New car sales keep falling. Autodata Corporation says march sales dropped an average of 37 percent among G-M, Ford, Chrysler, Toyota and Honda. The figures come one day after Honda announced it will slow production at its Ohio plants and impose pay cuts on workers. Auto industry analyst Peter Ward tells WOSU's Marilyn Smith that even with lower sales he doubts whether Honda will begin offering customer incentives.
Ward says Honda had been able to stave off workforce reductions but low sales are forcing changes at the Marysville and East Liberty plants. Honda employs 14,000 Ohio workers. The company began making motorcycles at Marysville in 1979. It now builds Acuras, Accords, Civics, and Elements models at factories in Marysville and East Liberty. Sales figures released today show Honda sales declined 36% in March.