Honda may be pulling back on EVs, but is charging ahead with hybrids like the new Acura RDX.
On Thursday, Honda released all the juicy details of its upcoming plans at its global business meeting. Among those plans, it also showed off a new hybrid sedan and SUV prototype. Now, while we can’t 110% definitively say the sedan is the new Accord and the SUV is the next RDX…you can reasonably draw those conclusions based on recent updates with Acura’s imminent next-generation model and a new Accord coming along in a couple years.
Sticking with the RDX, what you’re looking at here is a blend of RSX styling cues (makes sense they salvage some of the looks from that project), as well as a brand-new hybrid system. The company is fundamentally updating its two-motor hybrid system to deliver better fuel efficiency as well as reduced manufacturing costs. The latter point may help Honda’s bottom line in the long run, but we’ll ultimately have to wait and see whether potential cost savings translate to competitive pricing for customers.
There’s not too much technical information out about the next-generation hybrid system just yet, though we should know a lot more as we inch closer to the Acura RDX Hybrid’s full launch. Hopefully, we will see a bit more power as well, since it would be helpful for the new RDX to manage an output on a similar level as the old turbocharged crossover, just with much better fuel economy.
The new Acura RDX is just one of 15 new hybrids Honda plans to introduce in North America by the end of the decade. Some of those models will undoubtedly be existing nameplates — think Accord, Civic, CR-V and so on — though we may see some entirely new models (à la Prelude) make their way down the assembly line as well. Speaking of assembly, Honda further plans to bolster its output from its Marysville and East Liberty, Ohio plants as part of its pivot toward an aggressive expansion of hybrid cars.
