Honda enters Chinese EV market with S7 electric SUV

Honda is making a serious push into China's electric car market with the launch of the S7 electric SUV. No longer called Ye S7, the new model, produced through the Dongfeng-Honda joint venture, has a lot riding on it - Honda hopes it will capture a slice of the growing EV pie with a mix of decent performance, technology, and pricing. The last one is the tricky bit.

The S7 has a modern design with distinctive Y-shaped headlights and a sleek profile. It measures 187 inches in length, 76 inches in width, and 64 inches in height, and it has a wheelbase of 115.4 inches. These numbers clearly point out Honda's direct competitor - Tesla Model Y. The S7 is slightly shorter than Model Y, but it has a longer wheelbase, offering potentially more interior space. The S7 offers a surprisingly small 16.6 ft³ trunk (Model Y has 30.2 ft³), but it comes standard with 19-inch wheels, with the top trim featuring 21-inch rims.

Inside, a large 24-inch portrait-oriented screen dominates the dashboard, complemented by a 9.9-inch digital instrument cluster. The 41.9-inch augmented reality head-up display provides drivers with vital information directly in their line of sight. Heated seats and a steering wheel add to the comfort, while an eight-speaker audio system comes standard. The top-tier model upgrades to a 16-speaker Bose system for an enhanced audio experience. The vehicle also includes the Honda Sensing driving assistance system.

Performance-wise, the Honda S7 has two powertrain options. The rear-wheel-drive version features a single electric motor producing 268 horsepower and 310 lb-ft of torque. This model is powered by an 89.8 kWh ternary NMC battery pack, providing a CLTC range of 404 miles. The all-wheel-drive variant gets two electric motors, delivering a combined 469 horsepower and 568 lb-ft of torque. This version accelerates from 0 to 62 mph in 4.6 seconds. It uses the same 89.8 kWh battery, but its range is slightly lower at 385 miles under CLTC testing. According to the company, charging the battery to 80% takes 36 minutes.

During the launch, Honda was quick to point out that the S7's body boasts a torsional rigidity of 40,000 Nm/degree and that it features 11 airbags. The suspension comes with a continuous damping control system, with independent double wishbones at the front and an independent five-link at the rear.

Pricing for the Honda S7 starts at RMB 259,900 ($35,840) for the rear-wheel-drive model, and the top-tier all-wheel-drive version starts from RMB 309,900 ($42,740). This makes the S7 slightly cheaper than the Tesla Model Y in China. However, the S7 faces stiff competition from local Chinese brands like Zeekr, XPeng, and BYD, which offer similar but lower-priced EVs with advanced features.

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