Who Invented Honda?

From a young age, Soichiro Honda had a love of fabricating and manufacturing. Before putting his name on the company, Honda built a reputation as one of the world's best engine-part manufacturers. Before turning 20 years old, Honda had established himself as a manufacturer, and over the ensuing decades Honda has turned its passion into a company that's name is recognized worldwide.

Interested in Automobiles

Soichiro Honda became interested in the automobile industry at a young age. At the age of 15, in 1922, Honda left school when he was accepted as an apprentice at Tokyo Art Shokai. Art Shokai was a company that serviced automobiles.

Racing Automobiles

In 1923, Soichiro Honda began building automobiles for racing with Art Shokai owner Yuzo Sakakibara. These cars used secondhand American engines with bodies fabricated by Honda.

Parts Supplier

In the late 1930s and early 1940s, Soichiro Honda created a manufacturing company called Tokai Seiki Heavy Industry. Tokai Seiki supplied piston rings to several companies like Toyota and Nakajima Aircraft.

Motorized Bicycles

Honda's manufacturing company was destroyed during World War II. In 1945, Honda took a small 2-stroke 50-cc engine and attached it to a bicycle. This motorized bicycle is considered the beginning of the Honda Motor Company.

Bearing the Honda Name

In 1947, Soichiro Honda released the first product to carry the Honda name. The product was an A-type auxiliary bicycle.

Honda's First Automobile

Honda unveiled its first automobile, called the S360, in 1962. Honda's first venture into the auto-racing world was in 1964 when he entered the Formula One Series.