{"id":33932,"date":"2025-01-08T11:33:46","date_gmt":"2025-01-08T15:33:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=33932"},"modified":"2025-01-08T11:33:46","modified_gmt":"2025-01-08T15:33:46","slug":"honda-unveils-sci-fi-electric-0-series-ev-prototypes-at-ces","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/honda-unveils-sci-fi-electric-0-series-ev-prototypes-at-ces","title":{"rendered":"Honda unveils sci-fi, electric 0 Series EV prototypes at CES"},"content":{"rendered":"

Las Vegas<\/em>\u00a0\u2014 Honda Motor Co. is going all-electric, and on Tuesday at the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show it introduced the most radical-looking vehicles this side of a Cybertruck.<\/p>\n

The first models in its so-called 0 Series electric-vehicle lineup are the Saloon Prototype sedan and SUV Prototype. Both will be made in Ohio at Honda\u2019s new flexible EV Hub manufacturing facility and are slated for production in 2026 (with global markets to follow) meaning the prototypes are close to production form.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Honda Saloon Prototype looks like Lamborghini made a station wagon.<\/em><\/div>\n
Henry Payne, The Detroit News<\/em><\/div>\n

Along with General Motors Co., which has targeted 2035 as the end of internal combustion engine sales, Honda has been the most aggressive legacy automaker in its electrification goals. Honda aims to be all-electric by 2040. Its exotic-looking flagship EVs are meant to dramatize the fact that the Japanese automaker is changing the way it makes cars for the company\u2019s \u201cSecond Founding\u201d as a zero-emissions, zero-crashes automaker. It’s a stylish turn from the utilitarian, entry-level Civics that first drew Americans to Honda in the 1970s.<\/p>\n

The 0 Series halo will be the wedge-shaped Saloon, which looks like a Lamborghini and a station wagon had a baby. With an asphalt-sniffing anteater nose and sharply raked windshield, Saloon might be mistaken for a Lambo Gallardo, save for its four doors. The SUV\u2019s measurements are similar to a Honda CR-V, and it bears a more conventional hatchback shape. But its big, squared-off rear end looks like a \u201cspinner\u201d car from the \u201cBlade Runner\u00a02049\u201d sci-fi movie. Its mail-slot nose reminds of a 2025 Dodge Charger or Honda\u2019s discontinued \u201ce\u201d electric car.<\/p>\n

Honda gave a first look at its 0 Series lineup at last year\u2019s CES with the Saloon and Space-Hub concepts. The new 0 Series prototypes have advanced on those concepts with more production-ready equipment like conventional headlights (though the Saloon sports exotic sliding covers), forward-facing seats and proper greenhouse appointments.<\/p>\n

Exotic as they look, it\u2019s the sci-fi tech inside that inspired Honda to debut the 0 Series siblings (0 for zero emissions\/crashes) at the country\u2019s premier electronics show. 0 Series electronics are on the industry\u2019s bleeding edge.<\/p>\n

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The Honda Saloon and SUV Prototypes are the first EV models for the Honda 0 Series.<\/em><\/div>\n
Henry Payne, The Detroit News<\/em><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Both models will be equipped with hardware to deliver Level 3 self-driving capability \u2014 leapfrogging the industry\u2019s current Level 2 driver assistance leaders, Tesla Inc., General Motors Co., and Ford Motor Co. if Honda gets regulatory approval. Current L2 systems demand driver attention and monitor the pilot\u2019s eyes. Honda calls its Level 3, hands-free capability \u201cEyes-Off\u201d and it’s supported by multi-sensor technology, including lidar. The company has been experimenting with it on Japanese roads since 2021.<\/p>\n

Pending U.S. government approval, Honda says the first step towards zero crashes will be to apply self-driving tech on expressways during low-speed traffic jams, then expand its capabilities via over-the-air updates. Over time, the L3 system will allow drivers to conduct “second tasks on the move,” such as watching movies and holding remote meetings.<\/p>\n

The 0 Series is a dramatic departure from Honda\u2019s first EV in the U.S. market, the midsize 2024 Prologue. The most expensive vehicle in Honda\u2019s lineup, the $50k-plus Prologue is also one of the most vanilla-looking vehicles in an EV segment that includes dramatic designs like the Tesla Model X and Kia EV9.<\/p>\n

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Hatchback. The Honda SUV Prototype<\/em><\/div>\n
Henry Payne, The Detroit News<\/em><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

This was due, in part, to the limitations of Honda producing the car on GM’s Ultium EV platform in Mexico. The Prologue shares the footprint and Google Built-in operating system with the Chevy Blazer EV. Nevertheless, Prologue sold a healthy 33,000 copies last year \u2014 nearly 30% mor than the Chevy and fifth best for U.S. EVs. That\u2019s well shy of sales of Honda\u2019s similarly-sized, gas-powered $42k Pilot\/Passport SUV at 175,000 units.<\/p>\n

