Japan Quake: Big Automakers Hit, Little Guys Spared (Except Subaru)

Amidst the rubble of earthquake and tsunami-racked Japan, a strange phenomenon: Three of the smallest local automakers suffered no interruption in production, while the very largest seemed to be hit the hardest. Toyota, Honda, and Nissan have all suffered some kind of production interruption since the quake hit, while Mazda, Suzuki and Mitsubishi remain untouched according to Automotive News [sub]. In a tragedy like this, some might be tempted to ascribe this division of suffering to some universal sense of justice, a cosmic leveling of Japan’s automotive playing field. But, as the map above proves, this twist of fate is purely geographic… Mazda, Mitsubishi and Suzuki happen to have all of their plants located well south of the affected area near Sendai. Besides, Subaru, one of Japan’s smallest automakers, closed five factories. There’s no making sense of a mess like this…

Toyota’s string of bad luck seems to be continuing, if not purely at the hands of quake or tsunami damage. According to the latest word from the world’s largest automaker

The plants that have stopped production are Toyota subsidiary plants that produce parts and vehicles, including:

• Toyota Motor Hokkaido Plant
• Toyota Motor Tohoku Plant
• Central Motor Corporation Miyagi Plant, which also produces the Yaris model.
• Kanto Auto Works Iwate Plant, which also produces the Scion xB and Scion xD.

But even though Toyota itself was largely spared, the market is punishing it. Reuters reports that Wall Street is

The massive earthquake in Japan on Friday fueled defensive options trades in large Japanese companies and in an exchange-traded fund that tracks Japanese equities

“Traders are primarily buying put options, perhaps as a hedge against existing long stock positions in case of a prolonged shutdown in their automotive and parts production facilities in Japan,” said Jon Najarian, a co-founder of stock and options website optionMonster.com in Chicago.

And, according to yet another Reuters piece, Toyota’s low inventories of Lexus luxury vehicles could be especially vulnerable to interruptions. And, according to Automotive News [sub]

The shutdown could affect exports to the United States of such cars as the sedan, and , as well as the subcompact, Accord sedan and CR-V crossover. The tremblor also affected production of the Acura and Infiniti lineups.

But so far, the worst news comes out of Honda and Nissan, namely that

At least one person died at Honda’s r&d facility, and fires erupted at two Nissan plants.

The LAT gives more details on the Honda situation, notingHonda Motor Co. has shut three plants through Monday, including one where it makes the Fit sub-compact car and the top of the line Acura sedan that are exported to the United States. Its research center in Tochigi also was damaged, killing a 43-year-old man, and at least 30 other Honda employees were injured in the region.The WSJ takes Nissan, reportingNissan Motor Co. said it had immediately suspended operations at five factories in Fukushima in the north east, and Tochigi and Kanagawa prefectures, north and south of Tokyo. Small fires broke out at its Tochigi and Iwaki plants but have been extinguished, the company said.Both Infiniti and the Nissan Leaf EV could be affected, notes the Journal, but Renault (which owns nearly the majority of Nissan’s stock) could be the one sweating its exposure. Meanwhile, though supply issues are still being resolved, the Japanese automakers’ commitment to Just In Time (JIT) manufacturing practices mean any supplier interruptions will be noticed soon. Of the major global supplier firms with operations in Japan, only Denso is reporting damage at one factory.More than damage at any one firm, though, what’s driving the market fears seems to be worries about Japans road, power and port infrastructure. Even if the factories themselves are fine, they still have to get their products to market. For now though, the opportunities to shift production to the US seem “limited,” according to an analyst speaking with Automotive News [sub]. Needless to say, everyone will know a little more about the situation tomorrow.