Mr. Hiroyuki Yoshino
In June 1998, Hiroyuki Yoshino became the fifth president of Honda Motor Co., Ltd representing a distinctive blend of R&D, manufacturing and sales experience and a global perspective gained from his unique experience in America.
Educated as an aeronautical engineer at Tokyo University, Yoshino started his career in 1963 at Honda R&D Co., Ltd. In 1969, Yoshino was assigned to a team of engineers whose efforts resulted in the breakthrough Compound Vortex Combustion Controlled (CVCC) engine that helped the Civic to become the first automobile to meet the U.S. Clean Air Act without a catalytic converter.
Yoshino spent a year in the United States in the early 1970s as the first engineer from Honda R&D stationed in America, meeting with other major automakers seeking to determine how to comply with federal clean air requirements.
In 1981, Yoshino became General Manager of the Asaka R&D Center for the development of new motorcycles. In 1987, he became General Manager of Honda’s Suzuka Factory. Fifteen months later, June 1988, Yoshino was named President of Honda of America Mfg. in Ohio, serving as its leader during a 4-year period of impressive growth.
Yoshino was promoted to Executive Vice President and representative director of Honda Motor Co. in 1992, returning to Japan to manage efforts to rejuvenate auto sales. In 1994, Yoshino returned as President of Honda R&D, overseeing the introduction of a series of new products and a renewed commitment to environmental leadership. In February 1998, Yoshino was honored with the Distinguished Service Citation from the Automotive Hall of Fame for leading Honda’s environmental technology achievements.