Honda e:Ny1 review

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Honda’s second EV is an HR-V lookalike that takes it into a tough electric arena

Jack Warrick
by Jack Warrick
13 October 2023

Honda set out confidently with its first electric car, the likeable Honda e; but now that it’s taking a second swing, it’s getting a little bit more sensible.

The Honda e:Ny1 is the all-electric compact SUV that, it’s hoped, will make a more commercially transformative prospect for Honda’s European sales volumes than its zero-emissions sibling has so far proven. Roughly the same size as the hybrid-powered HR-V, it uses a front-mounted drive motor and front wheel drive. This is our first taste of one on UK roads.

Honda’s high hopes for the e:Ny1 are vital for its zero-emission goals. As a result of the zero-emission mandate, the brand expects 22% of its registrations by the end of 2024 to consist of e:Ny1 sales, which is equivalent to around 7500 cars.

The firm has selected quite a congested segment in which to launch the car. By Honda’s own reckoning, the e:Ny1 will directly face off with the likes of the Toyota bZ4X, Renault Mégane E-Tech, Volkswagen ID 4 and even the extremely popular Tesla Model Y. As the first car in Europe based on the firm’s e:N Architecture F platform, it will share its new modular platform with larger all-electric Hondas still to come.

Honda positions the e:Ny1 as an acceptable and comfortable stepping stone into BEV ownership for both existing customers and those who are new to the brand. It looks like it will become just that sooner rather than later, too, given that Rebecca Adamson, Honda UK’s head of automobile, has said there would be no direct successor to the Honda E urban hatchback.

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DESIGN & STYLING7
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At 1584mm tall, 1790mm wide and 4387mm long, the e:Ny1 measures 60mm longer than the Honda HR-V. It’s the first Honda to feature the firm’s new electric vehicle brand identity, with a white Honda logo on the nose (in place of the traditional silver) and a typed-out ‘Honda’ at the rear.

Amongst the swathe of similar-looking mid-sized SUVs so popular on our roads, it makes a lightly eye-catching car – particularly in the optional Aqua Topaz blue paint chosen to spearhead the model’s launch and with slimmed-down headlights, stylish wheel designs, and a rear light bar all matching nicely with the surrounding black and chrome exterior trim. It's not a stand-out design like the Honda e was, though - and it's considerably more conservative that Honda's more daring-looking hatchbacks of the last few decades.

Beneath the bodywork, power for the car comes from a 68.8kWh nickel-manganese-cobalt drive battery (61.9kWh of which is usable capacity) offering 256 miles of range (WLTP) and able to rapid-charge at speeds of up to 100kW. That might not seem particularly fast, but Honda says it has prioritised sustained higher rates over headline rapid charging figures, with “very little” drop when nearing capacity, which in turn helps to prevent battery deterioration and maintain range. Regardless, the e:Ny1 will get from 10% charge to 80% in around 45 minutes.

The car is driven by a front-mounted electric motor producing 201bhp and 229lb ft, and by its front axle. The packaging makes for a five-seater cabin with a conventional layout, a 361-litre boot at the rear, but no 'frunk' storage area. There's currently no twin-motor, four-wheel drive version mooted, and no 'long range' version.

INTERIOR6
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Honda’s being quite bold with the pricing of this car - but it’s not immediately clear where it’s delivering the value to justify what it’s asking. To begin with, this is a more compact prospect than plenty for the money. While it has reasonable adult-appropriate space in both rows, a Nissan Ariya, Tesla Model Y, Fisker Ocean and Skoda Enyaq all offer greater practicality for similar money or less.

The car's huge infotainment system does look intimidating at first, but after a few minutes of fiddling it is simple enough to navigate, although it suffers from a degree of latency and menu complication, and can be distracting to use on the move.

Honda bills the e:Ny1’s specification level as a key draw for customers, offering lots of digital technology even on its entry-level models. There’s a choice of two specification levels: the £44,995 Elegance and £47,195 Advance. It’s the former that Honda expects to be its biggest seller by a margin of 60% to 40%.

Standard equipment includes that expansive 15.0in touchscreen with sat-nav and smartphone mirroring, keyless entry, heated front seats and parking sensors.

Automatic wipers are also included on basic models, as is dual-zone climate control, wireless phone charging and a set of 18in alloy wheels. Advance trim cars, meanwhile, benefit in addition from a panoramic sunroof, Honda’s Parking Pilot assistance system, a premium audio set-up, a powered tailgate and a heated steering wheel.

The steering wheel helps the e:Ny1 feel at least a little like a quality product, with nicely positioned ergonomic buttons that are solid to press. But the wider cabin only feels expensive enough to justify its pricing in places. 

The e:Ny1’s upper fascia is hard to the touch, and a bit plain and shiny with it. While the digital technology goes some way to mitigate the shortfall, and there’s plenty of Honda-typical heft to the switchgear, you can’t help but wonder a little where your money went.

