Honda Dealer in Pondok Pinang Closes, Banner Appears for Chinese Car Dealer
The closure of an automotive dealership has occurred again amid increasingly tight competition in the national automotive industry. The latest case involves one of Honda’s dealership networks in the Pondok Pinang area, Kebayoran Lama, South Jakarta, which has officially halted its operations.
Based on observations by CNBC Indonesia at the site, the dealership is set to transition into a Jaecoo dealer. A banner has already confirmed that the Honda dealership will rebrand to become a Jaecoo dealer.
“Jaecoo, Coming Soon, Stay Tuned!” reads the banner.
Field observations indicate that renovation activities are still ongoing. The Honda brand signage has been covered with blue tarpaulin, leaving only the Pondok Pinang lettering visible.
The showroom area appears closed and is not yet accessible to the public. Several workers were seen carrying out work inside the building. A security officer at the location stated that operations cannot start yet as the construction process is still underway.
“Operations will begin once this is completed; right now, it’s still in the process, including the interior,” the security officer told CNBC Indonesia on Thursday (9/4/2026).
The construction progress is still in the early stages, requiring time before it is ready for use. However, it is predicted to start operating soon.
“It might take about two months to finish because it’s just starting,” he said.
Access to the area is also restricted, including for photography. As a result, photos could only be taken from outside the dealer premises. He further noted that
“I’m sorry, you can’t go inside, and taking photos from the parking area here isn’t allowed either; it’s instructions from management, so it can’t be entered yet,” he added.
The aggressive entry of Chinese manufacturers is seen as a key factor in changing the landscape of the national automotive market. They offer more competitive prices with technology and features deemed fresher, thus attracting consumer interest.
On the other hand, Honda’s sales performance in recent years has shown a downward trend. Industry data records sales that once reached more than 128,000 units in 2023 fell to around 103,000 units in 2024, and further declined to around 71,000 units in the following year. This decline is even lower than the achievements during the 2020 pandemic.
This situation directly impacts the sustainability of the dealership network. High operational burdens are no longer commensurate with the continuously declining sales volume, prompting some business players to adapt by switching to brands seen as more promising.
General Secretary of the Indonesian Automotive Industry Association (Gaikindo), Kukuh Kumara, stated that this decline has occurred across the national automotive market.
“Clearly, sales have declined overall. Meanwhile, on the other hand, many new players are entering,” he said.
He added that purchasing power is the main cause of the market weakening. “The decline isn’t due to brand issues, but more towards declining purchasing power,” he said.
This closure adds to the list of dealers that have previously shut down amid increasingly heavy market pressures. The information was briefly shared via the dealer’s official social media before being deleted. Although the showroom has closed, customer services are said to still be accessible through other networks in the same group.
This phenomenon is not an isolated incident. In recent times, several Honda dealers in various cities such as Bandung, Surabaya, Bekasi, and Tangerang have also been known to halt operations or switch to selling other brands. The shift is evident, with some showrooms now starting to be filled with automotive brands from China.