Honda will be showing its compact electric car at the Geneva Motor Show starting next week. Although officially still a nameless "prototype" is the 3,92 meter long four-door car except for trifles already ready for mass production.
Now they all come with their electric cars, also Honda makes after a long hesitation. At the Geneva Motor Show is a cuddly four-door, the so-called concept car two years ago at the IAA for the first time attracted attention and already seemed to be forgotten. The wait was worthwhile, however, because the tin-plated answer of the Japanese on the question of the ideal city car can be seen both inside and out.
In comparison to the Frankfurt appetizer a lot has changed. Was that still a two-door with centrally battered, quite wide entrances, Honda has decided in the sense of later customers then but a four-door. However, it is well camouflaged thanks to the hidden in the rear roof pillar handle. The silhouette of the small car has become square, probably because of the headroom for the rear passengers. What remains is the friendly-cheeky face with the circular headlight eyes in LED technology. Memories of the 1974 released first VW Golf are awake. He, too, looked from round eyes on both sides of the rectangular radiator grille. With 3,70 Meter the Wolfsburg classic was a good 20 centimeters shorter than today's Honda and was then not as a small car.
A striking eye-catcher of the electrical Asians is the large, hidden under a flap on the front cover opening for the charging plug. A clear sign to the environment that this car will stop at a charging instead of a petrol pump. Whether it creates the illuminated in the dark Honda logo in the grill in the series production, is not yet clear. Here, German regulations, which currently do not allow a central white light, still slow down Japanese inventiveness. The rear reflects the front optics, but of course with red round lights.
It is allowed to do without classic side mirror ears. Where these are normally placed, small pegs protrude from the sheet on both sides, each of which carries a camera. The Honda solution is much more subtle than, for example, that of the Audi Q5 etron, whose camera housing extends as far out of the body as a normal mirror. The so-called virtual retrospect is standard for the small Japanese, for the 80.000-euro Audi it costs 1.540 euros extra. The color monitors on the two corners of the car-wide dashboard provide a razor-sharp image, the driver's head movement is a few degrees less than usual for years. The inside mirror is also a small screen, which is fed by the rear camera.
The faucets themselves are formed by several screens, which in total merge to form an extremely wide unit. The individual displays can be programmed according to the taste and mood of the driver. They carry, for example, speedometer, navigation, entertainment and above all information about the electric drive. The lower limit of the monitors forms a gentle stage in wood decoration, in which four classic buttons and a rotary switch are housed. Together with the control unit of the air conditioning, they represent the analog of the otherwise virtual world of the electric car. Noteworthy is also the abundance of plugs in the lower center. In addition to cans for 230 and 12 Volt, there are two USB sockets and an HDMI port.
The most important question: How far can I get with my E-Mini? Honda speaks of more than 200 kilometers according to new WLPT standard. This is much less than with other new releases, but follows the logic that the still nameless is designed as a pure city vehicle and is rarely used in rural transport. On a strong electric pump, the battery should be recharged in half an hour to 80 percent of its power. Honda will reveal more details about the performance of the engine only at the Geneva booth.
The four-seater with its trim for the outside dimensions occurs, for example, against the four-door electric Smart, various small cars from China or planned for 2022 E-Mini from VW. The Honda will roll off the line from the end of the year, on the road he will come 2020. First, 5.000 pieces are planned for the whole of Europe. Even if the price is not yet determined, interested parties should hurry for the sympathetic car.