new Honda 0 EV fashions inch nearer to manufacturing

Honda kicked off the 2025 Client Electronics Present (CES) in excessive fashion at this time with the worldwide debut of the primary two fashions in its new 0 Collection of EVs set to roll off the road in 2026 – alongside along with your latest street journey buddy: ASIMO (!).

With speak of synthetic intelligence and robotics starting to overwhelm the dialogue round forward-looking cars, it’s price noting that Honda has been growing each superior AIs and humanoid robots for many years – most notably the pleasant, faceless ASIMO robotic that promised to deal with lonely seniors (versus Tesla’s Optimus, which guarantees to take your union job and put your loved ones on the road).

As an enormous fan of the OG ASIMO, I used to be genuinely delighted to see the pleasant robotic’s identify featured prominently within the official press launch saying the brand new 0 Collection.

Welcome again, ASIMO

In its newest iteration, ASIMO isn’t a cuddly robotic, however a brand new, authentic automobile working system developed by Honda that, the model hopes, will supply a equally pleasant e-mobility expertise to 0 Collection drivers.

ASIMO has realized quite a bit from different proprietary automobile OSs, too. For starters, it’s continually updating the in-vehicle software program via over the air (OTA) updates for each the digital UX and built-in dynamics controls that can enable Honda to ship, “a customized possession expertise that can improve the enjoyment of driving.”

For 0 Collection drivers who discover extra pleasure in texting than steering, ASIMO may also be managing an up to date model of Honda SENSING Elite – a Degree 3 autonomous ADAS resolution first seen on the 2021 Honda Legend within the Japanese Market.

2021 Honda Legend

Which is nice data for Honda fanatics – however you’re not right here to speak a couple of 5 yr outdated, ICE-powered, Japan-only sedan. That is Electrek, and also you’re right here for the brand new hotness, and that begins with a have a look at the brand new, electrical Honda 0 SUV.

2026 Honda 0 SUV

Additional growing the themes first proven in final yr’s Honda House-Hub idea and based mostly on Honda’s new, internally-developed EV structure, the 0 SUV would be the first “all Honda” EV to hit the US market when begins rolling off the manufacturing line on the Honda EV Hub in Ohio within the first half of 2026.

That’s proper, children: the brand new Honda EVs will probably be made within the USA, deftly avoiding any potential tariffs and heralding the outcomes of greater than $5 billion of funding in American manufacturing on Honda’s half – one thing that’s refreshing to see in a market the place company information has been dominated by multi-billion greenback inventory buybacks and labor disputes in current months.

Particulars like battery capability, energy and torque, dynamic efficiency figures, and even driving vary are restricted – if not nonexistent. That mentioned, it’s protected to imagine that the

2026 Honda 0 Saloon

Over on the sedan facet, the prototype Honda 0 Saloon is a stone-cold stunner. Considered one of my fellow journalists remarked that it appeared extra like, “a Lamborghini Saloon than a Honda,” and the comment was met with realizing nods. For positive, there’s a LOT of Honda’s iconic, Pininfarina-designed HPX idea from 1984 within the new 0 Saloon’s profile – however that’s wholly intentional, and the HPX was alluded to as one of many firm’s stylistic touchpoints when the 0 Collection idea made its debut eventually yr’s CES.

Just like the SUV, the Saloon announcement is mild on particulars. Nonetheless, the corporate says the brand new automotive will function a number of next-generation applied sciences that, “embody the ‘Skinny, Mild and Smart’ growth strategy of the Honda 0 Collection.

Being none of these issues, I’d like to listen to extra about horsepower and torque – or, no less than, have a greater understanding of how these rear home windows are imagined to go up and down.

That mentioned, this can be a prototype. That’s completely different from a idea within the sense that almost all idea automobiles have virtually no likelihood at manufacturing. In distinction, a prototype is simply that: the primary (proto) of its sort (kind). It’s type of promise to stakeholders that one thing actually very a lot an entire lot simply. Like. This. Is coming … and perhaps even coming quickly.

Charging the 0 Collection

At a Honda roundtable dialogue forward of CES2025, Honda North America executives mentioned EV charging – and the sensation was that Honda, like Tesla, was able to take duty for the whole EV possession expertise by enjoying an even bigger function in IONNA, the 7 OEM collaboration launched final February.

We’re not going to see Honda-branded chargers, however Honda insists it isn’t going to depart the charging expertise to another person, both.

“The aim is to have ASIMO ship reside journey planning and cost level routing, however customise the expertise because it will get to know you,” explains Jay Joseph, VP of Sustainability and Enterprise Improvement at Honda North America (paraphrasing). “Whether or not that’s routing you to a cost level that makes use of cleaner vitality or areas which have pet-friendly amenities, that’s one thing that we hope to convey to the charging expertise.”

What’s extra, Honda needs that charging expertise to be as simple and ubiquitous as fuel is at this time. “We imagine we are able to rival Supercharger Community by the tip of this decade,” continues Joseph. “We’re very assured,” he mentioned, doubling down, whereas he defined that Honda would ship the 0 Collection fashions with J3400/NACS (learn: Tesla) fashion connectors.

Plug and cost, AI-driven routing and charging options and journey navigation, and extra ASIMO-driven enhancements to the EV possession expertise have been talked about – “by the center of subsequent decade, BEVs could possibly be the biggest supply of saved vitality to assist easy out the so-called ‘duck curve’ of the present vitality grid. We predict V2G will assist easy that out, and allow clients’ vitality prices to be rather more predictable.”

Electrek’s Take

Up shut, Honda’s upcoming 0 Collection SUV appears a lot nearer to production-spec than its Saloon sibling – and that is sensible. In North America and Europe, these automobiles’ major markets, 5 passenger crossovers are the meatiest a part of the mainstream market, and the place any economies of scale are more likely to happen.

And that’s wonderful. Honda isn’t saying “that is it,” they’re saying they’re going to construct one thing like this. The small print might change, the bumpers might develop a bit and the wheels might shrink a bit and the mirrors will certainly develop an entire lot, however when you like the way in which these prototypes look, you’ll in all probability just like the manufacturing model.

The true information right here, then, isn’t the automobiles. Sure, they’re great-looking machines, and so they enhance (I believe) on the themes first proven in 2024. As a substitute, the information is that Honda is taking their clients’ total possession expertise critically – and so they’re utilizing AI in a method that guarantees to cater to your particular person wants, not essentially market to your particular person tastes.

It can do this, too, in fact. However not simply that.

We’ll have extra Honda and CES2025 information all through the week. For now, although, check out a number of the sneak peek photographs we took final night time and tell us what you consider the up to date Honda 0 Collection EVs within the feedback part.

2026 Honda 0 Collection gallery

SOURCE | IMAGES: Honda, Electrek.