Shulou(Shulou.com)11/24 Report--

On March 4, Honda's incoming CEO Miku Minhong said he plans to use new battery technology to reduce costs and develop more economical small electric vehicles.

Until then, Honda will continue to sell higher-priced, larger electric cars. But Minhong admits that it is difficult to make a plan because of the unstable electric car market.

Tu Yuan Pixabay this week, Miku Minhong attended the opening ceremony of a new $4.4 billion lithium-ion battery factory in Ohio (CTOnews.com Note: current about 30.404 billion yuan). He said in an interview that electric vehicles are currently 40% more expensive to make than fuel-powered vehicles, and that new solid-state batteries will eventually make it easier to build electric vehicles.

Honda is currently working with Sony to develop electric cars. The company is looking to catch up with its competitors in electric vehicles and has promised to sell only electric vehicles by 2040.

"We are aware that the price of cars is rising," said Minhong. "the electric vehicle business is very dependent on battery costs, and we can try to control costs through technological advances."

Solid-state batteries being developed by Honda will replace liquid electrolytes in lithium-ion batteries with more stable materials such as ceramics. This reduces the size and cost of the battery pack, stores more energy, and effectively prevents the battery from catching fire.

Honda is not the only company focused on solid-state batteries. Toyota, Nissan, General Motors and Ford all have plans to develop solid-state batteries.

Honda has always been known for making cheap and reliable cars. But Minhong said the cost of putting solid-state battery technology into production is high, so Honda needs to make sure the market is ready before moving forward with the technology.

"it takes a lot of investment to produce this kind of battery, so we have to judge the right time," he said. "it's very difficult."

Miku Minhong said that the large-scale application of solid-state battery technology may take several years, and it is difficult to determine when to increase production. Honda has its own solid-state battery development plan and has partnerships with General Motors and LG Chemistry, he said.

Meanwhile, Honda's first electric cars will be the bigger and more expensive SUV. The Honda Prologue and Acura ZDX, made on GM's Ultium EV platform, will go on sale in 2024. The Prologue is similar in size to the Honda Passport, which starts at about $42000 (CTOnews.com Note: currently about 290000 yuan).

Sam Abuelsamid, an analyst at market research firm Guidehouse Insights, said the Honda Prologue could be priced between $50, 000 and $60, 000. He said Honda would need to introduce more electric cars to the market to remain competitive in the US and Europe.

Minhong said Honda initially needed to absorb production costs with high-priced models. After that, the company will consider using its own electric vehicle platform to develop small cars from 2026. But the launch of the electric version of the Civic will take several years.

But in some markets, Honda must boost its electric car business regardless of cost. Both Europe and California plan to ban the sale of fuel cars by 2035, according to Minhong. And the electrification of China's auto market is also unstoppable. Honda plans to launch 10 electric cars in China by 2028.

Mimi believes that the US market is much more difficult because the local charging network is not good enough. "the charging infrastructure is not up to the level that our customers need," he said. "We have to consider these issues when we meet the target of 40% electric vehicle sales by 2030. the electric vehicle market is unstable."

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