Honda e Discontinued After Three Years in Europe, Japan
Remember the Honda e, the cute electric city car that debuted at the 2019 Frankfurt Auto Show and hit the market a year later? It’s already set for retirement.
A lot of folks were intrigued at first, even on this side of the Atlantic, in part because it embodied a cool, zero-emission take on the first-generation Civic. Unfortunately, the Honda e’s limited capabilities, numerous compromises and steep price didn’t really give it a chance to succeed.
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As of now, the automaker is no longer taking orders in the few European countries that were still selling it, and dealers will try to unload the remaining units. Over in Japan, a message on Honda’s consumer website says, "Production of the Honda e will end in January 2024. Honda e will be discontinued once the production run is sold out."
Fans of the tiny hatchback will probably continue to rave about its outstanding manoeuverability and full-width digital interface inside, the former attributable to perfect weight distribution, a super-low centre of gravity and a turning radius of just 4.3 metres.
On the other hand, despite its 232 lb-ft of torque, the electric motor in the Honda e (134 hp or 152 hp depending on the model) delivered slower-than-expected acceleration (in the 8-second range). Meanwhile, the small 35.5kWh battery allowed a range of just 220 km according to the WLTP test cycle—better than a Mazda MX-30 or the current MINI Cooper SE, but still far from impressive. And let's not forget the tight trunk.
In places like Germany, the Honda e will effectively be replaced by the new e:NY1 crossover, which is slightly more expensive but also provides much more space and longer range (WLTP: 412 km).
As for us, the 2024 Honda Prologue will launch next spring as the brand’s first EV in North America, with a base price topping $60,000. We also reported last week that Honda will attend CES 2024 in Las Vegas (Jan. 9-12) to introduce an all-new global electric vehicle series, presumably in the form of concepts. Stay tuned.
