Sundiro Honda Begins Production of New Wave Motorcycle

Tianjin, China, June 14, 2002 - Sundiro Honda Motorcycle Co., Ltd. today announced the start of production of its new motorcycle, Wave, at its Tianjin plant. Sundiro Honda, a 50-50 joint venture between Honda and two Chinese partner firms, said that Wave will go on sale on July 1 in China, with an annual sales target of 100,000 units. Wave is a new, 100cc Cub-type motorcycle equipped with an air-cooled 4-stroke engine with good fuel economy and excellent durability and quietness. Wave's affordable price of 4,498 yuan (about US$540) has been made possible thanks in part to the adoption of low-cost locally procured parts, drawing on the company's production infrastructure in China. Last year, China's total motorcycle market stood at about 10 million vehicles. In 2002, restrictions on the issuance of license plates in urban areas has generally resulted in a contraction of urban markets, but the overall market has continued to expand in rural areas, where motorcycles are used extensively as a means of transportation in daily life. Because of this trend, there is large potential demand for Cub-type motorcycles, which are useful transportation that can be shared by family members, at a relatively low price. These factors led to the decision to release Wave in the Chinese market. With the launch of Wave, the second Honda brand motorcycle following M-Living, (Chinese name: ), which was launched in November 2001, Sundiro Honda now aims to further expand its product lineup, and to expand customer satisfaction in China by responding flexibly to changes in the market environment. Sundiro Honda (China) "Wave" Main specifications of the Wave (Chinese name: ) Overall length (mm) / Overall width (mm) / Overall height (mm): 1870/715/1050 Engine type: Air-cooled 4-stroke OHC Total displacement (cc): 97.1cc Outline of Sundiro Honda Motorcycle Co., Ltd. Established: September 2001 Head Office Location: Tianjin City, China Factory Location: Tianjin, Shanghai, Hainan Capital: US$99.565 million (about 12.53 billion yen) Capitalization ratio: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. 50% Hainan Sundiro Holding Co.,Ltd. 47.33% Tianjin Motorcycle Group 2.67% Area of business: Manufacturing and sales of motorcycles Number of employees:   About 5,600 Production capacity: 1.6 million units per year Production models: Honda brand   Wave (100cc Cub-type vehicle) (Chinese name: ) M-Living (125cc Motorcycle) (Chinese name: )   Sundiro brand   SDH 50QT-A (50cc Scooter) SDH 125T-10 (125cc Scooter) SDH 125-36 (125cc Motorcycle) And others 1 yuan = approximately 15 yen/1 U.S. dollar = approximately 126 yen (as of June 13, 2002)