Fully-Electric Honda 0 Saloon And SUV Inch Closer To Production

Honda is again taking their 0 Series range of electric vehicles (EVs) to the CES stage. This time, though, their concept cars are much more representative of what will be put on sale by next year. The 0 Saloon returns, maintaining its wedge-shaped silhouette, while this event marks the debut of the 0 SUV.

Honda 0 SUV

The Honda 0 SUV draws many design cues from last year’s Space Hub minivan concept, such as the thick D-pillar and upright rear fascia, but the rest of the design has been adopted for an SUV body style. Once again, compared to the radical-looking Space Hub, the 0 SUV looks more production intent, featuring pixelated LED headlights, flat body panels with flushed door handles, and a rising beltline that gives this electric SUV a dynamic silhouette. Adding flair to its design is its blacked-out roof and the U-shaped full-width LED taillights, which have now become a design signature of the 0 Series EVs.

Moving inside, the 0 SUV has a tech-heavy interior, wherein screens dominate the experience, along with a yoke-style steering wheel. The front passenger also gets their own screen. The thin A-pillars and the glass roof help in creating great outward visibility and also provide the interior with a lot of light. Speaking of light, there’s the obligatory ambient LED lighting that’s currently in vogue with many new vehicles these days.

Honda 0 Saloon

While this marks the first time we’re seeing the 0 SUV, the 0 Saloon returns at CES in a more production-ready form. Gone are the gullwing doors of the initial concept car, which have been replaced by conventional doors with flushed door handles and digital wing mirrors. What has been retained is its wedge-shaped design that obviously prioritizes aerodynamics for excellent range.

The front end’s design has also been toned down, with the front screen being removed for a blank panel with illuminated blades at the bottom. The LED headlights also now feature retractable covers–a modern take on the pop-up headlamps of the past. Finally, the rear end has the 0 Series signature design for the LED taillights with an ovoid shape, but what it lacks is a rear windshield. Whether this becomes reality or not remains to be seen.

Likewise, the interior of the Honda 0 Saloon is very futuristic and tech-heavy, with three screens dominating the dash along with a yoke-style steering wheel. Unlike in the 0 SUV, the steering of the 0 Saloon rotates out of the way to make it easy for drivers to enter and exit this low-slung sedan. Ambient LED lighting and a minimalist design are expected these days from a radically styled EV, and that’s what the Honda 0 Saloon also gets.

Driving Dynamics At Its Core

Honda isn’t simply developing EVs out of necessity and instead sees this as a core component for its carbon neutrality and electrification plans. The 0 Series EVs will come with Honda’s new steer-by-wire system, which integrates suspension, steering, and brakes into one electronics architecture.

The 0 Series EVs will ride on the same platform as Honda and Sony’s Afeela EV, which was built on the principle of “Thin, Light, and Wise”. The platform was developed to be thin by shrinking the battery pack’s thickness whilst improving range through smart battery management software. Speaking of range, while technical details about the battery and electric motors have not yet been revealed, the 0 Series EVs have a targeted range of more than 483 kilometers in a full charge.

Say Hello To Asimo

Remember Asimo the smart humanoid robot? It’s now branded as Honda’s upcoming new software-defined vehicle (SDV) architecture called Asimo OS. Asimo OS will serve as the backbone of Honda’s 0 Series EVs. The operating system links together the advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS), the infotainment, and even the driving dynamics of the vehicle. Speaking of ADAS, Asimo OS will debut Level 3 conditional self-driving capabilities, including “eyes-off” functionality during highway traffic jams, where regulations allow.

Honda has partnered with Renesas for the development of cutting-edge processors and chips that consolidate multiple systems into a single core unit. A core component of an SDV is the reduction of ECUs. Rather than having one ECU for each in-vehicle feature, SDVs have fewer ECUs, instead consolidating related features into one ECU to optimize energy efficiency and processing power for the operating system.

North America Will Be The First Customers

Honda’s 0 Series EVs will be initially built at the Japanese automaker’s upcoming dedicated EV hub in Ohio, USA. The 0 SUV will first launch in North America by 2026, while the 0 Saloon will follow a year later. European and Japan expansion is confirmed, but other details such as assembly and manufacturing plans are not yet final.