87accordlxi
05-07-2014, 02:00 AM
<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/convertibles/" rel="tag">Convertible</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/japan/" rel="tag">Japan</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/plants-manufacturing/" rel="tag">Plants/Manufacturing</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/honda/" rel="tag">Honda</a></p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/honda-s660-concept-tokyo-2013/#photo-1592544"><img alt="Honda S660 Concept at 2013 Tokyo Motor Show" data-credit="Copyright 2014 Noah Joseph / AOL" data-mep="244430" src="http://o.aolcdn.com/hss/storage/midas/c43f432b83703a0af99893259e636119/200090440/honda-s660-tokyo.jpg" /></a><br />
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Roadsters, you might argue, are best when they're small and nimble. If you're thinking of the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/mazda/mx-5/">Mazda MX-5 Miata</a>, you're on the right track, but there have been even smaller ones: pint-sized, three-cylinder roadsters like the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/daihatsu+copen/">Daihatsu Copen</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/suzuki+cappuccino/">Suzuki Cappuccino</a> and <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/smart+roadster/">Smart Roadster</a>. But the most iconic and enduring of them was surely the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/honda+beat/">Honda Beat</a>.<br />
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Designed by <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/pininfarina/">Pininfarina</a>, the Beat was - not unlike the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/ferrari+f40/">F40</a> was for Enzo Ferrari - the last car approved for production by company founder Soichiro Honda. It complied with Japan's strict Kei car regulations and packed a tiny, naturally aspirated 656 cc that produced just 63 horsepower. The cult classic ended production in 1996, but six months ago <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/honda/">Honda</a> hinted at a revival with the presentation of the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/honda+s660+concept/">S660 concept</a> at the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tokyo-motor-show/">2013 Tokyo Motor Show</a>. Now it seems Honda - or Yachiyo, we should say - is gearing up to put it into production at the same factory that produced the Beat two decades ago.<br />
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That plant is the Yokkaichi factory, a facility owned by Yachiyo Industry Co., Ltd. that builds small cars on contract for Honda. It was slated for a major expansion a few years ago until Honda shifted some of its small car production to its own plant in Suzuka, but continues to build the N series of boxy, upright hatchbacks, as well as small commercial vehicles like the Life and Vamos lines. The reintroduction of a small roadster line to the factory's output sometime in 2015 will undoubtedly be a cause for celebration in Yokkaichi. For our part we can only hope that <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/11/19/honda-ceo-iwamura-says-no-sports-cars-for-us/">American Honda CEO Tetsuo Iwamura gets his way</a> and manages to bring the S660 to the US in the near future.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2014/05/06/honda-s660-yokkaichi-production-2015-report/">Honda S660 set for Yokkaichi production next year</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblog</a> on Tue, 06 May 2014 07:57:00 EST. Please see our <a href="/rss-term-of-use/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2014/05/06/honda-s660-yokkaichi-production-2015-report/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/20880035/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2014/05/06/honda-s660-yokkaichi-production-2015-report/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>
More... (http://www.autoblog.com/2014/05/06/honda-s660-yokkaichi-production-2015-report/)
<br />
Roadsters, you might argue, are best when they're small and nimble. If you're thinking of the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/mazda/mx-5/">Mazda MX-5 Miata</a>, you're on the right track, but there have been even smaller ones: pint-sized, three-cylinder roadsters like the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/daihatsu+copen/">Daihatsu Copen</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/suzuki+cappuccino/">Suzuki Cappuccino</a> and <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/smart+roadster/">Smart Roadster</a>. But the most iconic and enduring of them was surely the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/honda+beat/">Honda Beat</a>.<br />
<br />
Designed by <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/pininfarina/">Pininfarina</a>, the Beat was - not unlike the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/ferrari+f40/">F40</a> was for Enzo Ferrari - the last car approved for production by company founder Soichiro Honda. It complied with Japan's strict Kei car regulations and packed a tiny, naturally aspirated 656 cc that produced just 63 horsepower. The cult classic ended production in 1996, but six months ago <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/honda/">Honda</a> hinted at a revival with the presentation of the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/honda+s660+concept/">S660 concept</a> at the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tokyo-motor-show/">2013 Tokyo Motor Show</a>. Now it seems Honda - or Yachiyo, we should say - is gearing up to put it into production at the same factory that produced the Beat two decades ago.<br />
<br />
That plant is the Yokkaichi factory, a facility owned by Yachiyo Industry Co., Ltd. that builds small cars on contract for Honda. It was slated for a major expansion a few years ago until Honda shifted some of its small car production to its own plant in Suzuka, but continues to build the N series of boxy, upright hatchbacks, as well as small commercial vehicles like the Life and Vamos lines. The reintroduction of a small roadster line to the factory's output sometime in 2015 will undoubtedly be a cause for celebration in Yokkaichi. For our part we can only hope that <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2013/11/19/honda-ceo-iwamura-says-no-sports-cars-for-us/">American Honda CEO Tetsuo Iwamura gets his way</a> and manages to bring the S660 to the US in the near future.<p style="padding:5px;background:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2014/05/06/honda-s660-yokkaichi-production-2015-report/">Honda S660 set for Yokkaichi production next year</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblog</a> on Tue, 06 May 2014 07:57:00 EST. Please see our <a href="/rss-term-of-use/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2014/05/06/honda-s660-yokkaichi-production-2015-report/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/20880035/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a> | <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2014/05/06/honda-s660-yokkaichi-production-2015-report/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>
More... (http://www.autoblog.com/2014/05/06/honda-s660-yokkaichi-production-2015-report/)