Honda Knocks Nearly $15,000 Off A Sedan That Used To Sell Itself In China

China remains one of the few major markets where four-door sedans still sell in meaningful numbers. Yet even there, one of the segment’s long-standing players is losing momentum. The Accord, built locally through Honda’s joint venture with GAC, is struggling to move metal, and prices have just been slashed in an effort to get buyers back into showrooms.

The Accord nameplate has been in China for just shy of three decades, with Honda entering a joint venture in 1999, forming Guangqi Honda (GAC Honda). It was even one of the first modern, foreign sedans to be made in China, along with the Toyota Camry and VW Passat.

Read: China’s Ringless AUDI EV Is Flopping Like Overcooked Noodles

The problems for the mid-size model aren’t just because buyers prefer crossovers to sedans. Rather, they reflect a fate that many foreign automakers are facing: consumers are hot for homegrown new energy vehicles, while overall new car sales look to be taking a bit of a dive.

Accord Gets A Massive Price Cut

GAC Honda is offering returning customers a hefty discount of $14,610 (100,000 yuan) off the price of a new Accord e:PHEV, reports local outlet 36Kr. The Accord e:PHEV is listed at a retail price of $34,890 (238,800 yuan), bringing the price of this brand new sedan down to just $20,280 (138,800 yuan).

More: 2026 Honda Accord Facelift Debuts In China

There is, naturally, a catch: in addition to it only being offered to existing GAC Honda customers, the offer is limited to the first 1,000 units, too. The official party line the company is touting is that it’s a limited promotion celebrating the Accord’s 50-year (global) anniversary.

While getting misty-eyed over the Accord’s legacy sounds good, it’s likely not painting the full picture of Honda’s Chinese woes.

Competition And Slowdowns

Last year, GAC Honda reported a year-on-year drop of 25 percent in sales, with 351,900 vehicles sold in 2025. In the first month of 2026, GAC Honda reported sales of just 4,558 vehicles, which is a decrease of nearly 70 percent, year-on-year.

See: Nissan’s Cheap EVs Are Killing It In China. Honda, Not So Much

While January is a typically soft month for China’s auto market, GAC Honda’s performance is markedly worse than that of other GAC subsidiaries. In fact, GAC Honda was the worst-performing brand within the group, contributing to GAC missing its overall sales targets. By contrast, GAC Aion, which primarily deals in New Energy Vehicles, reported 21,600 cars sold, marking a 171 percent increase year-on-year.

Honda isn’t alone in feeling the pressure. GAC Toyota and Dongfeng Nissan have both introduced their own limited-time offers. However, with the ICE-powered Toyota Wildlander being discounted by some $3,200 (22,000 Yuan), and the Nissan Teana seeing similar offers, neither quite comes close to the deal on the Accord.

While GAC Honda (and Dongfeng Honda) do offer their own NEV models under the Honda Ye subbrand, they have yet to attract the level of adoption they were hoping for. Much of that comes down to technology that still trails many of China’s fast-moving domestic rivals in an intensely competitive market.