Electric e:Ny1 and ZR-V and CR-V hybrids will be crucial to its European resurgence
Honda will launch three crucial new electrified SUVs in Europe by the end of 2023 as it presses ahead with a bold plan to both reduce its fleet emissions and boost its competitiveness in key market segments.
The new-generation CR-V crossover, the smaller ZR-V and the electric e:Ny1 represent nothing less than the start of a new era for Honda in Europe, setting the tone for a rapid-fire global product onslaught, with the brand launching 30 EVs globally by 2030 and ditching combustion entirely by 2040.
Continuing with a “multi-pathway” powertrain approach because “not everybody is ready to make the switch” to an EV, according to European vice-president Tom Gardner, Honda is in the second phase of its transformative electrification programme and now ramping up to phase three, when it will start dramatically increasing the proportion of EVs in its global line-up.
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HONDA E:NY1
The e:Ny1 is Honda’s second EV for Europe, beginning the brand’s bold push to become a volume player in one of Europe’s most important segments.
When it’s launched in the coming months, at a starting price of roughly £35,000, it will serve as a direct rival to the likes of the Hyundai Kona Electric, Jeep Avenger and Peugeot e-2008.
Completely unrelated to the E supermini in terms of its positioning, technical make-up and design, the e:Ny1 is essentially an electric equivalent of the HR-V hybrid.
It’s a familiar proposition in size and shape but is all-new inside and underneath and will be marketed as a completely bespoke model.
Underpinning the e:Ny1 is Honda’s e:N Architecture F, a new front-wheel-drive, pure-EV platform designed to offer “the dynamic performance, exceptional comfort and refinement that drivers will expect from Honda’s latest EV”.
Here, it hosts a single motor on the front axle with 201bhp and 229lb ft (significantly more grunt than the E), which should be sufficient for a 0-62mph time of around 8.0sec.
Power comes from a battery with a 62kWh (usable) capacity, good for a competitive 256-mile range on the WLTP test cycle – roughly in line with rivals and almost double that of the E.
Its maximum charging rate is slower than rivals’, at 78kW,
