All-electric version of today’s Honda HR-V will arrive next year, but is only the first of a new range of models which will eventually encompass hatchbacks, SUVs and sports cars…
Honda will introduce a new electric SUV next year, and has plans to introduce 30 new electric models by 2030.
While the new electric SUV will be the first model to arrive from the line-up – and will essentially be a zero-emissions version of the Honda HR-V family SUV – the Japanese brand’s plans extend to likely replacements for today’s Honda Jazz small car and Honda Civic family hatchback, an electric successor to the Honda NSX and a performance-oriented grand tourer.
Other planned models include at least one additional electric SUV, which will sit between the HR-V and the CR-V in terms of size, and a luxury model.
Honda is also preparing a new range of more affordable electric cars, some of which could be smaller and cheaper than today’s Honda E, with the first of these expected to arrive in 2027.
Before then, in 2025, Honda will launch a new electric model in partnership with technology giant Sony. In the run-up to that launch, it’s likely that Sony’s influence will be felt in a new generation of infotainment systems. This is an area where Honda has struggled in recent years, with its current crop of infotainment systems offering sluggish responses and dated graphics.
Many of the planned electric models will be built on new underpinnings, which will be designed to incorporate the Japanese car maker’s latest self-driving systems. This could include the ability for the car to drive itself under limited conditions, such as on a motorway.
A successor to today’s Civic Type R hot hatchback has also been confirmed, although this is not expected to be electrified and thus will have a short lifespan, because the sale of new petrol and diesel cars will be banned in the UK from 2030.
The family sized electric SUV is based on the e:Ny1 concept car, and will have a battery capacity in the region of 70kWh, making for a range of around 300 miles. This would place it in line with the 77kWh Volkswagen ID.4 and 69kWh Volvo XC40 Recharge, which offer official ranges of 324 miles and 260 miles respectively.
The dimensions of the car will also be very similar to the current hybrid HR-V, which means that space inside should remain largely unchanged. While the name of the electric SUV, and indeed all of the upcoming electric models, is currently unknown, Honda has applied to patent e:Ny1-9 in Chinese and European territories, suggesting the new range may be badged as such. This would follow Volkswagen’s naming strategy, with its ID-badged electric cars taking numerical values based on size.
Honda will also invest £31bn in electric car technology, including the development of solid-state batteries that offer longer ranges than existing units, and swappable batteries that could make waiting for a charging point a thing of the past. The company is also known to be exploring
Keyword: 2023 Honda SUV to spearhead new range of electric cars