Honda showcases US-made EV prototypes as it mulls slowing investments

By Chester Dawson

 

Honda Motor Co. revealed two electric vehicle prototypes heralding a wave of new battery-powered models it plans to release in the years ahead, though the carmaker may dial back the pace of its EV investments if demand continues to lose steam.

 

The two models — a sedan and and SUV — will be built at Honda’s plant in Ohio and sold in the US starting early next year, the company said on Tuesday. They’re the first of 30 new EVs Honda plans to introduce globally by 2030.

 

The company is aiming for 100 per cent zero-emission automobile sales in North America by 2040, but has indicated it’s open to shifting gears if demand for EVs continues to wane. That may be exacerbated if President-elect Donald Trump follows through on threats to do away with EV tax credits.

 

 

“Some investment plans may be delayed as growth slows down, but we haven’t changed our thinking on bringing more EVs to market,” Katsushi Inoue, a senior managing director in charge of EV business development, said in an interview. “EVs will go mainstream over a longer-term time frame.”

 

The Japanese carmaker displayed the near-production models of its 0 Series sedan and mid-size SUV at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, saying both models will be equipped with an in-house operating system called Asimo that controls functions such as advanced driver-assistance.

 

The automaker’s Marysville, Ohio, plant will start building those EVs this year alongside traditional gas-powered cars. The all-electrics will use batteries from a $4.4 billion joint-venture factory with LG Energy Solution Ltd. Honda is also investing $11 billion in EV production in Ontario, and receiving billions in dollars of financial aid from the Canadian government. 

 

Inoue said Honda doesn’t expect that subsidy package to change after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced plans to resign.

 

Honda also said on Tuesday that it’s partnering with Japan’s Renesas Electronics Corp. on a high-performance system-on-chip for use in 0 series models later this decade. The chip is designed to simplify vehicles by integrating multiple functions into a single electronic control unit. 

 

Overlaid with the automaker’s artificial intelligence software, the companies aim to develop a system “that achieves one of the industry’s top class AI performances,” Honda said.