It's been quite a year for Honda. In March 2011, the Japanese automaker was hit by a brutal tsunami and earthquake in Japan and faced months of unrest as they struggled to resume normal production and inventory levels at facilities and dealers worldwide. In October, Honda faced yet another challenge. Namely, they were forced to halt production at their manufacturing plant in Ayutthaya province due to the most severe flooding the area has seen in over 50 years.

It wasn't until just recently that Honda returned to normal production levels in Thailand. Now, Honda is in the midst of destroying 1,055 new models to ensure drivers that they never hit showrooms.  Given the lack of production and obliteration of over one-thousand vehicles, inventory levels are expected to remain at less than optimal counts until late winter.

The Honda facility in Ayutthaya province, for those not familiar with it, produces roughly 170,000 vehicles per year. Flooded for most of Q4 2011, Honda officials still cannot access the facility to assess damage to the plant and plant grounds itself. The two models Honda produces there are the Honda Accord and Honda Civic. Neither are exported to North American markets.

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