Honda motorcycles reach the 300 million mark

Honda Motorcycles made a Gold Wing 40th Anniversary Edition a few days ago as its 300 millionth motorcycle worldwide.

The year was 1948 when a guy named Soichiro Honda from Japan laid the foundation of Honda Motor Co. Ltd. The mass production of the motorcycles started 65 years ago in 1949 with the Dream Type-D, and there has been no looking back since then. The first manufacturing plant outside Japan was in Belgium in the year 1963 and since then, Honda has been going locally into various markets to expand its base across the globe. At present, Honda manufacturers its motorcycles at 33 plants situated in 22 different countries.

Commenting on this achievement, Takanobu Ito, President and CEO, Honda Motor Co. Ltd. Said, “Thanks to support from our customers and all of the people involved in development, production and sales Honda was able to reach the 300 million-unit milestone. We will continue to provide products that will please our customers in each country and region in the world.”

The numbers released by Honda also confirm the legacy the Japanese manufacturer enjoys. In 2013, Honda sold almost 16.8 million motorcycles worldwide, and out of these 300 million motorcycles, Honda Cub, introduced in 1958 for the first time as Honda 50, alone contributes a staggering 87 million sales till date.

And Honda decided to club this proud moment with its Gold Wing’s 40^th anniversary which is next year. So the 300 millionth motorcycle to roll out from Honda is a 40^th Anniversary Edition Gold Wing GL1800 which was manufactured at Honda’s Kumamoto factory. And to put things in right perspective, Honda also released this infographic.