Honda reported what is essentially the company’s first loss. This comes after Honda took billions of dollars in losses as a result of an ill-fated attempt to quickly become an all-electric company. In addition to announcing a loss, Honda’s leadership outlined a plan to course-correct that involves a lot more hybrids and an extra decade before it transitions to carbon neutrality.
Unlike Honda, Jaguar seems to be sticking to its EV plan, and now we have a name for its flagship electric super sedan. Many details of this new Jag haven’t been revealed, though the assumption is that it’ll be quite expensive. The Morning Dump is always interested in what auto lending is like, as that’s a great indicator of the relationship between the auto industry, buyers, and the economy at large. In April, things were typically mixed.
That’s all heavy for a Thursday, so I will end the morning with another charming Renault concept.
15 New Hybrids Are Coming, Mostly In North America
For those of playing along at home, last week a Japanese outlet reported that Honda was going to report a $2.5 billion loss, to which Honda responded “We haven’t confirmed that.” It made me wonder if the number was going to be significantly different from that reported estimate. This morning, Honda reported a $2.7 billion loss for FY2026, which ended in March.
That’s not great, though props to Nikkei Asia for getting it basically right. The company has never lost money in the entire time it’s been a public entity, going back 69 years. The blame has been put on the company’s lofty goal of selling only electric cars and fuel-cell vehicles by 2040, which involved a huge investment in electric vehicle production in the United States. That goal is now reset to 2050.
Many people are upset that Honda canceled all of its electric cars, and there’s probably going to be some point in the future where that looks like an overreaction. It’s not. The EVs that Honda was developing were not the right ones for the market. They wouldn’t have sold well. Even if the IRA had been left in place I don’t think they would have worked.
How’d we get here?
There’s a rough quote in Bloomberg this morning that explains some of it:
“The management group there has been shielded too long by a super profitable motorcycle business that allows them to push problems with the automotive business under the rug,” said Christopher Richter, a senior analyst at CLSA Securities Japan. “The motorcycle business has become a crutch for Honda that prevents them from taking a serious look at their automotive business.”
Almost one in three motorcycles sold globally carries the Honda badge. The unit generates a majority of the company’s operating profit despite accounting for less than a fifth of sales. In India, one of the world’s fastest growing motorcycle markets, Honda expects annual production to reach 8 million units in 2028, up from 6.25 million in 2026.
I don’t think that’s wrong. Honda has the best-selling hybrid in the United States, but it should offer way more hybrids, which is what Toyota is doing. A more thoughtful and realistic Honda could have balanced hybrid development with continued work on EVs, though Honda doesn’t have the resources that Toyota has at its disposal, so it can’t afford to do everything simultaneously.
Honda isn’t entirely alone here, of course, as most major automakers have taken huge hits on their EV plans. The difference is that Honda was too late, and doesn’t have a lot of high margin trucks and SUVs to fall back on for profits. In order to reach new heights of income, Honda’s plan is to make a lot more hybrids.
Starting in 2027, Honda will begin launching its next-generation hybrid models featuring both an all-new hybrid system and platform. Honda is planning to launch 15 next-generation hybrid models globally by the end of the fiscal year ending March 31, 2030, primarily in North America, which is one of the priority regions. In North America, in 2029, Honda will launch large-size hybrid models, in the D-segment or above.
For Acura dealers, the new Acura hybrid is better-late-than-never. The extension of many of its core products isn’t great, but Honda doesn’t have much of a choice. Even working at breakneck speed, it takes more than six months to develop new powertrains.
Jaguar’s New Flagship EV Is The Type 01
The way Jaguar’s media site works is that you download a giant ZIP file, and get a 27 mb version of the above image with a wordmark and a 27 mb version of it without, as well as a 6 mb MPEG movie of the reveal.
That’s a lot of pixels to say that the controversial Jaguar Type 00 concept will be called the Type 01. What does Type 01 stand for?
In Jaguar Type 01, the ‘0’ represents electric propulsion and zero tailpipe emissions; ‘1’ denotes its status as the first Jaguar of a new era. Designed, developed and built in the heart of the UK.
The ‘Type’ designation unites the brand’s history of innovation in design, technology and performance with the most advanced Jaguar ever. The first of its type, with unmistakable presence achieved through an innovative new body architecture. Tri‑motor technology delivers more than 1,000PS and over 1,300Nm of torque.