The 0 Series models will be clean sheet from the ground up, built on Honda\u2019s own battery-electric platform and controlled by its in-house Asimo operating system. The OS has its roots in the Asimo robot that Honda showed at CES in 2007.<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing drew a crowd like Asimo,\u201d said Jay Joseph, Honda’s vice president for business development, of the talking robot. \u201cSo it\u2019s meaningful to us calling the car\u2019s OS Asimo.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The distinctive rear of the Honda Saloon Prototype.<\/em><\/div>\n
Henry Payne, The Detroit News<\/em><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

While GM\u2019s bulky Ultium platform can weigh up to three tons for a midsize SUV, Honda says its new architecture will be \u201cthin, light and wise.\u201d It will be made in Ohio with six 6,000-ton high-pressure die cast machines standing over 31 feet tall \u2014 the biggest die-cast parts Honda has ever made.<\/p>\n

The interiors of the Saloon and SUV prototypes are also a dramatic departure from previous Hondas.<\/p>\n

They share airy cabins with full length, Tesla-like panoramic glass roofs. With its sci-fi, squared-off rear end, the Saloon has no rear window, so drivers use a camera mirror to see out the back like a Polestar 4. The SUV has a rear window.<\/p>\n

The wide horizontal dashes contain three digital displays like a $105k Mercedes EQS: an instrument display behind the Tesla-like yoke steering wheel, a central instrument display and a right-side passenger display. \u201cBrake-by-wire\u201d and \u201csteering-by-wire\u201d are electronically controlled. The high-backed seats and materials look premium but Honda would not share plans for pricing.<\/p>\n

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The Honda SUV Prototype sports big screens and a yoke steering wheel.<\/em><\/div>\n
Henry Payne, The Detroit News<\/em><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

In addition to its cutting-edge electronics, Honda promises robust charging software to complement the brand\u2019s investment in the IONNA network\u2019s 30,000 chargers by 2030. IONNA is a joint project of eight automakers in order to rival Tesla\u2019s proprietary Superchargers. Following Tesla\u2019s lead, the Honda 0 Series models will come equipped with a NACS charger (North American Charging Standard) connector replacing the bulkier CCS nozzle of current models. NACS will also give Honda EVs access to Tesla\u2019s network.<\/p>\n

Charger access will be enhanced by a partnership with Amazon Web Services, which offers generative technology like Amazon Bedrock that will help drivers find charging stations and simplify payment methods. Another partnership with semiconductor maker Renesas Electronics also promises higher computing power in future 0 Series models through a central vehicle CPU.<\/p>\n

With an eye on a larger social agenda, Honda\u2019s Second Founding is governed by sustainable and autonomous goals promising aggressive moves to electrification and self-driving.<\/p>\n

Previous reception of its battery-powered products, however, has been lukewarm.<\/p>\n

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The panoramic roof of the Honda Saloon Prototype.<\/em><\/div>\n
Henry Payne, The Detroit News<\/em><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Its 1999 Insight hybrid played second fiddle to the Toyota Prius for many years before being nixed in 2022. The automaker’s first all-electric model, the aforementioned subcompact Honda e, was sold in Asia and Europe (though not the U.S.) and was discontinued due to poor sales in 2024.<\/p>\n

Honda is resetting its hybrid\/EV strategy. Hybrid versions of its Civic, Accord and CR-V models are expected to make up 50% of sales this decade \u2014 a bridge, the company says, to EVs.<\/p>\n

The 0 Series is a major commitment of resources as part of Honda\u2019s Ohio EV Hub \u2014 with EV manufacturing that parallels gas-model production. Honda has moved construction of its popular Accord sedan from Marysville north of Columbus to Indiana. Marysville assembly is being retooled so the Ohio complex can make gas or electric cars depending on consumer demand.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t force our customers to buy EVs,\u201d said Lance Woefler, U.S. vice president for auto sales.<\/p>\n

The sprawling $5 billion EV Hub is a network of four vehicle and battery manufacturing facilities. The bulk of that investment is aimed at the East Jefferson battery plant near Cincinnati, where Honda has partnered with LG Energy Solutions to produce 0 Series cells.<\/p>\n

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Las Vegas\u00a0\u2014 Honda Motor Co. is going all-electric, and on Tuesday at the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show it introduced the most radical-looking vehicles this side of a Cybertruck. The first models in its so-called 0 Series electric-vehicle lineup are the Saloon Prototype sedan and SUV Prototype. Both will be made in Ohio at Honda\u2019s new […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,87],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33932"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33932"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33932\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33933,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33932\/revisions\/33933"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33932"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33932"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33932"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}