Driven by the expanding responsibility for developing new automotive and power sports products in America and the related need for performance testing, Honda will invest $25 million to renovate the Honda Proving Center of California (HPCC) in the Mojave Desert near Cantil, California. The proving center, which was in operation from 1990 through 2010, is scheduled to reopen in April 2016.
The 4,255-acre warm weather testing facility features a 7.5-mile high speed oval track and a 4.5-mile winding road course that will be completely refurbished. The renovations also will include the addition of some new vehicle test road enhancements to the property.
“As we continue to accelerate our growth in the U.S. market with a competitive line up of cars and trucks designed and developed in the U.S., we are reinvesting in HPCC to create a world-class test facility,” said John Mendel, executive vice president of the Automobile Division of American Honda Motor, Co., Inc. “Some of our most iconic vehicles proved their mettle at HPCC and we are happy to continue that tradition at this high-performance testing ground.”
HPCC is owned and will be operated by American Honda. Honda also conducts product testing and verification at the Transportation Research Center, an automotive proving center located in East Liberty, Ohio.
About Honda
Honda established operations in America in 1959 and now employs more than 40,000 associates in its North American sales, RD and manufacturing operations with total capital investment in North America exceeding $23 billion. Honda operates 14 major RD centers in the U.S. with the capacity to fully design, develop and engineer many of the Honda and Acura products produced in North America.
Based on its longstanding commitment to “build products close to the customer,” Honda operates 18 major manufacturing facilities in North America. Using domestic and globally sourced parts, these plants produce a wide range of Honda and Acura automobiles, automobile engines and transmissions, Honda all-terrain vehicles, power equipment products, such as lawn mowers, mini-tillers and general purpose engines, and the HondaJet advanced light jet.
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