Getting serious about electrification.
Honda appears to be hard at work on a new powertrain, as a report has detailed that they’re currently going full-steam ahead with the development of a new hybrid powertrain that will motivate a new generation of electrified cars from the venerable Japanese brand, with the first model due 2018.
It will first be used in a car for the US-market (or so the brand said at the Detroit motorshow earlier this year), and will utilise a dual-electric motor setup married to a petrol engine. According to an Autocar report, it’s expected that the engine itself will be closely related to the one that’s currently employed in the US-market Honda Accord, which produces 155kW of power from its 2.0-litre petrol-electric hybrid combination, while returning an impressive 5L/100km.
The vehicle that’s being developed is said to only appear in the US and Japanese markets, though a new platform would be expected to eventually reach global markets to help the company achieve better economies of scale. The new hybrid platform will likely be the stepping stone for the company to achieve the 50-50 global sales split it expects to enjoy in the next two years, between ‘traditional’ internal combustion-only cars and electrified models.
Honda’s president and CEO, Mr. Takahiro Hachigo, underlined the importance of electrified drivetrains, saying:
“In the long-term, electrified vehicles are key to the future of carbon-free mobility.” — Takahiro Hachigo, CEO and President, Honda Motor Co.
The electrification initiative is part of Honda’s ambitious plans to reduce the CO2 emissions of their cars and their manufacturing activities by 50% by 2050, with the efforts being led by the Honda NSX. The car that will be spawned by this platform will likely sit above the Jazz (or Fit in the Japanese market) in terms of size (possibly alongside the Civic) when it arrives, before it gets retooled to fit various other requirements.
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