When Takahiro Hachigo moved back to Japan in March to be the new CEO of Honda, after the previous CEO Takanobu Ito stepped down amid slowing sales and the ongoing Takata airbag fiasco, he was without a car. Rather than pick up a car straight away, however, Hachigo decided to wait so that he could drive away in the new Civic Type R.
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“Unfortunately, I don't have a car now,” Hachigo told Automotive News (subscription required) “But I want to buy the Civic Type R.”
Fortunately for him, the Civic Type R started production this month at its plant in England and will be arriving in Japanese showrooms this fall. The 305-horsepower hot hatch is expected to be available in the United States around the same time, with its arrival coinciding with that of a redesigned 2016 Civic range.
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Hachigo has been tasked with reviving Honda’s image of innovation and fun-to-drive cars, and already he’s shaking things up at the automaker. The 56-year-old exec has announced that English will soon be the official language for all interregional communications at Honda, and that he wants the decision making process to be more decentralized.
Some of his previous cars have been a three-door Civic, an Accord and an Odyssey.
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