A new Honda Motor Co. Brand Health Tracking Report reveals a global automotive and mobility brand with near-universal consumer awareness and unusually strong purchase loyalty, even as Toyota continues to hold the top spot in unaided brand recall within the global passenger-vehicle category. The Q2 2026 tracking data, compiled using a standard four-pillar brand health framework covering awareness, top-of-mind recall, consumer perception, and Net Promoter Score, shows Honda Motorcycles posting the strongest and most consistent brand-health gains across Honda's three core segments: Honda Cars, Honda Motorcycles, and Honda Power Products.
According to the report, Honda achieves 96 percent aided brand awareness across the nine global markets surveyed, among the highest levels recorded for any automotive brand in the category, reflecting more than seven decades of global manufacturing presence and Honda's dual identity as both an automotive and a powersports brand. Unaided awareness sits at 46 percent, a 50-point gap that remains narrower than many multi-brand conglomerates, though Honda continues to compete against category leader
The brand funnel data shows a notably strong retention profile: 31 percent of respondents qualify as loyal, repeat buyers, a figure the report notes is consistent with Honda's J.D. Power recognition as the number-one brand for loyalty among mainstream SUV owners. Brand analysts say this retention strength, rather than any single funnel-stage weakness, is the standout signal in this quarter's data.
On the top-of-mind recall metric, considered by market researchers to be the purest test of a brand's mental availability, Toyota leads the global passenger-vehicle category with 26 percent of first mentions among consumers. Honda follows closely in second place at 18 percent, ahead of Ford, Hyundai, Chevrolet, and Nissan.
Regional results tell a more nuanced story. In Indonesia, YouGovBrandIndex data confirms Honda held the top spot in the Automotive & Mobility Rankings for the second consecutive year, ahead of Yamaha, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW a result the report attributes to Honda's dominant position in the region's motorcycle segment as much as its passenger-car lineup.
The report's Net Promoter Score analysis, tracked quarterly from Q1 2025 through Q2 2026, shows Honda Motorcycles rising from 52 to 60, an eight-point gain attributed to continued dominance in fuel-efficient commuter models across Southeast Asian and South Asian markets. Honda Cars posted a matching eight-point gain, climbing from 41 to 49, a trajectory the report links to the Civic and Accord hybrid models' award recognition, including the Civic hybrid's 2025 North American Car of the Year title.
Honda Power Products, the segment covering generators, marine engines, and outdoor power equipment, recorded the most modest gain among the three segments, rising from 38 to 43 over the same period, consistent with a smaller, more specialized customer base where promoter growth tends to move incrementally.
Consumer perception mapping across seven brand attributes shows Honda's clearest advantages in reliability, scoring 86 against a 70 category average, and fuel efficiency, scoring 80 against a 66 category average. The report identifies design/style and innovation as the two areas of narrowest advantage, with Honda scoring 61 and 62 respectively against category averages of 68 and 65 gaps the report links to Honda's historical positioning as a functional, engineering-led brand.
"The data shows a brand whose core equity reliability, fuel efficiency, and resale value — remains exceptionally strong and independently corroborated by J.D. Power and Kelley Blue Book recognition. The next stage of brand health growth depends on sharpening design and innovation perception, not on further building awareness, which is already near-ceiling," the report's authors noted.
The tracking data also breaks down brand health by region, finding that Honda Cars carries the strongest Net Promoter Score of the three segments in North America, supported by the Civic's status as America's best-selling compact car since 1973. Honda Motorcycles dominates regional brand health in Southeast Asia, running roughly 12 points above the segment's global average across Indonesia, Vietnam, and Thailand. Europe presents the most contested picture for Honda Cars, where German and French manufacturers command stronger design perception, pulling Honda's European score roughly 5 points below its global average.
The report cross-references its findings against multiple independent, publicly reported honors: Honda's fifth consecutive 'Best Car Brand' award from U.S. News & World Report in 2026, its number-one J.D. Power ranking for loyalty among mainstream SUV owners, multiple Highest Initial Quality Awards in the 2025 J.D. Power Initial Quality Study, and Kelley Blue Book's 2025 'Most Trusted Brand' honor. Researchers say this external validation supports the broader conclusion that Honda's underlying brand equity in reliability and loyalty remains strong even where top-of-mind recall trails Toyota in most Western markets.
The Honda Motor Co. Brand Health Tracking Report applies a standard funnel, Net Promoter Score, top-of-mind, and perception-mapping framework consistent with syndicated brand tracking methodologies such as YouGovBrandIndex and J.D. Power. The report is published quarterly and is intended to help marketing, communications, and investor-relations stakeholders monitor brand trajectory across Honda's core automotive, motorcycle, and power-products segments.
For the full report, additional data tables, or interview requests with the research team, media may contact the Epignosis Insights communications desk.