The sedan looks ok, the hatch just a tad more than ok. Honda design is improving.
I took ‘exporting to global markets’ as meaning Swindon would be shipping examples of the forthcoming Type-R over to Japan (as before). Type-R might make it to the US, but homologation for the model would be prohibitively expensive. As such, the standard hatch would also have to be shipped over, which probably wouldn’t fly unless the hybrid powertrain from the Civic sedan is plug’n’play.
3 door turbo Civic hatch = sale to me. Well provided they don’t screw up the looks and go all Pokemon like the Civic Type R.