‘Type’ naming first appeared on the Le Mans race‑winning C‑type of 1951. On the road, it came to represent two characters in one car: an engaging drive with deep reserves of power, plus refinement and composure. The E‑type and the more recent F‑TYPE are exemplars.
Ah, that explains it.
Credit Availability Slightly Improved In April, While Terms Got Longer
The chart above shows the Dealertrack Credit Availability Index, which looks at all auto loans for a month and offers a single number to indicate how much credit is available in the market. There are a lot of factors that go into consumer credit, including how hard it is to get approved, how many subprime loans are being given out, loan terms, and yield spreads. With a baseline of 100, anything a lot higher or a lot lower indicates a loose or tight credit market, respectively.
You can see the initial concern of the pandemic, followed by lower interest rates (and probably overly loose lending standards) that sent credit availability to a high level of 2022. The resulting inflation and increased rates inverted credit availability, and we’ve been slowly marching back. Some of this change is the narrowing of yield spreads and generally more favorable rate environment.
Some of it, though, is longer loan terms, which, as Cox Automotive points out, is not great:
For consumers who financed in April, this represented a tangible improvement in borrowing cost. However, the broader picture carries important cautions. Loan terms reached a new all-time high of 29.7% with terms greater than 72 months, meaning more consumers are extending repayment to 6 or more years to manage monthly payments. Combined with negative equity that remains nearly 540 bps above year-ago levels, consumers face compounding financial risk that can be difficult to unwind, and should carefully consider the full terms of any financing offer, particularly total loan length and overall cost.
This all works so long as it all works.
Renault’s Journée à la Plage
One of the perks of writing TMD is that I can justify adding a post about a car we’d otherwise probably not cover. For instance, this is the second post on a variant of the Renault 4 (the other being the Roland-Garros edition). This one is the JP4x4 Concept and it’s meant for going to the beach.
Renault 4 JP4x4 Concept makes its debut on 18 May on the Renault stand at the 2026 Roland-Garros French Open. A fresh take on the Plein Air (1969) and JP4 (1981) versions of the original Renault 4, it reboots the ‘leisure’ styling of these vehicles with its playful, upbeat design. It also adds a touch of adventure with its four-wheel drive system.
Although the name is a direct tribute to the original JP4, it could also stand for “journée à la plage” (a day at the beach) with Renault 4. Renault 4 JP4x4 Concept is every inch a chic and modern beach car in terms of both its physical features and the equipment designed for sport and leisure.
Dang, now I need to import an original JP4.
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
I don’t listen to a lot of dark, hard metal. It’s not normally my thing, although I get the appeal. The Jaguar post today made me really want to figure out some sort of Type 0- joke, but it didn’t quite work. Instead, enjoy Type O Negative with “I Don’t Wanna Be Me.”
The Big Question
You can import any French car of any French era for a weekend car. What are you getting?
Top photo: Honda
I wonder which intern was place the photoshop text onto a photo of the louvers. They were that sure of the work that they offered it at 27 MB? It isn’t even aligned properly.
That’s how you know it was done with care by professionals at a back shed in Coventry.
Using a hotrodded Altair 8800.
I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s some critical system running on an Acorn BBC Micro in that shed.
Citroen SM, ideally in the pale green that the villain in the Columbo episode “Identity Crisis” drives.
Sign me up for the Renault Clio V6 because life isn’t short enough already.
I can’t wait until the Jaguar number 2 is ready to launch.
It’s brown and goes like stink.
French weekend car?
Citroën Traction Avant
French daily driver?
Citroën SM
I can afford to miss work regularly…
It’s going to be real awkward for some Honda exec when they are coming back to ask GM to make them some more EVs next year.
Even more awkward, when GM has to tell them they cancelled the line.
Yeah, as I understand Honda’s hands were kind of tied there. GM has apparently run out of their own feet to shoot and moved on to Honda’s…
What reality is Honda living for having one unsuccesful project with GM but Toyota is releasing more EVs and will do ok. The hybrid business is pushing/helping the EV business.
Agreed. Battery technology is making leaps and bounds, not having something in the works to slap next gen batteries into when they drop here at the end of the decade is corporate suicide.
