Honda Marks Forty Years of Engine Greatness at the Anna Plant in

Largest Honda auto engine plant in the world built its first engine on July 22, 1985 and has expanded more than tenfold in size since then with investments totaling $2.9 billion
Anna has built more than 32.5 million engines during the last four decades
Flexible manufacturing methods enable Anna to support production of ICE, hybrid and EV models

On Tuesday, July 22, Honda will commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Anna Engine facility (AEP), the world’s biggest Honda car engine facility. One of three production facilities in Ohio that are advancing the idea of flexible manufacturing, AEP is now a crucial component of the Honda EV Hub. It uses parts made in the United States and abroad to produce internal combustion engines (ICE), hybrid powertrains, and all-electric motors on the same production lines.

Since it started manufacturing motorcycle engines on July 22, 1985, AEP has produced over 32.5 million engines, including those for cars and powersports items, as well as a range of powertrain parts for engines and gearboxes. In 1986, a 4-cylinder engine for the Honda Civic marked the start of automobile engine production.

At the moment, AEP manufactures a variety of V6 and inline 4-cylinder engines, including turbocharged 1.5, 2.0, and 3.0-liter models. AEP has produced a wide range of engines for performance cars as well as extremely fuel-efficient hybrid-electric versions. Notable power units include:

2.0-liter Atkinson-cycle four-cylinder engine that powers the Honda hybrid-electric models, including the Accord, CR-V and Civic hybrids
190-horsepower 1.5-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine that powers Honda Civic, Accord, CR-V and Acura Integra and ADX
315 hp 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine for the Civic Type R, which is exported to Japan where the vehicle is assembled
320 hp 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine that powers the Acura Integra Type S
355 hp 3.0-liter turbocharged V6 engine that powers Acura TLX and MDX Type S models
500 hp 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6 engine that powered the second-generation Acura NSX

“Everything that Honda has accomplished at the Anna Engine Plant during the past 40 years has been achieved through the skills and commitment of our associates and this will continue as we pursue an expanded form of flexible manufacturing in the future,” stated Michael Tinch, plant lead of Anna Engine Plant. “As we maximize production of ICE and hybrid models, even while preparing for the future of EV production, I know our associates will continue to produce high quality products that meet the needs of our customers.”

After a series of investments totaling $2.9 billion, AEP has grown from its humble beginnings in 1985 as a 200,000 square foot facility with 94 production colleagues to a huge complex of over 2.8 million square feet, employing 2,900 companions. AEP’s reputation as one of the most extensive and integrated powertrain facilities in the industry is cemented by its production activities, which include ferrous casting, high-pressure die-casting, machining, heat treating, and assembly.

AEP uses both domestic and foreign-made parts to manufacture a range of parts, such as cylinder sleeves and heads, camshafts, and crankshafts for Honda engines, as well as the high-precision pulleys used in the continuously variable transmission (CVT) made at the nearby Honda Transmission in Ohio.

Demonstrating the plant’s adaptability and flexibility, AEP is now playing a major role in Honda’s electrified future, even as it continues to produce a range of ICE engines to support customer demand. As part of the Honda EV Hub, and as a first within global Honda, AEP has added three new processes to produce the aluminum EV battery case, including: megacasting, friction stir welding (FSW) and Minimum Quantity Lubrication (MQL) machining.

When EV production begins in 2026, the EV battery case megacast at AEP will go to the Marysville Auto Plant, where it will be combined with the battery module to create the EV battery pack that will power the Honda and Acura EVs made at both the Marysville and East Liberty Auto Plants.