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  • the Honda Urban E V.

  • You might remember it.

  • It was hands down the coolest concept car of last year, perhaps ever nailing the retro futuristic vibe and making me lust after an electric car for the first time.

  • But the problem with making such an achingly good concept is the production car can't possibly live up to our expectations.

  • Or can it?

  • You may be thinking, Jack, why you hiding behind a wall?

  • Well, it's because I wanted to share this excruciating moment with you.

  • Behind there is almost the finished production version of the Honda Urban E V.

  • I genuinely haven't seen it yet.

  • I've genuinely got butterflies in my stomach because, quite frankly, I'm terrified that Honda might have messed it up.

  • Right.

  • Come on, let's do this writ That plaster off for there is there she is.

  • Wow!

  • Drink it in, Jack.

  • All right, well, the smaller archers are a bit smaller.

  • Sprout in another door.

  • Let's have a look around the back.

  • Oh, yes.

  • Very good.

  • Initial emotion.

  • Relief, Honda.

  • Thank you.

  • My nerves are shot to pieces.

  • I need a lie down.

  • Humber is calling this a prototype.

  • The Honda E prototype to be precise, but Honda lives.

  • It's actually 98% representative of what the finished calm it like when it goes on sale at the back end of this year.

  • Price?

  • No idea yet.

  • But this isn't a low cost car.

  • Much like Apple doesn't make low cost phones, so expect to pay somewhere between 25 30 grand.

  • Right?

  • So what was actually changed from the concept?

  • Pretty much everything, to be honest to varying degrees.

  • But don't worry.

  • I'm gonna walk you through it, starting at the front here where we find a similar flush fitting for Whit panel, the curvature of which is dictated by this front facing camera and the lied.

  • Our sensors in there, the headlights you'll notice on now, full circles in the concept they were cropped off of the top, looked a little bit more aggressive.

  • This is a slightly friendlier face, and here we haven't illuminated Honda badge, which I'm told won't make production because it's illegal because it's deemed to be an advert.

  • Ridiculous.

  • I know up here.

  • Yes.

  • We now know what this black square on the bonnet is for.

  • It's the charging point.

  • Click a button on your ki and that pops out.

  • That's where you plug it in, moving around here.

  • Wheels.

  • Yes, you may remember the concept had 20 inch deep dish.

  • White, multi spoked wheels looked a bit like our penal wheels.

  • They were fantastic.

  • I fell in love with them.

  • Surprise, surprise that haven't made production.

  • But these air affair substitute these air the bigger wheels.

  • 17 16 a standard.

  • The Arches.

  • Yeah, not quite a swollen as the concept, but they still stick out enough.

  • This thing is wider than the Honda Jets.

  • Oh yeah, and there's a reason it's wide as well, because check it out.

  • Look, it's got cameras for wing mirrors, and the reason that it's wide is these.

  • Sit within the car's width, so you're not gonna knock them off.

  • When you drive past a white van flush fitting door handles because of aero hidden handles for the rear doors, you'll notice the whole roof is blacked out on the bottom.

  • The doors blacked out to that standard on cars.

  • Actually remember, the concept had a body colored rim that ran around the roof quite like that, So bit of a shame.

  • But no matter, I'll get over it around the back.

  • Yes, the tail lights have changed from square calls.

  • Two circles on it sprouted a roof spoiler up here, and that's about it, to be honest, and you have to say, within the constraints that they were working, it's a damn fine job time for some fax.

  • Underneath is an all new rear wheel drive platform, so it should be fun in the wet Rangers around 100 25 miles on the W L T P cycle on its rapid charge.

  • Compatible.

  • So in 80% top up in 30 minutes.

  • Honda one confirmed the battery sides or motor output.

  • Yet that's something north of 100 horsepower.

  • Seems reasonable.

  • It will be offered with four seats and five doors only.

  • There's no boot in the front, but a small one in the back and it's 10 sent to me to shorter than a Jess.

  • That's not very big till which might be a bit of a problem for some.

  • Allow me to explain.

  • I am a minuscule five for eight.

  • If I get in the back here with the sea in front, set to my preferred driving position, well, as you can see, it's really not much wiggle room, too.

  • But no matter is everyone knows back seat of a second class citizens, also known as your kids.

  • I, on the other hand, shall be lording it up in the front, which is where my assistant comes in here.

  • Apparently, I'm not allowed to touch the car.

  • Paints a bit expensive and he's got gloves.

  • Thank you.

  • Right.

  • Just wait for this new cramp.

  • I close the door now.

  • The first thing to mention in here is that Honda wanted to make this thing.

  • Have a living room feel and I have to say it does feel quite Lounge E in here.

  • This fabric down here that's recycled polyester.

  • This word here and right across the dash isn't word it'll.

  • It's a special four millimeter thick film.

  • And in the back we've got four interior lights, which you can switch on and off, just like your front room.

  • The center console down here.

  • More word more buttons, one in particular that I'm interested in.

  • Those says Dr Mode.

  • Honda won't tell me anything about this, but what it does suggest is this car might have sporty intentions, but the main event is in front of us here, starting with this a suspiciously production ready steering wheel, complete with some buttons here that suggest autonomous functions like radar, cruise control and lane keep assist on.

  • Then we get to the Great Wall of Scream.

  • Not one, not two, not five, but six screens in front of me, the outer edges, those of the feeds from our aerodynamic new wing mirrors.

  • Up here, there's another screen that's fed from a camera at the back with a special self cleaning coating so it doesn't get caked in mud dead ahead.

  • A digital instrument cluster, of course.

  • And then we get to these the 2 12 inch beasts.

  • Now the idea here is that your passenger can actually make themselves useful so they can change the radio station on change the air calm.

  • But they could also look for something on the map and then hit a button that swipes the screen across to the driver's side, which is pretty nifty.

  • I've also noticed something here called the personal assistant again.

  • Honda won't tell me about this just yet, but I can only assume it's a Siri or Alexa style voice assistant.

  • Get this down here.

  • A quite extraordinary array of power outlets to US bees on H.

  • D m.

  • I input the 12 volt socket and look at this a full on 240 volt plug.

  • You could literally plug anything into that.

  • A hair dryer, a coffee machine.

  • Oh, useful for shaving vital minutes off your morning commute.

  • One last thing to mention is the visibility.

  • Honda could've pushed the A pillars forward and created something far more futuristic looking.

  • But we're keeping a fairly classic silhouette.

  • The view out is perfect on.

  • They kept that into retro in the design.

  • OK, so there's good news on there's bad news, my concerns that it might be a bit too small for big people.

  • That that 125 mile range might put some people off and in the prices to premium people won't be able to afford it anyway.

  • But the good news is, I like it quite a lot.

the Honda Urban E V.

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