Kyushu Earthquake Forces Honda to Delay Plant Reopenings

A 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck Kyushu Island, Japan, on July 28, 2026, causing widespread industrial damage and forcing major automakers to suspend operations. While Mitsubishi Motors, Toyota, and Nissan have largely resumed production, Honda Motor Company reports that two of its assembly plants will remain idle until August 19. The delay stems from infrastructure damage and failures among key suppliers.

The quake disrupted regional supply chains, causing electricity and gas outages at an Astemo plant and temporary shutdowns at microchip facilities operated by Mitsubishi Electric and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. TSMC facilities in southern Japan remained non-operational until August 5. These combined disruptions are estimated to result in a production shortfall of 20,000 to 60,000 vehicles.

Industry recovery has varied by manufacturer. Mitsubishi Motors was the first to announce a return to normal operations on August 5, followed by Nissan and Toyota, the latter of which confirmed its recovery phase was basically over by August 6. Honda CFO Masao Kawaguchi expressed hesitation regarding a firm recovery timeline due to ongoing supplier outages. While the impact on the North American market is expected to be minimal, excluding the imported Honda Civic Type R, there are concerns that the global supply of motorcycles from Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, and Suzuki may be temporarily stifled.