Honda E In-Depth Review - Style Over Substance?

Electric cars are all very worthy but, by and large, they tend to lack any kind of 'want one' factor. Here's one though, that you might really covet - the Honda e. Because it's very small and doesn't go particularly far on a single charge, it's very much an urban town runabout. But what a cool one to have.

TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Introduction
00:33 Background
3:17 Driving Experience
11:13 Design & Build
29:24 Market & Model Range
46:14 Cost of Ownership
55:57 Summary

Background

What should a city-based full-electric urban runabout really be if an element of desirability as well as efficiency is called for? Something like the Honda e? We can see why you might think so. The Japanese brand believes that EV makers have been producing boring, pricey products with expensive technology delivering extended range that city folk don't actually really need. Which explains why the Honda e restricts the size of both its battery and the resulting driving range. There are many compensations though, as we're about to see...

Driving Experience

This is a great little city scoot. There are two outputs to choose from (136PS and 154PS) but the base one will be fine for most. With proper independent multi-link rear suspension (of the type most small cars do without), the ride is excellent and there's a super-tight 8.6-metre turning circle kerb-to-kerb. Honda has made the power output quite linear so you don't exhaust the limited battery capacity with neck-snapping acceleration from the get go, but 62mph from rest is still quickly dispatched in 8.3s in the higher output variant (it's 9 seconds for the 136PS model). With 315Nm of pulling power on tap, it should actually feel a bit faster than that.

Like most Evs, this one has a bit of a weight problem: 1,514kgs is a portly total for a car this size, though to be fair, that figure's not too bad by EV standards. Honda's very proud of the way it's been able to achieve a perfect 50:50 weight distribution thanks to the way that the batteries have been mounted as low as possible in the floorplan and as a result, cornering body roll is commendably well controlled. As with a Nissan LEAF, there's also a button for one-pedal driving; with this applied, the regenerative braking effect when you lift off the throttle slows you so much the brake pedal is virtually redundant.

Design and Build

Rarely have we ever tested a car that looks quite so much like a motor show concept. Not everyone will like the look of this Honda e, but there's certainly nothing like it on the road. It's certainly small - just 3.9-metres in length - and quite tall too, the roofline 100mm higher than a rival MINI Electric Hatch. It's a clean sheet design with virtually nothing - visually or in terms of engineering - shared with the brand's only fractionally larger Jazz Hybrid, which is impressive. There's brand DNA here, but the character and style of what a small Honda should be has been re-imagined for the 21st century. And so much about it will be fascinating if you find a different approach to be also an intriguing one.

At the wheel, there's lots of showroom wow factor, though we're not too keen on the incongruous light wood trim. Two 12-inch screens sit at the centre of the dash and it's possible to 'swap' displays between them - so, for instance, you might want to pass the sat nav over to the front passenger to type in an address, say. You can even hook up a games console to the HDMI input port. Or select wallpaper or aquarium screen backgrounds to sooth your mood. The main interior talking point though, will probably be the corner monitors that take the place of exterior door mirrors, a design idea we first saw on a much bigger EV, the Audi e-tron. Here, the concept actually works a little better - the mirror displays are a little better sited. And on the 'Advance' variant, aother little screen takes the place of the rear view mirror, though you can flip it back to a conventional mirror surface if you wish. Predictably, there's not much room in the back and the boot is just 171-litres in size.

PLAYLISTS

FOLLOW OSV ON

#OSV #HondaE #NewCarReview

[approxk]

Got my Honda e advance 3 days ago, i love it, perfect to commute to my job, i dont have to charge at home, i can charge up to 100% at work for free and i have a 20-30 min drive both ways

[DIYglenn]

Regarding the somewhat weirdly placed on-off button: It’s not even needed. Just put the car in drive and go. When parked, just leave the car and lock - done. You never have to actually touch the button.

And not being able to fit the charge cables underneath the trunk - it’s actually a cutout for the cable. You won’t fit it while in the bag, but they can be placed there and have the whole trunk freed up.

[Scout-njxj]

The best car reviewer in GB. Probably the world.

[rh]

I have a Honda e, it partners well with my Mercedes gls and a Honda jazz, I wouldn't complain if the range was 200 miles though

[phil]

Plus points: 1. Looks, 2. interior 3. it's a Honda. Minus points: 1.Price 2. Electric range. 3. Boot space, they should have forgone the small turning circle and added storage under the "bonnet". Better than a Mini (Honda's great reliability vs average at best for Mini) Wish they fitted the wheels of this car to the Honda Jazz hybrid. Because the car is so different than anything else, I also think that this Honda E will be a future classic. A really great review.

[alexc]

I love these reviews. Thank you for getting into the detail like you do from every perspective. This is such a cool car and this is why I’m so disappointed about the range. Living in the US, the distances are large and much of the driving is done on highways where the 70mph sustained speeds further hit range - not to mention cold temperatures taking their toll. If this had the same range as the Fiat 500e, it would grab a much larger marker share

[yes]

I’m not going to lie that’s a cool car

[PLDSR]

My dream car. Hopefully Honda will release an improved version with a little more range later on.

[MrSunnyBhoy]

Great car and great in depth review. Even though I'd want a bigger range of I had the cash I'd buy this over other electronic cars.

[blackrocket]

A very comprehensive review, although too many comments are repeated in various sections. I love driving mine in Full One Pedal mode with max regen and usually achieve economy around 4m/kWh. Also enjoyed 2700 miles of free driving thanks to Tesco. And now in 2024 we have much more choice for public recharging although Rapids can be expensive to use

[Samfichier]

It's the most complete test about the Honda e i'v seen, and i'v seen so much. Just a suggestion, there's a place for a charging cable under the boot. I agree with you for all points and about the external cameras, it's also useful to prevent being dazzled at night. This car is amazing and needs a version 2

[garden-Railway]

Great thorough review, getting my Honda E soon !

[aktharchowdhury]

I bought one a month ago and it is a wonderful drive and is a serious head turner.

[craigrogers]

Best detailed video ever from my perspective. Had to subscribe in the hope of seeing similar. Nice work.

[mattltvtoyreviews]

Great review, very comprehensive. Love the witty anecdotes...theres a little Renault 5 about the rear 3/4 view. As a town car, fantastic. 😊👍

[Kopchronicles]

Excellent little City Runaround. So pleased with mine. Nice and detailed review

[MarthaMansbridge]

If they stuck an ICE in it I'd consider it as a less bulbous supermini but as a £30k, 100 mile range EV it's ludicrous.

[tpv]

FANTASTIC FAULTLESS COMPHREHENSIVE review.
And it was pretty good 2!!!

[EllisBurton]

Something ive not seen mentioned, what happens when its raining when you need to charge at sn open air charging point, the access flap remains up during charging, does it fill with rain poss causing huge electrical short out, ordoes it have drain away channels

[vladx]

The cloth and fake wood interior is gorgeous, leather and bronze would just make it boring but whatever floats your boat