If I don’t have to pay, a Bugatti eb110. If I do, a Renault Sport Spyder, Alpine A310 GT or a new A110
I had an A110 GT for around three years and I can tell you it is a superb driver’s car.
The eb110 was the one built in Italy, so it doesn’t qualify.
Still french
If talking Bugatti, I’ll take a 57SC.
TYPE O IN THE MORNING DUMP?! My day is made. Although without any cleverness tying the song title to the post, I’m wondering why you chose this particular track, not that I’m complaining.
I’ll recommend my personal favorite “Love You To Death,” which could arguably point back to Jaguar. Even though “Black No 1” is probably by far their most well-known song.
Both are solid choices. But “Life is killing me” might also work for today.
Jaguar: please rethink your font.
Thanks in advance.
Brutal…
Geometric fonts don’t bother me in good settings, But this is two fonts, one for the word and one for the number. At least match them, and if you want the number heavier, use a heavier variant of the same font rather than a more humanist font.
TBQ: Venturi Atlantique 300 sounds good to me.
I always wonder about the “what car would you…?” questions. Do I have to repair and maintain it? Am I given enough money to pay the one specialist to repair it?
If I don’t have to worry about caring for my French car, I’m picking a Citroen DS Break. If it’s on me, I’m getting a 2CV. Torch has proven that it can be properly serviced with an adjustable wrench and a rock.
An *adjustable* wrench, he says. Look at Mr. Fancypants McToolbudget over here.
You can import any French car of any French era for a weekend car. What are you getting?
Alpine A110 1300 Berlinetta with the full rally kit. Because, why not?
Admitting that you’re a quarter of a century behind competition like BYD, etc is wild
It’s rare that I’m utterly dumbfounded by a factoid, but this is one of those times.
Obviously I’m biased living in the US, where cars far outnumber motorcycles as normal transportation, Honda is known for cars above all, and probably powersports after that, but I had no idea bike revenue was so critical to them as a company.
Anyways, Honda and GM should merge, because they complement each other’s strengths better than any other pair of major automakers:
GM- trucks, full size SUVs, sports cars, EVs
Honda – small and midsize cars, minivans, hybrids
The only overlap is in small and midsize CUVs, and that market is big enough to continue selling both.
Be a match made in heaven, great engineering run by a management team
I could only imagine how disastrous that would be. Nope, nope nope. I know enough of the toxic environment within GM that this would end so very badly, and a traditional Japanese company would fight them the whole way.
I could see GM pushing to kill of the CRV because it hurts their feelings that it sells well, and Honda pushing to kill of the full-size SUVs because it doesn’t make sense to them. And in the end, we get the worst of both.
A better pairing would be Toyota and Yamaha.
You’d need a strong and secure leadership team for sure, but I think it could be done.
Why do you hate Honda and want them to die? Because that’s what would happen. How well has large-brand-consolidation worked for Stellantis?
GM is in far better financial shape than any of the parts of Stellantis ever were (or Honda is), and I don’t think Honda can survive long term without partnering with someone.
The fact that they were looking seriously at Nissan should tell you what they believe about their own prognosis.
I never got a good read on how serious Honda was about a Nissan acquisition. Part of it felt like pressure from the Japanese govt to not lose a major brand like Nissan, and Honda said they’d do it if they could completely absorb Nissan instead of it being a partnership? I could be way off with that.
GM is in better shape than ANY form that Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep has been in, ever, so that’s true. But when the going gets tough I generally trust the Japanese companies to be smarter than the US ones. Or maybe that’s just Toyota, considering how bad Honda’s management has been over this whole period.
Yeah, I think Toyota stands above, and some of the other Japanese companies sort of coast on old reputations.
I don’t think Honda has been particularly market-leading in much of anything since the 1990s.
Out of curiosity, what do you think Honda offers GM that GM should spend so much capital acquiring them? I guess they could merge as equals but that doesn’t seem appropriate given the disparity in value between the two.
I know companies are always looking for continuous growth and mergers is a method they love but this one seems ill fitting to me. Maybe GM would like to get into Japan? Or even into motorcycles globally if that is so profitable for Honda?
I don’t know. I’m not saying you’re wrong but I’m having a hard time picturing this one.
