| Honda and Toyota Driving Each Other Forward
The intense rivalry between Japan's two leading automakers has helped them become strong global competitors. " Honda and Toyota are very good competitors for each other,".Toyota and Honda both evolved in one of the world's toughest environments, the Japanese auto market, with its short development cycles, tough regulations and shrinking sales. "It's like altitude training for athletes,"Because they've had to compete in this super competitive market that has honed their skills for overseas markets.
It seems natural to lump Toyota and Honda together. But while they share many similarities, there are striking differences. Toyota is a powerful, process-driven company whose production system has become the template for manufacturers the world over." Toyota is more aggressive than Honda is,""it's a management difference." At Honda, "they're not as well diversified in their lineup as Toyota.
"In many areas, we take Honda more seriously than Toyota, especially when it comes to engine technology,"says GM ." Honda doesn't have the scale of Toyota, but they're also on a very fast track."They[Honda] love to let Toyota take the blows, whereas Honda has done practically as much damage .
Hondas are very well thought out. They have a very nice interior, they're economical, and they hold their resale value.Honda is driven more by technological challenges, its executives say."At Honda, you want to break through, do something that hasn't been done,".In all fields, from grass-cutting to auxiliary power units, the core competence of Honda is engines," Honda is actually further ahead than Toyota in terms of environmental technology.Because Honda's cars have a good reputation for quality, the automaker doesn't need big discounts to sell them. As a result, Honda earns more money and its customers have cars that are satisfying to drive and hold their value.
Source: Honda sneaks up on Big Three
Last edited by rahul_intlad : 10th March 2007 at 15:43.
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10th March 2007, 15:28
