[nihonde]

I think you’re right. Honda isn’t even very popular in Japan. Distant second place behind Toyota, I think. Their mindshare here seems even less.

When I lived in America, Honda was much more of a trusted brand there. Detroit went after them hard via the Takata defect, so I’m not sure about now.

[olyjohn]

Most people haven't even taken their cars in for the recall, so I highly doubt this impacted anything. Seriously, the recall has something like a 30% completion rate. Not only that but the Takata defect wasn't just Honda, that affected almost every auto manufacturer. GM has a huge Takata recall in place as well, so I'm not sure what you mean by Detroit going after them...

[nihonde]

From my perspective (Japan), every news article in US news outlets paired the Takata defect with Honda. I'm aware that everyone uses Takata, so it struck me as a coordinated effort to smear a foreign maker. Detroit has shown its willingness to use media to scare buyers, e.g., with Suzuki in the 1980s and the fake Consumer Reports rollovers.

Some degree of protectionism is expected, of course. I mean, you won't find anyone driving a Ford or Chevy in Japan except as a novelty. But there is a line which, when crossed, gives the impression of desperate anti-competitive measures. Everyone has to decide where they draw that line, I guess.

[fomine3]

Just Toyota is too strong in Japan, so second place isn't bad.