Hybrids, small cars and small engines, entry to world markets where GM doesn’t compete, sales to a certain type of consumer that wouldn’t consider a GM-branded product, further scale in an uncertain time.
I have no idea if the finances make sense, I’m just a guy with ideas on the internet. I do find it interesting how little overlap the two have in their product lines for how big they are.
I guess, but as you mention you are thinking of this from a US-centric POV. I think GM already has these things but they don’t bother to develop them here, except for hybrids, perhaps Honda could teach them a bit how to improve there.
But I’m always skeptical of the “mergers to solve our problems” approach. It feels deeply… anti-capitalist. Why try to compete on our own, using our in-house talent when it’s so much easier to just buy our way to our goals?
Well if they had a realistic, long world view of their North American products, in an era of volatile gas prices, and the rest of the world going electric. I have no complaints of their EU operations.
GM + Honda makes a lot of sense on paper. So does Ford + VW.
The problem is the completely different ways that US and Japanese companies do business. Also the small matter of the Japanese government arresting US citizen that attempted to be CEO.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Honda sold more motorcycles than cars here (Spain).
Honda has always been a motorcycle company that’s also made cars.
It’s just that America considers motorcycles as solely a leisure vehicle, whereas much of the world sees them as practical, small, transportation.
It also helps that Honda’s got a reputation in motorcycles for reliability/durability that is second to none.
Many Americans consider motorcycles as death traps, due to the configuration of our roads and size of the vehicles on them.
Many Americans consider anything besides a full-size SUV or Pickup as a deathtrap.
True. But tbf, part of the reason I traded my GTI for an SUV is that I drive across the state on I-94 and a lot of the time it DID feel like a death trap (due to the aforementioned SUVs and pickups). At least now I feel like I have a fighting chance when a Durango with racing stripes slams me into the certain median because they’re paying more attention to DraftKings than the road.
Arms vs armor.
The perennial battle, and now you’ve got yourself a larger weapon, too.
I’m fairly sure that the Honda CT125 “postie bike” has sold enough the world over to outpace nearly every other motorcycle model.
It’s the pinnacle of cromulent 2-wheeled motorized transportation.
I would have thought bikes like that were pretty low margin, but half the profits on 20% of the sales tells me not.
Again, I knew they sold a lot of motorcycles, but not to the degree that they are utterly dependent on them as a company.
I guess it just drives home the idea that cheap transportation will always rule the roost for the unwashed masses.
Hell, there’s plenty of families in India that use a motorcycle as their main family hauler. Which is insane to my North American mind, but it’s a thing!
Mine too, but in fairness I suppose it’s easier in places without winter.
Yeah, I’d need a Ural if I wanted to ride year round.
But 2WD Urals and Dneprs are “nice weekend cruiser” money around me, so I’ll just stick to 4 wheels.
They sell 20 million motorcycles a year +/- Most of them under 150cc in Asia.
Yeah, I didn’t realize this either.
No need to import, since I an in Europe. But anyway, Citroën SM.
Um… Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 of course.
Bugatti.
Too easy?
Facel Vega HK500
Is that the outline of a Rivian R1S in the Honda Slide? Cause it really looks like one
Squint and all SUVs look so very similar.
The rear bumper kick-up and the antenna position definitely say Rivian to me as well: https://static0.topspeedimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/rivian-r1s-dual-motor-profile.jpg
I caught that as well, and I’m almost certain it is.
When I was at Honda 5 years ago there was talk of a “Pilot L” to compete with the Grand Highlander. I never saw anything substantive, but “D-segment and above” does read to me like they want to go even bigger than the Pilot, and maybe even to something the size of the R1S.
That said, it’s really weird to use the profile of a competitor vehicle to demonstrate that. They could have just done some photoshopping (or even just microsoft paint) on the profile of the Passport to get the same effect.
Is Honda’s best bet to put the hybrid drivetrain in all trims (instead of locking it in the top two), then just make a massive-volume push? Their cars are currently competitive, so offering the desirable drivetrain at a lower price might help them with cash flow. Plus, simplifying production by offering one drivetrain per model would be helpful.
