LOS ANGELES -- American Honda reported a 60 percent surge in August sales, for its strongest post-earthquake performance to date.
The increase followed gains of almost 50 percent in each of the previous three months, as Honda and Acura inventories continue to recover from the March 2011 earthquake in Japan. Honda Division was up 58 percent last month, while Acura rose 73 percent.
Honda Accord sales, aided by the sell-down of the outgoing model, soared 89 percent to 34,848.
Consumers don’t seem to be moved by media complaints about the Civic’s interior; August sales increased 106 percent to 24,897 units.
The CR-V’s strong launch continued, with sales up 44 percent to 23,877 units, though it was outsold by the redesigned Ford Escape by more than 4,300 units.
The Odyssey continued to be among the best-selling minivans, with a 61 percent gain in sales to 12,750.
“Demand for Honda products continues to be strong, and we're on track to post our best yearly sales results in four years,” John Mendel, American Honda executive vice president of sales, said in a statement. “Honda is finishing the summer on a high note, and there's more to come as we build momentum toward the fall launch of the all-new 2013 Accord.”
On the Acura side, the RDX and MDX crossovers continued to show strength. The redesigned RDX extended its strong launch, with sales of nearly 3,000 units. On the sedan side, the ILX launch is starting to gain traction, although it still was outsold by the slightly more expensive TSX -- the car it is most likely going to replace.
The automaker’s U.S. sales fell 7 percent last year because of supply constraints stemming from natural disasters, including floods in Thailand. This year’s volume through August is up 23 percent.
