The company’s Marysville automotive plant — which employs more than 3,500 people across Clark County, Champaign County and the Miami Valley — celebrated its 40th anniversary on Thursday with the kickstart of mass production of the 2023 Honda Accord.
Company and state leaders gathered at the 24000 Honda Parkway location on Thursday to unveil the new model and offer a nod to the growth of the company’s Ohio presence.
Since the plant’s opening in 1982, it has produced more than 12.5 million Accords, according to Honda.
Marysville plant lead Jun Jayaraman said the company is working toward electrification of vehicles, with 2023′s new hybrid being another step in that direction. Hybrids accounted for or 23% of the plant’s production last year, and the 2023 Accord will be now account for half of the plant’s whole production volume.
“This new Accord will essentially serve as a bridge toward electrification format,” Jayaraman said. “Honda is making a significant jump in our commitment to hybrid production in preparation for battery life as we prepare for electrification,” Jayaraman said.
Honda is working toward “carbon neutrality” by 2050, officials said last year.
Last October, Honda announced it will be investing $4.4 billion toward electric vehicle and battery production, a move that includes the creation of a plant in Fayette County and the addition of more than 2,500 jobs to the area. Construction of the plant, made in partnership with LG Energy Solutions, is expected to begin this year.
At the end of 2022, the company also announced it will make a Hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle based on the CRV starting in 2024, work that will be done at its Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville.
“It’s a doubling down on their investment in the state,” Gov. Mike DeWine said. “They’re reacting and expanding.”
Honda employs more than 14,000 people at its Ohio pants, according to Honda spokesperson Chris Abbruzzese. The company has invested nearly $24.6 billion into its North American manufacturing capabilities.
The growth of Honda poises the state for further development and will create opportunity for high-paying jobs in the region, DeWine said.
“Ohio has always been a strong automotive state,” he said Thursday.
Honda employee and Lima resident Ricky VanGundy started his 40-year tenure with the rolling out of the Marysville plant’s first-ever Accord. He has since moved to the Anna site.
VanGundy said he’s seen a lot of change in his career with the company: different responsibilities, different co-workers. The cars produced at the plant look much different than they did decades ago, moving from jaunty and sharp angles to smooth lines.
And the technology drivers have access to is something VanGundy said he could have never dreamt up himself.
“I never imagined that 40 years later, we’d be here,” VanGundy said.
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