Honda Collection Hall Renovation - Power Products -
The Honda Collection Hall, Honda’s museum located in the Mobility Resort Motegi in Motegi, Tochigi Prefecture, has undergone a major renovation 25 years after its opening in 1998, and opened to the public on March 1.
Since its opening in 1998, the Honda Collection Hall has exhibited 300 or more epoch-making Honda products, and is loved and visited by Honda fans all over the world.
Twenty-five years after its opening, the Hall underwent its first major renovation. The concept of the renewal was “Story Exhibits,” in which the 2nd to 4th floors are divided into four eras, with products from the time of Honda’s founding to the 2000s displayed, introducing the background of the era and the reasons for introducing the products. Approximately 170 vehicles are carefully selected.
Story Exhibit for Power Products that Support Daily Life
Similar to the motorcycle and automobile exhibits, power products that support daily lives are also displayed in a Story Exhibit, describing the reasons and historical background of their creation.
Beginning of the Power Products Business
Honda's power products business was founded in the early 1950s when its F-Type auxiliary bicycle engine saw explosive sales. An agricultural machinery manufacturer saw the F-Type’s success, which led it to ask Honda to develop a general-purpose engine for a back-pack pesticide sprayer. Honda began contributing to reducing heavy labor through mechanization, by supplying general-purpose engines to machinery manufacturers (OEM supply).
Honda’s power products business had begun with general-purpose engines, but engines were “semi-finished products.” In order to develop finished products to “truly reduce heavy labor,” Honda established an agricultural development division in 1958, and began development of a tiller, the most sought-after product by farmers at the time. In 1959, Honda launched the F150 tiller, its first complete power product.
Challenging Various Fields
In 1962, when Sony was promoting the development of a portable television, its President Masaru Ibuka asked Honda founder Soichiro Honda to develop a portable generator. This was the beginning of Honda’s portable generators. Including outboard motors launched in 1964 based on the boat-loving founder’s belief that “watercraft should not pollute the water,” Honda also entered various power products fields related to daily life, during the period of reconstruction from the war to the period of rapid economic growth.
Power Products Go Overseas
In 1978, Honda launched the HR21, Honda’s first walk-behind lawn mower equipped with a revolutionary safety device, the blade brake clutch (BBC) mechanism, which stops within three seconds the lawn mower’s blades if the operator is no longer gripping the clutch lever. Honda’s lawn mower quickly became popular in the U.S., where safety devices were strongly desired.
Honda’s challenge to develop and market unknown new products in unknown foreign countries was not solely to respond to market needs, but also to pursue its own evolution. The HR21’s BBC mechanism became the safety standard for lawn mowers in the U.S., and as a result, Honda made a significant contribution to society.
Honda Power Products Contribute to Society
In the event of a power outage, loss of traffic signals are a risk for accidents in social infrastructure. Honda power generators are often installed next to traffic signals in case of power outages. Although inconspicuous and only used in emergencies, Honda’s power products contribute greatly to society behind the scenes.
In the renovated Honda Collection Hall, visitors can now see not only the motorcycles, automobiles, and spectacular racing machines that have dominated the world, but also the contributions Honda power products have made to the lives of people and to society. The Honda Collection Hall looks forward to your visit.
