We’ve written extensively about the Honda HR-V and its capabilities on this blog. Today we’re going to look at where the HR-V is made. This seems to be a straightforward question, but this car consists of many components (engine, transmission, tires, etc.) made in different parts of the world. Let’s start with a quick answer:
The current generation of the Honda HR-V for the American market is assembled in Celaya, Mexico. The engines are made in Kumamoto, Japan; Anna, Ohio; and Ayutthaya, Thailand; and the transmissions are made in Tallapoosa, Ohio, or Russels Point, Georgia.
However, that certainly doesn’t answer the question entirely. Below, we’ll first dive into detail about the assembly location. After, that we’ll give you the complete rundown of where the engines are made, and we’ll do the same for all transmissions used in this vehicle. Finally, we’ll talk about how to identify which tires you have and where they are manufactured precisely. Read on!
Also read: The Expected Mileage Of A Honda HR-V
Assembly Locations Per Generation
The first generation, manufactured between 1998 – 2006, was assembled in Suzuka, Japan. For the second generation of the HR-V, sold from 2016 onwards, Honda drastically scaled-up production. This generation is assembled in Yorri, Japan; Celaya, Mexico; Sumare, Brazil; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Guangzhou, China; Karawang, Indonesia; Malacca, Malaysia; Ayutthaya, Indonesia; Pingtung, Taiwan; and Lagos, Nigeria. HR-V for the American market are assembled in the earlier-mentioned Celaya Plant in Celaya, Mexico.
As of the time of writing, the third generation of the HR-V is already released for the European and Chinese market but not yet for the American market. Therefore, this generation is only assembled in Yorii, Japan; Ayutthaya, Thailand; and Hubei, China.
Engines
The first generation of the Honda HR-V used a 1.6 D16W1 or 1.6 D16W5 Inline-4 engine. Since this generation of the Honda HR-V was only sold in Japan, it’s most likely that the engines were manufactured at the Kumamoto Plant in Kumamoto, Japan.
For the second generation, Honda opted for the 1.5 L15Z, 1.5 L15B, 1.5 L15B7, 1.5 LEB, 1.6 N16A (diesel), or 1.8 R18Z9 engine. The engines for this generation are made in Kumamoto, Japan; Anna, Ohio; and Ayutthaya, Thailand. Engines for the American market are all sourced from these locations.
The third generation of the HR-V uses 1.5L L15B or 1.5L LEB-MMD, which are made in Kumamoto, Japan; Anna, Ohio; and Ayutthaya, Thailand.
Transmissions And Hybrid Systems
Honda has manufactured transmission in the United States for a long time (since 1989). What’s interesting about this is that American-made transmissions are also exported to Japan and China, whereas usually, this is the other way around.
The first generation of the Honda HR-V uses a CVT or 5-speed manual transmission. The 5-speed manual transmission was most likely made in Tallapoosa, Georgia, whereas the CVT was made in Russels Point, Ohio.
The second generation of the Honda HR-V has a 6-speed manual which is made in Tallapoosa, Georgia. There’s also the option for a CVT and a 7-speed DCT for the hybrid version. These are both made in Russells Point, Ohio. All other parts that are used for the hybrid system are also made at this plant.
The third generation of the Honda HR-V uses a CVT or e-CVT transmission, made in Russels Point, Ohio.
Tires
Unfortunately, Honda has no information available about what brand of tires come stock on the HR-V. Therefore, it’s impossible to give information about this. However, there is a way to figure this out yourself.
Suppose you want to know exactly where the tires of your Honda HR-V are made, then you can look up the DOT code on the side of your tires. This code is not that large, so you’ll have to take a moment to find it. It’s an extended code of letters and numbers that starts with the letters ‘DOT’. DOT stands for Department Of Transportation.
After the DOT letters, you’ll find a combination of three letters, numbers, or a mix. You can search on the internet for the specific three number/letter combination you have to find the exact manufacturer and location where the tires are made. For example, ‘1M3’. In this case, 1M3 indicates Michelin makes the tire in Greenville, South Carolina.
Also read: The Types Of Gas A Honda HR-V Takes (Explained)
Who Designed The HR-V
The second generation of the Honda HR-V is designed by Masaki Kobayashi (as Designer Project Leader responsible for the design of the American HR-V) and Daisuke Toriyama (who works as an Exterior Designer and is responsible for the Chinese version, the XR-V).
The third generation of the Honda HR_V is designed by Daisuke Akojima, who is the current Chief Designer at Honda. He was promoted to this position in July 2021, and before this, he was Assistant Chief Designer at Honda for eight years.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_HR-V
- https://engines.honda.com/oem-resources/manufacturing-locations
- https://hondainamerica.com/manufacturing/
Hi! My name is Stefan; I’m the owner and lead writer at TheDriverAdviser.com.
I’m an active writer on this blog myself, as well as a novice car mechanic. For the really technical stuff, I find writers with experience as a mechanic or who have studied mechanical engineering.
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