The Honda website emphasizes the power of dreams and building for the future. Founded in 1948 in Japan, the company began selling in the U.S. in 1959 in Los Angeles. Honda was the first auto manufacturer to meet the standards of the Clean Air Act in the U.S.

The company’s website shares two current goals: “no fatalities in model year 2030 or later Honda or Acura vehicles, and no collisions involving model year 2040 or later Honda or Acura vehicles” plus cut carbon dioxide emissions by 50% (as compared to 2000 levels). The company’s priorities have helped to build its brand. Here’s a look at this award-winning brand.

Kelley Blue Book’s 2019 ‘Brand Image Awards’

Kelley Blue Book gives out its Brand Image awards to honor auto manufacturers’ “outstanding achievements in creating and maintaining brand attributes that engender enthusiasm among new-vehicle buyers.”

The awards are based on information from Kelley Blue Book’s Brand Watch study, which survey’s 12,000 in-market new-vehicle shoppers each year. The awards are given in seven categories, with a mainstream and a luxury brand for each. The 13 winners in 2019 received their trophies at the New York Auto Show.

Honda was a big winner, taking home three of the awards, including Best Overall Brands (along with Lexus). The company also won for Best Value Brands (along with Acura, a division of Honda) and Most Refined Brands (along with Mercedes-Benz). According to a 2003 study, consumer perception of automotive brands depends on “product excellence and cost,” which are two areas in which Honda excels.

Honda wins ‘Best Overall Brands’

In the award for Best Overall Brands, Kelley Blue Book cited Honda’s “sterling reputation for quality” along with the “breadth of its lineup,” which provides vehicle options for just about every buyer from first-time ones to loyal longtime owners.

It was the company’s second year winning this award. The current lineup of 24 vehicles includes cars, SUVs, crossovers, a minivan, a truck, plus electrified options. Prices range from the Fit, starting at $16,190, to the Civic Type R, starting at $36,995.

Honda also puts a lot of care into making sure people are aware of its brand. In the UK, the Honda Engine Room develops short-form digital content. The group has also partnered with other organizations, including Virgin Radio, WhatCar, AutoCar, and Classic FM, to promote certain vehicles to targeted audiences. 

Honda wins ‘Best Value Brands’

Kelley Blue Book has named Honda one of the Best Value Brands for five years now. Honda trucks and cars are known for having great “durability, reliability, and resale value.”

Plus, its sedans and crossovers, like the Civic, Accord, and CR-V, have more features than their competitors. Honda also won the 2020 ALG Residual Value Award, which is given to a mainstream brand expected to keep the highest percentage of its MSRP after three years.

Honda wins ‘Most Refined Brands’

In its award for Most Refined Brands, Kelley Blue Book points out that Honda improves each new generation of its vehicles, which helps buyers get a luxury feel from their mainstream vehicles. Honda has won this award for the past two years.

In addition to top-quality materials, Honda has great design and manufacturing, allowing its vehicles to “come together in a cohesive manner.” Kelley Blue Book mentioned that Honda refinement can be found in “the solid sound of a door closing” and “the tight seams in the way the interior fits together.” Eight of the company’s top 15 vehicles were in refinement.

Honda’s long history and reputation for providing great value and quality vehicles for nearly every buyer has built its fantastic brand. Now established, the brand image stretches over new products in the lineup, giving them a chance to prove their quality to new buyers. It’s a tough act for competitors to beat.