Honda To Develop Three New Electric Vehicle Platforms

Honda is to develop three new dedicated platforms for its electric vehicle (EV) plans, with one to be jointly created with General Motors (GM), a top executive said, as the car maker presses ahead with a new electrification scheme.

The firm’s global head of electrification Shinji Aoyama told Reuters the company would introduce an electric mini commercial vehicle in Japan in 2024 built on a small EV platform.

This is to be followed by a full-sized electric model for the North America market in 2026 on a new large platform, he said.

New platforms

Honda also plans to use these two platforms for other models.

A third, “medium-sized” platform is to be shared with General Motors beginning in 2027, Aoyama said.

He said it hadn’t yet been decided whether this platform would be based on technology from GM or Honda.

He added that the companies hadn’t yet decided what plants would be utilised or exact production targets, but had agreed to share the bill of process for manufacturing, enabling the cars to be produced at either Honda or GM plants.

The two firms said earlier this month they planned to jointly develop “affordable electric vehicles” for global markets, but gave few details at the time.

GM is building two high-end electric SUVs for Honda in North America beginning in 2024, based on the GM Cadillac Lyriq platform.

Honda has agreed to use GM’s next-generation Ultium battery, but has no plans to participate in GM’s Ultium joint venture with South Korea’s LG Energy Solution, according to Aoyama.

EV plans

Honda has said it plans to build two million EVs a year globally by 2030, including the mid-size models under development with GM.

According to Aoyama, Honda is aiming for North American production of 750,000 to 800,000 EVs in 2030 and about the same in China, with a further 400,000 to 500,000 in Japan and other markets.

Earlier this month Honda said it would invest about 5 trillion yen (£29.8bn) in electric vehicles over the next decade, including software and research and development.

The firm said it plans to launch 30 new EV models, including two SUVs and a mini car, by 2030.

In March Honda and Sony said they would create a joint venture to develop and sell EVs beginning in 2025.

Honda has also invested in autonomous vehicle development, but is later than many of its rivals where it comes to fully electric vehicles.