Honda Cars Philippines has yet to embrace pure electric vehicles, but that doesn’t mean the situation’s the same everywhere else.
Apart from its own line of dedicated BEVs—the Zero (0) Series—Honda announced the e:N2, or if you prefer its JDM name, the Insight. Unlike the e:N1 (read our first impressions) which was a top-down Honda effort, the Japanese carmaker looked to its Chinese JV with Dongfeng and exported the e:NS2 from their roster.
In both Thailand and Japan, the e:N2 / Insight is powered by a single front motor producing 204 horsepower and 310 Nm of torque. These figures put it in the same category as the BYD Atto 3—one of its chief rivals. A 68.8-kWh CATL NMC battery delivers roughly 500 kilometers of range.
A bit of a bummer is that the e:N2 takes 36 minutes to charge from 30 to 80 percent using a DC fast charger (it typically takes less than 30 minutes). A 5 to 100 percent charge on an AC wall box, however, takes about 9 and a half hours.
The e:N2 / Insight measures in at 4,788 mm long, 1,838 mm wide, and 1,570 mm tall. Its wheelbase is 2,733 mm.
Style-wise, the e:N2 gains a distinctive look, neither taking on Honda’s combustion engine or 0 series design cues. It features a sharp, angular front-end with a full-width lightbar that forms a “H” graphic. It also has soon-to-be banned flush door handles, hidden rear door handles, and a fastback-like roofline. 18-inch rollers fill in the wheel wells.
Being a Chinese market model, the Honda e:N2 gains a rather unique treatment with a 9.4-inch instrument display, a 12.8-inch infotainment touchscreen, and a 11.5-inch heads-up display. And like the e:N1, controls for the climate have been moved from physical switches to a menu in the touchscreen.
Other features include power front seats with ventilation, a sunroof, and a 12-speaker Bose sound system. There’s also a dual zone climate control with rear vents, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a wireless charger, hands-free tailgate, and a 360-degree camera.
reorders have started in Thailand where the e:N2 will start at roughly 1.4 million Thai Baht (P 2.5 million). That sounds expensive, but given that the e:N2 is sourced from China, it will likely benefit from the Philippines’ lower tariff rates with the Mainland. It may also be assembled in Thailand as well as Honda has done with the e:N1.
The Honda Insight will be the first Honda product to be imported from China to Japan.
ReplyDeleteThats not true they are producing honda odyssey in China and exporting it to Japan for some time now
Delete"... soon-to-be banned flush door handles..."
ReplyDelete"Controls for the climate have been moved from physical switches to a menu in the touchscreen."
Uhm no, thanks.
Ban in China.
ReplyDeleteAnd don't worry. They ain't coming to Philippines. They have no intention.