Honda brings Jazz hybrid to Thailand

Honda Motor Co. Ltd. began production of its gasoline-electric Jazz subcompact car in Thailand, thereby expanding its hybrid output outside of Japan and the United States for the first time. Japan’s third-biggest automaker said its goal is to sell 10,000 Thai-made Jazz hybrids annually in the Thai domestic market and later on export to Australia and New Zealand. A company spokesman said shipping cars from Thailand to Australia would be cheaper than exporting them from Japan because Thailand and Australia have a free trade agreement. On the other hand, Australia imposes a 5% tariff on car imports from Japan, and a strong yen also makes it less profitable to export from Japan. The company said that by the end of the year, it would also start producing the hybrid Jazz (called Fit in Japan and the United States) in Malaysia. The cost of the Jazz hybrid in Thailand starts at THB768,000 (US$24,200), while the hatchback gasoline-only version costs THB590,000 (US$18,792.57). (July 26, 2012)