Honda showed the first examples of its new generation hybrid strategy with the Honda Hybrid Sedan Prototype and Acura Hybrid SUV Prototype. The two prototypes introduced within the scope of the 2026 Honda Business Briefing in Japan constitute the beginning of the 15 new generation hybrid models that the brand will put into operation by 2030. Honda starts the new hybrid era with prototypes in the Accord and Acura RDX line.
Honda announced its new plan, which opens more space for hybrid models in its global automobile strategy. The company showed off two new generation hybrid prototypes, named Honda Hybrid Sedan Prototype and Acura Hybrid SUV Prototype, for the first time at a business briefing held in Japan. These two vehicles are among the first members of the product family built on Honda’s new hybrid system and new platform. According to the shared information, Honda will begin to offer its new generation hybrid models to the market from 2027.
The company will launch 15 new generation hybrid models worldwide by the end of the fiscal year, which will end on March 31, 2030. The focus of these products will be especially on the North American market. Honda will also add large-size hybrid models in the D segment and above to its product range in North America in 2029. The sedan prototype shown by Honda stands out as the model representing the Accord line in the brand’s new hybrid era.
The SUV prototype on the Acura side is associated with the new generation RDX. Acura RDX was previously on the agenda as the first SUV model to carry Honda’s new generation two-motor hybrid system. New prototypes show the brand’s transition to the next generation hybrid architecture on both the powertrain and platform side. Honda announced that it will reduce the cost of the new generation hybrid system by more than 30 percent compared to the hybrid system introduced in 2023.
The company will use the new hybrid system together with the new platform and the newly developed electric four-wheel drive system. Thanks to this structure, more than 10 percent improvement in fuel economy will be achieved in new generation hybrid models. The electric four-wheel drive system will change the driving character as well as efficiency in Honda’s new hybrid models. The system combines a hybrid infrastructure powered by an internal combustion engine with an electrically assisted AWD structure.
Thus, Honda is both reducing consumption values in its new generation hybrid models and preparing the infrastructure that will provide a more controlled and responsive driving structure. Honda’s new plan also changes the resource distribution in the company’s electric vehicle strategy. The brand previously withdrew its plan to have one-fifth of its sales consist of electric vehicles in 2030. The goal of generating all sales from electric and fuel cell vehicles in 2040 was also included among the topics to be re-evaluated.
Honda will transfer more of its development and production resources to hybrid models under current market conditions. The company is also making a new arrangement regarding hybrid vehicles on the North American production side. Honda will allocate excess capacity at its automobile factories in Ohio to the production of gasoline and hybrid vehicles. In addition, all automobile factories in North America will be made suitable for hybrid model production.
There is also an important change on the battery side. Some electric vehicle battery production lines within the L-H Battery Company, a partnership between Honda and LG Energy Solution, will be converted to hybrid battery production. Honda will also increase the proportion of local content in parts such as motors and inverters to more than four times the current level. This step will be taken to reduce possible supply risks in hybrid vehicle production and limit the impact of US tariffs.
Honda also gave a new schedule for advanced driving support systems. The company’s next generation ADAS system will hit the market in 2028. This system will be applied to more than 15 models in a five-year period. According to Honda’s statement, the new generation ADAS will provide acceleration and steering support along the route, including highways and urban roads, using navigation data. On the Japanese side, Honda will expand its electric vehicle product range, especially in the kei car category.
In this context, the electric N-BOX model will be available for sale in 2028. Starting from the same year, new generation ADAS-equipped hybrid models will also take their place in the Japanese market, starting with the all-new Vezel. Honda states that losses in electric vehicle investments will be resolved by the fiscal year ending on March 31, 2029. The company will re-evaluate the demand for electric vehicles starting from 2030 and make new decisions for investments in this field.
In the next three years, resource allocation will be based on hybrid vehicles, gasoline models and software technologies.
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