If you happen to be at KLIMS 2024, happening from 5-11 December, visit the Honda booth where a Honda HR-V without a front grille is parked on display. What is it, you wonder? That is the Honda e:N1, essentially an electric vehicle (EV) version of the HR-V, which will be launched in Malaysia in 2025.
The Honda e:N1 made its global debut in China, known as the e:Np1, and was later exported to Europe under the e:NY1 name. So what’s the reason for all these similar names with different letterings? To be honest, we are not sure either. Perhaps Honda is employing a naming strategy that differentiates the models slightly for each market.
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Although the exterior of the Honda e:N1 looks virtually identical to the HR-V, Honda says the e:N1 is actually built on completely different underpinnings, dubbed the e:N Architecture F platform.
With Honda essentially copying and pasting the Honda HR-V body onto the e:N1, it makes for a design that is already well known to people and might entice car buyers to venture into EV ownership.
The interior of the Honda e:N1 shares some similarities to the HR-V’s interior except for a bigger touchscreen infotainment display and a digital display for the driver. The centre console is also reworked. In place of the gear lever is a row of buttons to put the Honda e:N1 into gear.
Powertrain details of the Honda e:N1 include a front-mounted electric motor making 204 hp (150 kW) and 310 Nm. This is supplemented by a 68.8 kWh battery pack providing a WLTP-rated range upwards of 412 km.
Considering that the popularity of EVs is on the rise in Malaysia, could the local debut of the Honda e:N1 make its mark amongst the wave of BYDs and Teslas? Only time will tell, and we won’t need to wait long to find out in 2025!
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