 

ENGINES & PERFORMANCE6
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The e:Ny1 looks, on paper, like a pretty mid-market proposition on performance, claimed as it is to accelerate from a standstill to 62mph in 7.6sec, which roughly matches rivals including the Volkswagen ID 4 and Kia Niro EV. On the road, it's got plenty of accessible performance, though is a little short on assured traction, and some of its drivability tuning could have been better.

There are three driving modes: Eco, Normal and Sport. Sport ups performance and slightly adjusts steering weight, but most of our driving was done in a mixture of Eco and Normal, both of which seemed brisk enough.

If this is supposed to be a refined EV, it has a drive motor with a curious amount of high-frequency noise. The levels can spike quite suddenly at just the right speed and load; it's never intrusive, but you do notice when it happens.
Matt Saunders
Road test editor

The car comes on 18in wheels irrespective of trim, and with Continental tyres that don't produce the most commanding grip level. In that respect, the e:Ny1 is a bit of a throwback to front-driven EVs first put on the market approaching a decade ago, which compromised traction somewhat in pursuit of lower rolling resistance and better associated electric range.

The upshot is that, if you use plenty of power from standing, it's easy to disturb the front axle's secure hold on the road, and to activate the electronic traction control for a moment, puncturing the car's aura of composure. The same can happen when applying power when exiting a tighter bend or traffic island, when a little steering corruption can also be felt. Really well dynamically finished EVs no longer tend to suffer with these quirks.

The e:Ny1's brake pedal feel is a little soft and squidgy, making your control over the car feel unnecessarily vague when stopping hard, and sometimes causing passengers' heads to bob as you draw to a stop. The car does have brake energy regeneration toggle paddles, but they seem to achieve little meaningful change to the car's propensity to regenerate energy on a trailing throttle: you can't quite turn the 'engine braking' all the way off for an unchecked cruise, nor can you ramp it up an awful lot for a genuine one-pedal driving mode.

RIDE & HANDLING6
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Around town, the e:Ny1 feels quite softly damped. It soaks up some longer-wave bumps quite well, and has a low level or road noise that beats a Tesla Model Y for outright refinement. It was a pleasure to drive around Oslo, making navigating the city’s winding streets and tramlines a simple task.

Honda does suggest, however, that the e:Ny1 has been specifically engineered for a “fun and confidence-inspiring driving experience”. It fell slightly short of that description when tackling Norway’s twisting, fjord-circling asphalt. The car's weight was felt in the sharpest corners, where it had a tendency to understeer, and lacked the dynamic appeal offered by rivals such as the Kia EV6.

On more bumpy UK roads, Honda's claim to have placed distinguishing emphasis on comfort comes under closer scrutiny - and the e:Ny1 doesn't always have the answers. Its ride feels softer, heavier and less well controlled than it might, being easily disturbed by asymmetrical inputs that cause head toss and fidget; while the secondary ride of the tyres against the road can be clumpy, abrupt and unsatisfactorily damped.

The e:Ny1’s padded seats are certainly soft and inviting, and they do contribute to driver comfort. But you wouldn't say they amount to a more comfortable riding car here than is a Polestar 2, Toyota bZ4X, Skoda Enyaq or even a Kia Niro EV. And, moreover, the e:Ny1's handling also feels less precise and secure than the best of those cars; it has less composed, more easily-disturbed body control, less cornering agility, and a slighter grip level. 

MPG & RUNNING COSTS5
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Price isn't a strong point for the Honda e:Ny1 - and neither's real-world range.

For several thousand pounds less than the £45k at which the car starts, you could have a Kia Niro EV or Hyundai Kona Electric - both of which offer a similar amount of usable space. And for those whom electric range is more likely to motivate, those Korean-made options also beat the Honda’s claimed 256 miles on a charge.

You don’t get 256 miles in the real world, of course. In fact, the e:Ny1 falls into the same bear trap as the Toyota bZ4X fell foul of last year: as soon as you turn on the air conditioning, your circa-220 miles of advertised range tumbles to about 190-. That figure won’t be boosted any through the winter months by Honda’s failure to fit a heat pump as standard.

Those familiar with the kind of autonomy that longer-range versions of the Tesla Model Y, Polestar 2, Nissan Ariya and Skoda Enyaq offer - some for little more outlay than the upper-level Honda e:Ny1 - and also the rapid charging speeds they can hit likely won't be too impressed with this car's advertised capabilities.

VERDICT6
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While it's a welcome addition and a competent enough car, it's a little difficult to convince yourself that the Honda e:Ny1 brings a great deal to the family EV class, whether you're trying to make the argument on paper or in the real world. When you're totting up what it actually offers for a price that might otherwise buy so many larger, more practical, longer-legged, more upmarket-feeling and more desirable rivals, what you're left with doesn't amount to much.

For Honda, this is a hugely important car; and the commercial opportunity ahead of it is undoubtedly greater than that of the Honda e ever was. Even if Honda only capitalises on a little of it, that could mean a lot.

But, where EVs are concerned, it seems this famously innovative company still has much to learn and prove; and, with the government’s ZEV sales-mix mandate biting from 2024 onwards, it really must learn quickly or else really feel the consequences.

Additional reporting by Matt Saunders

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