Honda Super-N; The Shape, If Not The Price, Of Things To Come.
“There has been a lot of talking about the “European kei-car”. It is surely a good idea. However, a good idea is only good when it comes on time. And Europe takes ages to take decisions”
If you were searching for the electric vehicle that will change the world at the Paris Car Show you would have been disappointed. The Honda Super-N wasn’t on display.
Europe now faces this challenge. Will it, with the help of European Union incentives, claim the crucial entry-level mass-market for EVs, or will the Chinese, already rehearsing with electric Kei cars in Japan, sweep the electric board. If the EU finally acts swiftly, a notably big “if”, the European industy might be saved. One expert says Artificial Intelligence holds the key for Europe to gain a lead in this market segment.
The EU mandate is for an EV market share of about 60% in 2030. The latest forecasts underline the upcoming dilemma. Investment researcher Jefferies reckons European EV market share in 2030 will reach 42%. Investment bank UBS sees a 48.9% market share or 6.9 million EVs in 2030, while HSBC Global Investment Research sits in the middle with a forecast of 45%.
The EU’s Industrial Accelerator Act is trying to prepare the ground for a new, smaller class of European cars that would have less expensive safety demands. The IAA is expected to be passed by the European Parliament next Spring. The EU’s new “M1E” category will carry 1.3 times super credits against CO2 targets through 2034 and a “Made in EU” test requiring 70% of non-battery component value to originate in the Union.
Hopeless Topolino, Ami
In Paris, you would have seen some pretenders to the EV that changed the world title. Hopeless candidates like the Fiat Topolino and Citroen Ami were there, but they are not serious with hopeless range, performance and safety. (Fiat and Citroen are Stellantis brands). These so-called quadricycles are designed to allow children over the age of 14, who can drive these in France without a license, some access to independent transport. They have no crash-safety credentials.
The Citroen 2CV electric was introduced at the show, but has a more powerful shot at the title. But it was shown as a concept, with no plans to appear until 2028. The Chinese competitors at the show must have been mystified. If they had shown a concept, the road-ready vehicle would appear about 10 minutes later, not two years.
The Honda Super-N is on sale in Britain, but the company hasn’t decided yet whether to launch it across all of Europe. The Super-N is the type of car which should have been available at the start of the EV revolution if manufacturers had given more thought about how to exploit the technology’s strong points. These small urban runabouts would only require small, cheap batteries with maybe 100 miles of range. They could be charged overnight from a traditional domestic plug. Most motoring consists of the school run, commuting and shopping, with maybe room for four. Long range trips? Not on the agenda. For rare long trips to the sun or mountains rent a diesel or take the train. The trouble is, the Super-N is too expensive, but a cheaper version might get close to the £10,000 after tax ($13,400) target.
Revival of entry-level new cars
These vehicles would also replace a segment of the European market that was priced out of contention by EU regulation. 10 years ago Europeans had a huge choice of affordable, say from $13,400 new cars. Remember ICE versions of the Fiat 500, Ford Ka, Citroen C1, Peugeot 108 and Renault Twingo. As part of the plan to force people out of ICE vehicles and into EVs, the EU tightened emissions rules, which soon made them too expensive.
BYD of China has already launched a trial run at the Japanese Kei-car market with the little Racco. Japan instituted this market after the second world war to provide cheap mobility. These cars have limited dimensions, and power is a maximum 660cc. Europe’s average earners would be only too happy to find their access to new cars was being restored. These little cars might look weird but they are high on practicality.
Felipe Munoz, an industry expert who runs the industry research platform Car Industry Analysis, said the EU must get a move on to allow its industry to win in this market.
“The BYD Racco is a game changer, and not because of its sales volumes but because of what it means for a carmaker like BYD and a market like Japan. BYD is not only producing and exporting the cars it primarily conceives for the drivers in China, but it is also developing cars for global markets, even if they play in niche segments such as the kei-cars,” Munoz said in an email exchange.
“a good idea is only good when it comes on time”
“Based on how fast and serious the Chinese makers are playing this expansion game, Europe needs to speed up and come up with a solution. There has been a lot of talking about the “European kei-car”. It is surely a good idea. However, a good idea is only good when it comes on time. And Europe takes ages to take decisions,” Munoz said.
Dr Moritz Maier, CEO of Synera, said AI could be a game changer for European automakers.
“I agree the mass market will start with small, cheap EVs, but Europe doesn’t need a copy of the kei car. Japan’s kei cars sell best outside the big cities, often as second cars, helped by tax breaks. Europe’s version will be a little bigger and still affordable, and Europe can engineer it,” Maier said.
Synera is an engineering-focused AI platform based in Bremen, Germany.
“AI cuts cost out of a small car well beyond design. Agents explore design variants, run cost-down programes and should-costing, help pick suppliers, and reuse existing designs and modules. A team tests many more configurations in the time it used to spend on one. We work with six of the world’s ten largest carmakers by revenue, and the results are in production. At SEAT, part of the Volkswagen Group, an engineering workflow for the car’s body structure went from 42 hours to one. SEAT also leads Volkswagen’s small electric car family, which includes the ID. Polo,” he said in an email exchange.
Leadership has to drive AI from the top
“For European carmakers, the bottleneck in using AI is people and process. These are large, successful companies whose processes and cultures grew over decades, in years when margins could carry long, expensive development programes. Those margins have shrunk sharply, and a cheap city car never had them. You cannot afford to find out at the first prototype, a year into the programme, that the car is too expensive to build. To get the benefit, engineers have to rethink their own expertise, adopt new tools fast and accept that some attempts will fail. Leadership has to drive it from the top. Changing that culture takes longer than rolling out the software,” according to Maier.
“Engineering is where Europe can close the gap, he said.
Munoz also believes Europe can lead the way with these small cars, although his price target is closer to $16,000.
“Instead of copying the kei-car model from Japan, Europe must work on its own. Something bigger than a city-car but smaller than a super-mini. The Citroen 2CV is a good example. It can definitely see the light with prices around ($16,000) only if the safety standards are changed, and other regulations are adapted,” according to Munoz.
Meanwhile we await Honda’s decision on whether its Super-N will be welcomed in mainland Europe, not just the U.K. Its price suggests it will be a niche success, but it’s concept is likely be ubiquitous.
Honda Super-N Advance
Electric motor – 62 Hp, 93 Hp with boost
Torque – 162 Nm
Gearbox – automatic (with 7-speed override)
Battery – 29.6 kWh
Claimed range – 128 miles (WLTP) 199 miles city
Drive – front-wheels
Acceleration – 0-60 mph 14.1 seconds
Top speed – 84 mph
CO2 – zero while driving
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