“Honda!” Now there’s a name that practically everyone would recognize. After all, they are one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world. They also used to make personal watercraft, dubbed the AquaTrax.
So why did perhaps the largest company out of all the personal watercraft manufacturers stop making these? With a reputation like Honda, they should have been extremely reliable, they looked pretty good, and after all they were the only ones offering a turbocharged engine.
According to one recent source, there were a few things that led up to the closing of the AquaTrax assembly lines. One reason can be attributed to the timing of Honda’s decision to enter the market. It takes a lot of research and development as well as budget to start a new line. Honda was only in the game a few years before the 2008 financial crisis hit and by 2010, they were no longer manufacturing new units. Perhaps they weren’t realizing their projected investment gains.
Some could also attribute their downfall to the lack of innovation. No radical new technologies were developed such as onboard braking systems, which is almost standard across the board these days. Additionally, Honda only sold its personal watercraft in a few select countries and at a small number of dealers so it limited access by consumers.
Honda also has had a huge recall on leaking fuel tanks…
How about they thought there product was so good they went into multi line dealers and said if you want to sell Honda pwc you can only sell Honda. Dealers were forced to decide, drop Kawasaki, Sea Doo & Yamaha to sell Honda..
Really? Drop manufactures that started everything and had been doing so for 30 years.
What a joke, come pick up your units!
They put the nail in there own coffin…
It’s a shame really as they would have gone well here in the UK yet only a handful ever got imported.
Will they ever come back as it would be nice to see what they came up with now.
Honda entered the PWC market at the wrong time. Just as the market was very slow for all manufacturers. The hull was for sure “old school technology” as Honda actually purchased a Sea-Doo hull design directly from Sea-Doo. However, it was a hull design that Sea-Doo never put into production. In addition to a weak engine that kept speeds in the low 50’s and a turbocharged model running in the 60-61mph range the models just did not perform as well as the PWC community expected it to be. Poor timing entering the market with a low performing unit and a distribution network that was shabby at best killed the Honda watercraft, in my opinion.
I’ve never owned a Honda and never would revolution Honda in town will not and can not order anything that doesn’t have a Honda code on it they can’t even look in their computer and search other brands just Honda I have Yamaha and so does my roommate so it’s screws us
Honda abandoned the line because they used repurposed ECM’s from their motorcycle line and they are dying and need to be reflashed or replaced. Google AquaTrax Code 25