Honda said Monday it will sell its first electric SUV in North America in early 2024, part of the automaker’s push to shift away from gas-powered vehicles before the middle of the decade. The new car’s name, Prologue, is meant to signify the beginning of what the company called its “new electrified era.”
Prologue is one of two forthcoming Honda vehicles that will use General Motors’ Ultium Cells EV platform and battery packs. The other, yet unnamed car, will be under the Acura brand and will also debut in 2024. GM will also manufacture the two vehicles at its North American facilities, as part of a long-running partnership between the two OEMs.
The automaker is keeping quiet about key details of the new SUVs, including the price and even what the car will look like. But it will enter a competitive electric SUV market, up against rivals such as Tesla’s Model Y, the Ford Mustang Mach-E, and Volkswagen’s ID.4.
Honda joined other automakers, including GM and Volvo, in setting ambitious electrification targets. GEO Toshihiro Mibe in April set an escalating target for its global battery and fuel cell electric sales of 40% by 2030, 80% by 2035 and completely phasing out internal combustion engine sales by 2040. As part of that target, Honda said it has plans to develop its own EV platform, dubbed e:Architecture, for EV models launched in the second half of the decade.
Honda separately announced on Monday that it had entered into an agreement with Battery Resourcers to recycle batteries from Honda and Acura EVs. These batteries will initially be processed at the recycling firm’s site in Worcester, Massachusetts, and then at a commercial scale plant that the company says will be operational in 2022. Battery Resourcers recently raised a $20 million Series B to scale its operations, including opening the new plant.
