What are the origins of Honda

Honda are one of the many modern motor manufactures that originated following the second world war. In 1946 Soichiro Honda established the Honda Technical Research Institute. His first attempts at manufacturing included a rotary weaving machine, frosted windows and woven bamboo roof panels.

Following World War 2, bicycles were the most common mode of transport. Soichiro Honda stumbled on a stockpile of left over engines from the war and promptly repurposed these engines to serve as auxiliary power for bicycles. These new and improved bicycles were an instant success.

This success was followed by the development of Honda’s own engines, for use in a variety of applications including farming equipment and today Honda is one of the biggest producers of four-stroke engines for use in everything from lawnmowers to Formula One.

Find out more about Honda's announcement to participation in 2023 motorsport here.

Powered bicycles were followed by complete motorcycles and soon Honda was a very successful and extremely popular producer of motorcycles. This was followed by the launch of the Honda Cub, which went on to be the most successful motorcycle of all time, with literally millions of units being produced across its extremely long lifespan.

In the 1950s Honda announced that it would enter the pinnacle of motor racing and designed and developed a motorcycle for the Isle of Man TT Races. Motorsport proved to be an excellent engineering test bed and soon the Super Cub went on sale. This friendly convenient scooter became an enormous hit.

Honda’s success with motorcycles and motorcycle racing soon led them to develop their own cars and in 1963 they released the T360 mini-truck, followed by the S500 sports car. This was followed a year later by Honda’s first appearance in Formula One at the German Grand Prix in 1964, followed by their first victory in Formula One the following year at Mexico.

In 1959 the first subsidiary opened in Los Angeles in the United States, where Honda soon found success. After the launch of a variety of motorcycles including the CB750 Four in 1969 Honda began producing four-stroke outboard engines too. In 1973 when the first American energy crisis hit, Honda launched the fuel-efficient Civic hatchback.

Find out more about how to drive more fuel efficiently here.

Honda have always been an engineering company first and throughout their history they have brought a variety of innovative technologies to market.

Honda have never been afraid to dream, and these dreams have always inspired the company to create innovative products that enhance human mobility and benefit society. Honda sees their slogan, “The Power of Dreams” as a way of thinking that guides them and inspires them to move forward. Honda’s strength comes from this philosophy, which is based on the principles of their founder, Soichiro Honda.

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