This morning at the 2024 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Honda as offered the public a glimpse into its future as an all-electric brand, unveiling two EV concepts as part of its new “0 Series” of passenger vehicles that will be sold globally. That will begin with a bespoke Honda model evolving from the Saloon concept you can see below.
2024 is a new year and a blank slate for all of us, including legacy OEMs like Honda, trying to pave their way into a growing BEV market worldwide. While Honda had previously held a position on one side of the street with its fellow Japanese automakers like Toyota, viewing an all-electric future of mobility with skepticism and reluctance, the 75-year-old automaker has had a change of heart. It is going electric – but now it has to play catchup.
Honda now has several EVs in the pipeline, including the upcoming Prologue SUV built atop GM’s Ultium platform. The Japanese automaker also announced collaborations with other OEMs in 2023 to establish local charging networks.
We just saw Honda pull the plug on production of its “e” minicar in Europe while also nixing plans to build additional affordable EVs with GM. These recent moves have begun paving the way for Honda’s future lineup of all-electric vehicles, several of which have already been teased.
This morning in Las Vegas, we learned that Honda’s new lineup of EVs will get their own unique “H” badge (seen below), and part of this welcome electrification strategy includes a new series called “0.” The automaker shared that the 0 Series is based on three core principles: Thin, Light, and Wise.
Sounds a lot like my 2024 resolutions.
Honda kicked off the public debut of the 0 Series with two concept EVs, one of which will inspire the new line’s first production model.
Honda unveils new logo, two EV concepts
In front of a crowd at CES 2024 this morning, Honda unveiled the two EV concepts developed under a “new Honda electrification design and engineering approach.” The vehicles seen below are called “Saloon” and “Space-Hub” and arrive as the precursor to Honda’s next-generation 0 Series EVs. Per Honda Global EVP Shinji Aoyama:
We have gone back to basics and formulated the Honda 0 Series with a design for the new era. A bold and pure proportion that from the first glance is overwhelmingly different from other EVs to evoke a new perspective for people.
Let’s start with the Saloon. Honda is calling this EV its flagship concept for the 0 Series. It sits atop the automaker’s dedicated platform while showcasing its “man maximum/machine minimum (M/M) design language in which it is low, wide, and spacious. Other features include steer-by-wire and motion control management systems, as well as robotic posture control that adjusts the driver throughout various driving situations so they can “realize the ‘joy of driving’ in the EV era.”
Honda says its first passenger EV in the 0 Series will be based on this Saloon concept and is expected to hit the North American market in 2026. Have a look:
Honda’s second EV concept, making its global debut in Vegas this morning, is a much larger EV with an interesting caboose called the Space-Hub. Honda was lighter on details of this one but said it was developing under the idea of “augmenting people’s daily lives.”
As such, the Space-Hub offers a roomy interior, seating for several passengers and an airy panoramic glass roof you can see in the images below.
So far, there has been no mention from Honda about developing Space-Hub concept into a production EV just yet. That could change as we near 2026 when Honda’s 0 Series is set to launch in North America alongside additional EV models in markets like Japan, Asia, Europe, Africa and the Middle East and South America.
Honda offers a better look at the Saloon EV concept via the launch video below. Enjoy!