Honda’s Car Troubles Began Long Before Disastrous Bet on EVs

Honda Motor Co. invested too much and too late into a short-lived electric vehicle boom, and now finds itself saddled with an aging line-up and questions about its future as an automaker.

The Japanese company stunned investors by dropping a ¥2.5 trillion ($15.7 billion) impairment charge bomb last week stemming largely from its ill-timed bet on EVs — some scrapped just months before debuting. That is likely a precursor to reporting its first annual loss on record. Honda shares are down more than 7% since the disclosure, including a 1.7% drop Monday in Tokyo.