Honda downsizes dealership network with implementation of fixed pricing

A new financial year means new business strategies, and in the case of Honda Australia, a revised business model.

From today onwards, Honda's dealers Down Under will provide a fixed price for each of its vehicles, the number remaining consistent across all showrooms in the country and unable to be changed.

This means no more haggling or negotiating – the price you see on the ticket is what you'll pay, drive-away, inclusive of metallic or pearlescent paint – though Honda's range of accessories will still incur an extra cost.

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Honda's dealership network in Australia will now comprise of 90 centres

The unified approach across Honda's Australian showrooms has resulted in its dealership network being reduced from just over 100 to 90, with most of the culling done in metropolitan areas.

Some of Honda's range has also disappeared from its website for now ahead of the new 11th generation Civic Hatch going on sale Down Under from the fourth quarter of this year.

For the time being, the Civic VTi and VTi-LX have been omitted from the line-up, leaving the VTi-S to act as the base variant with a drive-away price of $31,000.

Although it's not yet know what variants will be available when the new model arrives in Australia, based on its launch last week in Japan, the Civic Hatch will be available in two different guises – the entry level LX and higher-spec EX.

The Tokyo firm also revealed an e:HEV (hybrid electric vehicle) model variant, and the eagerly anticipated Type R, will be unveiled in 2022.

The Type R has also now been removed from the manufacturer's website, as it has reached the end of its model lifecycle for the current generation vehicle. Though a couple of cars remain in the dealer network, all Australian examples have been sold.

A spokesperson for the brand told WhichCar "at some point we had to make a call when to remove them from the website and official price list, and the new business model launching today on July 1 was a natural break point to make that change" but assured us the Type R will be making its return to our shores next year.

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The Honda Australia website shows the price for each vehicle which a buyer can expect to pay at their dealer

The Honda Jazz and Civic sedan have both been in runout locally since the beginning of 2021, with just a small number of cars left in the network as they have both reached the end of their lifecycles and Australia won't be getting the next-generation models.

Meanwhile, servicing costs across the model range have been greatly reduced, now only $125 for the first five service intervals, which Honda says represents a $1250 saving for customers.

Honda now includes premium roadside assistance in its warranty package, adding it on to the five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty which was previously included with its vehicles.

To the end of May 2021, Honda had sold 9794 vehicles in Australia, a 25 per cent reduction on the 13106 units sold year-to-date in 2020.