New Honda Super-N: 199 miles of electric range for less than £20k
Honda has revealed the Super-N, a new compact EV and successor to the discontinued e model.
The Super-N, which comes with up to 199 miles of range that is “ideally suited to urban driving or the average daily commute.”
Exterior Design
The Super-N is inspired by the iconic City Turbo II model from the 1980s and is based on the lightweight platform of the N Series ‘Kei’ sold in Japan. The exterior is decidedly more chunky than the City Turbo II, however, with a wider stance, larger bumpers, new LED headlights and difficult-to-miss aero ducts all standout features.
At the rear, however, the Super-N looks much slimmer and has boxy tailights more similar to the City Turbo II.
Customers will be able to put their own spin on the Super-N, with a wide range of exterior colours, two-tone specs featuring a contrasting gloss black finish, and distinctive body graphics.
City Turbo II and Honda Super-N
Interior
Inside, the Super-N has a simple design that pays further homage to the original City Turbo II, using distinctive blue highlights, while ambient light gives the dashboard a blue light at night, which changes to a rich purple when BOOST Mode is selected. The relatively simple dashboard contains two screens, although plenty of physical buttons, including gear selection buttons, are within reach.
Despite the cabin looking pretty narrow in the pictures provided by Honda, and only room for two in the back, the brand says that its enhanced seats will give the driver and passengers extra comfort and support.
Powertrain
While Honda has yet to reveal the specifics of the Super-N’s powertrain, it has emphasised the importance of the previously mentioned ‘BOOST Mode’, which will increase the power output of its compact e-Axle from 47kW to 70kW.
The Japanese brand also says it will be ‘one of the lightest EVs in Europe’, giving it more ‘enjoyable and engaging driving dynamics’. Add to this a seven-speed transmission and an Active Sound Control system generating engine sound, and you have an EV with ICE driving characteristics.
Honda has tested the Super-N on various road surfaces ahead of its release, and while it says a ‘city mode’ gives it a range of 199 miles, taking it on more rigorous drives will likely limit that to 128 miles.
Price & Release Date
The Honda Super-N is set to go on sale in the UK from July with a starting price of less than £20,000. How much less is anyone’s guess, although expect the Super-N to be mixing it with your BYD Dolphin Surfs, Hyundai Insters and Renault Twingos, rather than hot hatch EVs like the Mini Cooper Electric and Polo.
words: Mike Booth
pictures: Honda