The Honda e: A Futuristic Electric Hatchback That's Forbidden Fruit in the US Market

A few years ago, I would have laughed if you told me that I'd pine for a small electric hatchback with funky retro future styling. However, here in the now, I happily admit that I would absolutely love the Honda e as a daily driver. The style is awesome, the interior is amazing, and the size is perfect for whipping through traffic on the local freeway.

The Honda e's design is inspired by cars from 1973, which may not be the best starting point for an American car brand. However, for a Japanese car like the Honda Civic or CVCC, the looks worked. The Honda e has a face that's downright cute, with wheels that are awesome and a rear end that echoes the front design. The entire package is endlessly appealing.

When you open the door, you'll notice an amazing interior that incorporates a massive screen, which blends nicely into what feels like a monolithic display space. This screen not only serves as the digital gauge cluster but also houses two 12-inch screens on either side of it. These screens are an interesting feature, especially in Europe and Japan, where side cameras replace traditional side mirrors. Moreover, when parked, the screens can display a digital aquarium, adding to the overall futuristic vibe.

The driving dynamics of the Honda e aren't overly powerful, but they're not as heavy as many other EVs either. The car is powered by a small 35.5 kilowatt hour battery pack that produces either 134 horsepower or 152 horsepower, depending on the model. The heaviest model weighs around 3,400 pounds, and it boasts an impressive 232 pound-feet of torque. This compact EV can still scoot easily enough.

The chassis layout allows for a 50/50 weight distribution, with the rear wheels handling power and the McPherson setup up front and rear providing stability. Those who have driven the Honda e praise its good steering feel, nicely damped ride, and tight turning circle, making it a breeze to navigate through tight streets.

However, there is one major drawback: the range of the Honda e isn't huge. With an estimated 100 miles, it's perfect for urban machines or daily commuters with a second car for longer trips. Additionally, considering its size, weight, and impressive features, the Honda e is priced well under $40,000 based on current exchange rates and before any theoretical tax rebates.

Unfortunately, due to regulatory reasons, the Honda e is forbidden fruit in the US market. This means that fans of this futuristic electric hatchback will have to admire it from afar, imagining what it would be like to own one parked on their driveway with rotiform wheels and a rack for their bike on the back.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: ena few years back if you told me I'd Pine for a small electric hatchback with funky retro future styling I'd laugh in your face but here in the now I happily admit that I would absolutely love the Honda e as a daily driver the style is awesome the interior is amazing and the size is perfect for whipping through traffic on the local freeway but no there is no option for me to purchase a Honda e here in the States because this one is forbidden fruit foreign is inspired by a car from 1973 that's usually not the best thing to lead off with at least for American cars is that's when things started to blend the worst elements from otherwise great Machines of the 60s into finding the designs that would bring us into the early 80s but for a certain Japanese car the looks worked I'm talking about the Honda Civic or cvcc that was a game changer for the brand and the Civic has served as a design compass for the decades to follow so for the Honda e the automaker looked to its past to figure out its funky spunky electric future the Honda e has a face that's downright cute the wheels are awesome the rear end Echoes the looks of the front and the entire package is endlessly appealing that's before you open the door and see the amazing interior of course the first thing you'll notice is the massive screen it incorporates the digital gauge cluster and then a pair of 12-inch screens to the side of that all Blended nicely into what feels like a monolithic display space and you'll need the screen since the Honda e doesn't use traditional side mirrors but side cameras instead which are legal in Europe in Japan even more interesting and fun is the fact that the screens can display a digital aquarium when you're parked as for the driving Dynamics the Honda e isn't overly powerful but it's not tremendously heavy as far as EVS go either there's a small 35.5 kilowatt hour battery pack that powers either a 134 horsepower model or a 152 horsepower version and the heaviest model is around 3 400 pounds there's also 232 pound-feet of torque on tap so this little EV hash can scoot easily enough the chassis layout enables a 50 50 weight distribution and the weight is set nice and low the rear wheels Dole out the power and you have a McPherson set up front and rear those who've driven it say the steering feel is good the ride is nicely damped and the tight turning Circle means navigating tight streets is a breeze range isn't huge which is part of the reason why Honda thinks it wouldn't sell well here the overall estimate is 100 miles so that sounds small it's more than enough for an urban machine or if it's your daily commuter and you have a second car for longer trips add in the fact that this is priced well under 40 Grand based on current exchange rates and before any theoretical tax rebates for which it would qualify and you have an adorable little Eevee Runabout with an awesome interior solid driving Dynamics and attractive curb appeal I can picture one parked in my driveway sitting on some rotiform Wheels with a rack for my bike on the back and I can only picture it in my head not in real life because the Honda e here in the states is forbidden fruita few years back if you told me I'd Pine for a small electric hatchback with funky retro future styling I'd laugh in your face but here in the now I happily admit that I would absolutely love the Honda e as a daily driver the style is awesome the interior is amazing and the size is perfect for whipping through traffic on the local freeway but no there is no option for me to purchase a Honda e here in the States because this one is forbidden fruit foreign is inspired by a car from 1973 that's usually not the best thing to lead off with at least for American cars is that's when things started to blend the worst elements from otherwise great Machines of the 60s into finding the designs that would bring us into the early 80s but for a certain Japanese car the looks worked I'm talking about the Honda Civic or cvcc that was a game changer for the brand and the Civic has served as a design compass for the decades to follow so for the Honda e the automaker looked to its past to figure out its funky spunky electric future the Honda e has a face that's downright cute the wheels are awesome the rear end Echoes the looks of the front and the entire package is endlessly appealing that's before you open the door and see the amazing interior of course the first thing you'll notice is the massive screen it incorporates the digital gauge cluster and then a pair of 12-inch screens to the side of that all Blended nicely into what feels like a monolithic display space and you'll need the screen since the Honda e doesn't use traditional side mirrors but side cameras instead which are legal in Europe in Japan even more interesting and fun is the fact that the screens can display a digital aquarium when you're parked as for the driving Dynamics the Honda e isn't overly powerful but it's not tremendously heavy as far as EVS go either there's a small 35.5 kilowatt hour battery pack that powers either a 134 horsepower model or a 152 horsepower version and the heaviest model is around 3 400 pounds there's also 232 pound-feet of torque on tap so this little EV hash can scoot easily enough the chassis layout enables a 50 50 weight distribution and the weight is set nice and low the rear wheels Dole out the power and you have a McPherson set up front and rear those who've driven it say the steering feel is good the ride is nicely damped and the tight turning Circle means navigating tight streets is a breeze range isn't huge which is part of the reason why Honda thinks it wouldn't sell well here the overall estimate is 100 miles so that sounds small it's more than enough for an urban machine or if it's your daily commuter and you have a second car for longer trips add in the fact that this is priced well under 40 Grand based on current exchange rates and before any theoretical tax rebates for which it would qualify and you have an adorable little Eevee Runabout with an awesome interior solid driving Dynamics and attractive curb appeal I can picture one parked in my driveway sitting on some rotiform Wheels with a rack for my bike on the back and I can only picture it in my head not in real life because the Honda e here in the states is forbidden fruit\n"