The upcoming SUV will finally give Honda buyers an EV option, but just how different will it be from other Ultium platform models?
Honda- Honda reveals the tech behind the design process of the Prologue electric SUV, due in 2024.
- The Prologue and its Acura twin will share the Ultium platform with a number of General Motors models.
- Honda plans to roll out its own EV platform in 2026, dubbed e:Architecture, that will underpin future EVs.
Honda’s first modern mass-market EV (after the Clarity Electric) is still a couple of years away, but we’ve already gotten a few brief glimpses of the Prologue by now. Slated to be underpinned by General Motors’ Ultium batteries, the SUV will land in a busy segment, one that already has a number of entries and will see a few more by 2024. The Prologue will be accompanied by an Acura variant, intended to offer a bit more luxury but still reliant upon the same Ultium underpinnings.
But there are still a lot of things Honda hasn’t revealed about the Prologue.
Honda shared a short film this week detailing the design process of the Prologue, whose exterior appearance we’ve seen only as a sketch up until now. The short film delves into the futuristic tech behind the design process.
“Designing the first volume Honda electric vehicle gave us more freedom than a vehicle with an internal-combustion engine, and we can stretch our imagination, especially in styling the front end,” said Sang-Hyuk Ahn, a four-year exterior designer at Honda. “We envisioned Prologue with a longer wheelbase, shorter overhang, and capable tires to create sporty proportions and a stronger stance.”
Overall, Honda is certainly taking a measured approach to electrification, with the Prologue and its Acura twin scheduled to be the only two EVs we’ll see in the first half of the decade. But Honda intends to rely entirely on its own engineering a bit further down the road, planning to introduce the e:Architecture in 2026.
The automaker is perhaps not in a hurry to offer EVs, as industry watchers have noted, but it is taking steps in that direction, as there are Honda buyers who’ve been waiting for electric offerings from the automaker.
The short film gives these prospective buyers a small taste of what they’ll see in just a couple of years, showcasing the cutting edge tech that is changing the way vehicle designs are created.
“We were able to see Prologue in digital environments that truly resemble the real world,” said Marco Tan, VR and CG designer with Honda Design. “By simulating and evaluating colors, materials, and even lighting in a virtual 3D environment we were able to explore possibilities that took styling to a higher level.”
Keyword: Here’s How Honda Is Designing the Prologue EV SUV