Honda to make electric CR-V at its Performance Manufacturing Center

Mark Williams, The Columbus Dispatch
·2 min read
Honda announced that it will product an electric CR-V at its Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville.
Honda announced that it will product an electric CR-V at its Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville.

Honda will make a hydrogen fuel cell electric version of its CR-V compact SUV at its Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville, part of the automaker's goal of all of its sales coming from battery-electric and fuel cell electric vehicles by 2040.

This will be Honda's first all-electric vehicle following the demise of the Honda Clarity last year. Honda also plans to roll out the Honda Prologue SUV in 2024 that it is developing with General Motors.

Production on the CR-V is expected to begin in 2024. How many vehicles will make hasn't been determined.

More:Honda to spend billions on Fayette County battery plant

The PMC, built down the road from Honda's Marysville Auto Plant, was conceived by Honda as a small volume, specialty manufacturing facility focused on craftmanship and hand-assembled vehicles.

The technicians just concluded production of 350 NSX Type S vehicle supercar in the center and will make 300 of the 2023 Acura TLX Type S next.

John Ikeda, leader of the Acura product line, poses with one of the last Acura NSX to come off the production line at the Performance Manufacturing Center near Marysville. It is notable that when asked to pose with the car, Ikeda didn't touch any part of the car except the door handle because it had already been purchased by a customer and he didn't want to risk scratching or damaging the finish.

The center has also produced multiple Acura PMC Edition vehicles, including TLX, RDX and MDX, along with Honda Performance Development race cars since it opened in 2016.

The special assembly procedures required to make this version of CR-V make it suited for PMC, Honda says.

“Honda established our goal to realize carbon neutrality by 2050 and the complete electrification of our vehicle lineup by 2040 is critical to achieving it,” Gary Robinson, vice president of Auto Planning & Strategy for American Honda Motor, said in a statement.

"As we accelerate our plan to produce Honda battery EVs in the United States, we also will begin low volume production of fuel cell electric vehicles there to further explore their great potential as part of a sustainable transportation future.”

The new vehicle will combine a plug-in feature with the technology of fuel cell electric vehicle that enables the driver to charge the onboard battery so that the vehicle can be driven as an electric vehicle around town with the flexibility of fast hydrogen refueling for longer trips.

“Our associates at the Performance Manufacturing Center have really enjoyed the opportunity to successfully introduce several specialty vehicles into the market,” PMC plant leader Gail May said in a statement. “This facility is perfect for production of a new Honda fuel cell electric vehicle, as our small-volume capability enables us to really leverage the skill and expertise of our team to produce quality zero-emission vehicles here in North America.”

More details about the vehicle will be announced closer to its introduction.

mawilliams@dispatch.com

@BizMarkWilliams

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Honda to build special electric edition of CR-V in Marysville