Honda is shifting its priorities with the reveal of the Prologue which is a changing of philosophy and direction in terms of engineering and design. Honda has been manufacturing Hybrids since 1999, if the company had any choice it would prefer a move into hydrogen-powered vehicles because hydrogen is championed by the Japanese government. However, hydrogen is an unstable and difficult-to-manage element which is why battery-powered vehicles have come to the forefront not least because Tesla showed everybody the way forward.
And so here we have the Honda Prologue, a made for North America electric SUV set to go on sale in 2024. The Prologue will form the frontline to Honda’s EV strategy that will see 30 new electric car launches by 2030. Honda plans to end the sale of all internal combustion engine sales by 2040.
The Prologue is bigger than the CRV, closer in size to the mammoth BMW X7. The biggest takeaway here is that the Prologue reveals a maturing of Honda’s often disjointed design language. If it looks good we don’t need to add any superfluous commentary. The Honda Prologue was co-developed with General Motors and uses GM’s BEV3 platform and powertrain systems and battery technology.
Honda has not yet revealed full technical specs, but one can assume the Prologue will offer similar electric powertrain technology to that of it’s key rivals from Toyota, Ford. So expect 2WD and AWD variants, fast charging capability and a range of between 260-330 miles.
The Honda Prologue is scheduled for retail sales in 2024 at which point full technical and price point details will emerge.