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In 2010, Honda made the decision to close its vehicle testing facility located in a remote area of California’s Mojave Desert and put it up for sale. However, the company soon learned the truth of Don Henley’s famous lyrics: you can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave. With no prospective buyers in sight, Honda opted to reopen the facility. Now, the Honda Proving Center is officially back in operation, complete with a modernized trailer to highlight its revival.
The renovated HPC includes a 7.5-mile banked oval for high-speed tests, a 4.5-mile road course featuring 28 curves and six hills, a supercross track designed for dirt bikes and side-by-sides, extensive off-road trails, and a 1.3 million square foot “vehicle dynamics area.” This facility spans over 3,800 acres of desert terrain, discreetly surrounded by dirt berms and rows of non-native trees to maintain privacy.
Since 1990, Honda has utilized the facility to test some of its best models, like the S2000. However, in 2010, the company decided to consolidate its North American operations, moving vehicle testing to Ohio. While Marysville and its replica Tsukuba Circuit are impressive, the vast expanse of the desert with the Sierra Nevada mountains as a backdrop offers a unique allure that is hard to match.
Despite initial interest in the sale of the facility opening in 2011, selling a $30 million testing facility is significantly more challenging than simply finding a wealthy buyer wanting a personal motorsport track, even with its close proximity to Los Angeles. After five years without a buyer, Honda declared in 2015 that it would retain and enhance the Proving Center. Two years and $25 million later, the center is finally open for business.
Watch the trailer below to see the upgrades made to the facility. And Honda, if you’re looking to recover some of those renovation costs, we suggest considering a community Open Track Day.
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