Honda Chides Rivals Using Fleet Sales, Subprime Lending

Honda Motor Co., losing share in the growing U.S. auto market, chided competitors for using low-margin fleet sales and over-reliance on subprime lending to boost sales.

Excluding rental and business-fleet sales, which Honda eschews, Accord topped Toyota Motor Corp.’s Camry, the U.S. passenger-car volume leader, with 181,939 deliveries in the first half, Honda said, citing IHS Automotive data. Camry retail sales were 178,183, according to IHS’s Polk unit. Honda, which doesn’t have a fleet sales division, also isn’t using subprime lending or loans with durations as long as seven years to boost business, John Mendel, executive vice president of U.S. sales, said yesterday on a conference call.