Honda
The global auto show might be in decline, but at least fans of futuristic cars still have CES. Today, Honda unveiled a pair of concepts in Las Vegas that it says preview a new range of electric vehicles. Called the Honda 0 series, the first of these new EVs is due to go on sale here in the US in 2026.
That car will be based on the Saloon, a sedan-ish car that looks like it just teleported in from Neo Tokyo. Some of the Saloon’s details might get watered down by the inevitable compromises of road legality regulations, but fans of the sedan should take comfort in its name—”saloon” is what they call one of those in Britain.
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Just the other day, someone was lamenting the lack of cool-looking concepts.
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Honda says it will use posture control, derived from its robotics know-how, to assist the driver.
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How will it look when it’s not moodily lit?
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The low-slung form factor is increasingly out of style these days due to a confluence of factors that now includes the difficulty in packaging a slab of batteries into something that isn’t crossover-shaped. But that appears to have been taken as something of a challenge by the automaker.
“The mobility we dream of is not an extension of the trend of ‘thick, heavy, but smart’ EVs,” said Toshihiro Mibe, global CEO of Honda. “We will create a completely new value from zero based on thin, light, and wise as the foundation for our new Honda 0 EV series to further advance the joy and freedom of mobility to the next level.”
Honda says it wants to bring the “joy of driving” to EVs, which it plans to deliver through new steer-by-wire and handling algorithms, perhaps similar to the way Ferrari programs its cars to flatter and enthuse their drivers.
“We have gone back to basics and formulated the Honda 0 Series with a design for the new era,” said Honda global EVP Shinji Aoyama. “A bold and pure proportion that from the first glance is overwhelmingly different from other EVs to evoke a new perspective for people.”
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Does the Space-Hub preview a new Honda minivan?
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A big glasshouse means the Space-Hub is a good place to stargaze.
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Honda’s second concept is called the Space-Hub, and with any luck, it signals a future for the minivan, itself an endangered species. There should be no packaging constraints here—instead, Honda says the Space-Hub can be configured to a range of different uses, with big windows that connect “people with each other and the outside world.”
Honda has even gone to the trouble of designing a new “H” logo for the 0 Series—the outstretched hands represent “Honda’s commitment to expand the possibilities of mobility and continue to meet the needs of its customers,” we’re told.