Trim for trim, the Hondas seem to be nicer than the Toyotas. The Civic is bigger than the Corolla, likewise with the CR-V vs. the Rav4. However, Toyota is now fully hybrid across their on-road vehicles, and Honda is not.
eAWD would also be helpful for Honda, but that would presumably require development cost.
If Honda is going to offer multiple engines they should continue to sell the base without a hybrid option. The base model is a low content car built in small numbers at little to no profit margin. It is to get customers in the door. The money is made starting in the mid to high trim.
On the other hand it might be time to just go all hybrid like Toyota is doing with more and more of their models.
I think it’s time to go all hybrid. They can decontent it with fabric seats, no sunroof, and steel wheels.
I agree but I also thought that 5-10 years ago. Hybrids basically have no downside and at current pricing the increased upfront cost pays back multiple times over the life of the vehicle.
Yeah, whatever the cheapest Honda Civic Hybrid is, is cheaper than the base Civic by a couple pennies a mile over the life of the vehicle. Now, it’d be even more amazing if you weren’t forced to get 18-inch wheels and a sunroof, and was even cheaper.
100% agree, powertrain aside I would take any Honda over the equivalent Toyota. But every time I see an automaker introduce a car without a hybrid version, I cringe.
I mean it depends on the manufacturer — I’m not shocked when Dodge releases a non-hybrid. But when a company like Kia, which makes hybrids, releases the K4 Hatchback and does not offer a hybrid version, I have to wonder what their executives are smoking. Same goes for Honda, who have been capable of making hybrids for quite a while, but they still release the HR-V with no hybrid.
Granted, the Kia/Hyundai and Honda hybrid systems use a different design principle than Toyota, and their design is the ultimate trifecta of mechanical simplicity, system longevity, and fuel economy. At one point that design was protected by patent, but I have to wonder whether those patents have finally expired.
Yea, I really don’t understand why’d you choose H/K’s DCT based hybrid system over the Toyota eCVT. I thought Honda used a similar planetary gear set system as Toyota, is that not the case?
Similar I believe, but not the same? Now I’ll need to look up the Alex on Autos video where he explains Honda’s system…
Renault 5 Turbo.
Next question.
Definitely the right choice, and it’s going to be a fun weekend!
Gotta say, though, their JP4x4 is creative and seems like something that would sell in the US. In the ’90s, anyway.
It’s like a Suzuki Samurai and a Meyers Manx had a baby.
The real headline here is that Honda has the best selling hybrid. I NEVER see them as it’s almost exclusively Toyota hybrids. The amount of Hondas I see on the road seems to be falling off a cliff. They don’t make anything that another automaker (Toyota) doesn’t make better.
Is it the CR-V only because the Rav4 is currently between generations?
Yeah, I stopped dead on that line too. Really? I assumed it was the RAV4.
Matt needs to cite his source for this.
Until Matt spills the beans on where he obtained this information, I’m going to doubt it. The Camry outsells the Accord 2:1 and it’s 100% hybrid. The Rav4 outsells the CRV and until this year they were both ICE and hybrid, without sales broken out by powertrain.
Honda is in trouble
I can’t wait for them to bail on F1, again……
but not before they torture Alonso some more
I’d totally
gambleplace well-informed investments in the prediction market that whichever team left holding the bag will win the Championship next year.We need them to stay in IndyCar though!
Given how languid and timidly Honda has been moving, I am skeptical it will be an independent company in 2050.
Agreed but I also expect a lot more consolidating in the future. I could see one Japanese automaker, one US, one or 2 in Europe… At least for mainstream brands.
I’m really feeling out of place here with all you Francophiles because I know jack about French cars and you all seem to be walking encyclopedias.
Outside of George Costanza driving a LeCar, I no nothing about them either. Well, we did have a guy in high school who drove a Fuego that burned in a house fire. That was kind of funny.
My family (starting with grandad, mother, uncle, aunt and now me) has driven French cars since the 1950s, starting with a Citroën Traction.
Since then 2CV, GS, BX, Renault Dauphine, 8, 5 (twice), 11, Scenic, Clio, Alpine A110. At least those are the ones I can remember.
The breadth and depth of other people’s (than me) knowledge around here is astounding.
This is the only one I know of: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%27%C5%92uf_%C3%A9lectrique
That thing is cool as hell. Thanks for sharing.