Honda to debut small EVs, possible NSX electric successor at Japan Mobility Show

TOKYO -- Honda plans three world premieres at next month's Japan Mobility Show, including a concept model of an electric sports car that could be a spiritual successor to the NSX.

Also shown will be a small EV concept called the Sustainia-C made of recycled acrylic resin in a nod to environmentally sustainable technologies planned for tomorrow's cars.

Among the new four-wheeled offerings on display, Honda also plans a two-seat micro EV pod car called the CI-MEV. It uses "cooperative intelligence" and automated driving technology to deliver easy last-mile mobility for people in areas with no public transportation.

Honda outlined the debuts in a statement detailing its plans for the Japan Mobility Show. The reincarnated Tokyo auto show runs Oct. 25-Nov. 5, with media days on Oct. 25-26.

The Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, which organizes the event, wants to cast a wider net beyond traditional automakers by rebranding the exhibition as a mobility show.

As such, Honda's stand will host an assortment of far-flung mobility products.

Motorcycles of all kinds will be out in force, including all-electric two-wheelers. But so too will be airborne mobility such as the Honda Jet, represented by a full-size interior mock-up.

Looking further into the future, the company will show its Honda eVTOL, which models a vertical takeoff and landing vehicle to be powered by a gas turbine hybrid system.

An avatar robot with a multifingered hand will be unveiled, envisaging a product that allows people to perform tasks remotely. And Honda will proffer its Uni-One hands-free seated mobility device, a kind of runabout stool that a person steers simply by shifting weight.

As for the EV sports car, Honda was short on details.

Honda offered only this insight about its so-called Specialty Sports Concept: "The concept model of an electric sports car which will enable the driver to experience the pure joy of driving (driving pleasure) and transcend the constraints of time, even in the era of electrification for carbon neutrality and the popularization of automated driving technology."

Last year, CEO Toshihiro Mibe said Honda wants to launch two all-electric sports cars in the mid-2020s. One will be a "specialty" vehicle, the other a "flagship model."

Teaser shots released at the time depicted cars under wraps with low-slung silhouettes reminiscent of the NSX. Acura retired its NSX hybrid supercar last year, capping its run with just 350 of the high-performance NSX Type S variant. The Integra Type S will fill the role of Acura's halo performance vehicle for now, but it's possible an all-electric NSX could pop up in 2026.

Japan's No. 2 automaker is in the midst of a radical corporate makeover to fully ditch internal combustion by 2040. As part of the carbon neutral push, it has unveiled plans to roll out 30 full electric vehicles globally and build production capacity for 2 million EVs annually by 2030.