【EV Vision Report】Not long ago, Dongfeng Honda's new pure electric sequence e:N's first model, e:N, officially ushered in the off-line. Dongfeng Honda also gave this new pure electric vehicle the honor of its 7 million vehicles off the production line milestone. As the leader of Dongfeng Honda to open the "post-7 million era", the mission and responsibility of the e:N series and e:NS1 are self-evident.
On March 18, Dongfeng Honda's new pure electric SUV - e:NS1 officially opened pre-sale, the new car will launch e-type version and e-moving version, of which the e-type version is pre-priced at 180,000-190,000 yuan, and the e-moving version is pre-priced at 20-21 million yuan. The new car is based on the e:N Architecture F pure electric architecture, and it is also one of Honda's signature products to accelerate the transformation of pure electrification in the Chinese market.
As the first model of the new pure electric vehicle brand "e:N", Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 fully interprets the new definition of the "e:N" brand for the value of pure electric vehicles, and has excellent performance in driving control, intelligence, design and quality.
Why is it called e:N?
The first time I heard this name, I wondered why I gave it such a name. In fact, the birth of the new pure electric brand "e: N" is Honda's deep understanding of the Chinese market, and it gives the best solution for "pure electric vehicles with unique Honda characteristics in the new era".
The "e" here represents energy and is also electric. As the world's leading powertrain manufacturer, Honda offers a variety of power options to up to 32 million consumers each year, and will continue to provide strong support through electrification products and technologies in the future. The "N" is New and Next. Honda aims to provide a new electric vehicle driving experience through continuous innovation, realize the brand transformation toward electrification, and open a new chapter in the mobility business.
According to EV Vision, Honda's "e:N" series products are the best pure electric vehicles tailored to the Needs of Chinese consumers centered on the Chinese team, bringing an unusual new experience to Chinese customers.
What does "S1" mean?
The meaning of "1" is easier to understand, and my understanding is that e:NS1 is the first car of Dongfeng Honda's "e:N" brand.
"S" actually represents two meanings, the first meaning is "Spirit", representing the challenge spirit of Dongfeng Honda. It also represents that Dongfeng Honda is constantly challenging itself in the process of electrification. From the release of the "Looking to the Future" new energy brand strategic plan by Dongfeng Honda at the Guangzhou Auto Show in 2018 to the debut of the first pure electric vehicle X-NV in 19 years, the official opening of the first year of Dongfeng Honda e: NS1 electrification, and then to the stunning listing of Dongfeng Honda's second pure electric vehicle M-NV at the Guangzhou Auto Show in 20 years, Dongfeng Honda's new energy product matrix has further expanded.
The entry of Dongfeng Honda e: NS1 is indeed late compared to the new car-making forces that are now extremely hot. Dongfeng Honda will still have the courage to challenge itself in the process of electrification, according to EV Vision, Dongfeng Honda plans to launch a number of new pure electric vehicle brand e:N models in the next 5 years, taking the lead in building a very attractive product matrix.
The second meaning of "s" is Dongfeng Honda's brand world view "Stay ahead" and the brand proposition of "more technology, more fashion, more comfortable", which also represents the Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 set "action", "wisdom" and "beauty" in one, fully demonstrating the brand's attitude and determination to fully embrace electrification. So how exactly does the Dongfeng Honda e: NS1 manifest itself? Let's move on.
People and cars are integrated, and cars are "moving" at will
Above we mentioned "motion", Honda has developed a new intelligent and efficient pure electric architecture "e:N Architecture", for the "e:N" series to provide "e:N Architecture F" and "e: N Architecture W" two different driving methods of intelligent and efficient pure electric architecture.
"e:N Architecture F" is based on front-facing front-drive FWD and will be installed in small and medium-sized vehicles to achieve the driving performance of integrating people and vehicles above the pure electric vehicles of the same level.
"e:N Architecture W" includes two versions, AWD and RWD, and will be installed on medium and large models. The AWD uses two sets of high-power drive motors at the front and rear to optimally distribute and control the driving force according to the driving conditions, and the RWD realizes powerful drive and light and sensitive control with high-power rear-drive motors.
The Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 is a model based on "e:N Architecture F". It can be said that Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 is first a Honda car, and then a pure electric vehicle. The e:NS1 continues Honda's sports gene, equipped with the front-drive "e:N Architecture F" intelligent and efficient pure electric architecture, which integrates a special frame for high-rigidity pure electric vehicles, a three-in-one high-power motor, and a large-capacity battery with a maximum cruising range of 510km.
In terms of driving performance, the 150kW motor equipped with Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 is powerful, accelerating briskly and smoothly, and full of passion. The steering maintains Honda's usual precision and flexibility, the body posture can always be stable, and the dynamic performance maintains the excellent sense of communication between people and vehicles in Honda's fuel vehicles. It's commendable that in Sport mode, the e:NS1 Honda EV Sound acceleration sound can also bring a surging driving experience similar to Honda's high-speed engine.
In order to easily adapt to the ever-changing driving scenario, the control program of the Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 motor integrates up to 20,000 scene algorithms, which is more than 40 times that of ordinary pure electric vehicles. Infused with unique technologies such as aerodynamics accumulated in the event challenges, it is precise directivity, acceleration responsiveness, smoothness, etc., to achieve sports car-level handling performance. In particular, in everyday scenarios, through the precise control of the motor driving force, it is perfectly adapted to the road conditions in China.
In addition, Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 uses Honda's unique noise reduction technology to cope with low, medium and high bands of road noise, creating a quiet space that crosses the level.
Peace of mind and comfort, "wisdom" can drive fun
Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 emphasizes high-level driving fun, and also includes the "e:N OS" full-stack intelligent control ecosystem that integrates Honda SENSING, Honda CONNECT, and intelligent digital cockpit.
Inside the car, Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 is equipped with an advanced HMI system, with a rare 15.2-inch high-definition ultra-thin bezel central control screen of this class model, and a 10.25-inch color full-LCD digital dashboard, creating a digital cockpit, making information acquisition and vehicle handling more convenient and intelligent.
You think that's all there is to the smart ecosystem? That would be a big mistake. Dongfeng Honda e: NS1 is also equipped with Honda CONNCET 3.0 pure electric vehicle special version, set AI voice assistant, car home interconnection, energy management, OTA online upgrade and other more than 20 functions, with the mobile phone as the terminal digital key, the door, window, air conditioning, etc. remote control, and can be keyless through the mobile phone to start. In addition, for the first time, the DMC driver state perception system can be equipped to effectively identify the driver's state, and even detect emotional changes, actively remind, and make the driving experience safer.
In addition, the latest Honda SENSING safety supersensitive system is another major advantage of Dongfeng Honda e:NS1. The system provides 360°sensing monitoring of the vehicle's surroundings through radar and cameras throughout the body, enabling powerful intelligent driver assistance functions. It is worth mentioning that the system has added streaming mirrors and automatic parking functions, and will continue to evolve through OTAs in the future, which will also make driving smarter and safer.
Love at first sight, the "beauty" of the future
Everyone has a heart for beauty, and the beauty of Dongfeng Honda e: NS1 comes from the future.
From the outside of the car, Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 adopts Honda's latest e:N Design design language, with tough body lines, and sharp headlight shape, in order to enhance the fashion sense of the whole car, while the Honda "H" logo on the front face can be lit, and the tail uses "Honda" English to replace the usual "H" logo.
The interior of Dongfeng Honda e: NS1 is also a new design, the 15.2-inch ultra-narrow bezel central control large screen is full of technology, a collection of almost all intelligent elements, and the physical buttons are also greatly simplified on the basis of ensuring practicality.
The seat material in the car also uses a splicing that looks like Odiland and leather, and there are green decorative strips in the part, and the configuration in the car is also very in line with the current consumer use, not only has the wireless charging function of the mobile phone, but also introduces a more advanced BOSE sound system.
Editor's summary: From the book alone, Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 subverted my understanding of Dongfeng Honda's previous pure electric vehicles, and the addition of more intelligent and personalized configurations made it stand out in the same class of models. Such an electric vehicle with unique "new era Honda characteristics" may surprise users in the "post-7 million era". In the future, the belated Dongfeng Honda e:NS1 and Dongfeng Honda e:N brands will launch more electric models, whether they can compete with the Volkswagen ID. series and Toyota bZ series and other joint venture brand electric models, let us wait and see.