Honda rolled out a camouflage-wrapped prototype version of its upcoming O Series SUV at an event in Tokyo April 2, the first time the EV has been displayed in public. It made its debut at the CES 2025 consumer electronics trade show in Las Vegas at the beginning of the year.
The camo does little to disguise the blocky rear end and almost van-like shape and made us wonder why, as the prototype shown at CES was not camouflaged and photos of it have been widely available for several months.
In any event, it is a bold and futuristic new look for Honda, designed to maximize passenger and cargo space and catch shoppers’ eyes. We think it will do just that.
The O Series cars will be built at Honda’s EV Hub plant in Ohio but will use lots of bits and pieces imported from Japan and we have no clue yet as to how the Trump Administration’s new tariffs on imported autos and auto parts will affect pricing and production plans. At this early stage of things, Honda probably doesn’t, ether.
Our January report on the O Series (Honda uses the single letter, but says to pronounce it as “zero,” not “oh”) provided as many details as Honda’s released so far, so we’ll offer only a brief recap here:
- The O Series, will introduce new design language and will integrate Honda’s new ASIMO operating system, named after Honda’s 25-year-old Asimo humanoid robot , that will manage and integrate all the various driver assistance and infotainment systems and will be capable of over-the-air updates. The driver assistance package will include level 3 autonomous driving capability. When it will be tuned on, though, is anyone’s guess as that level of hands-free and eyes-off-the-road driving is legal right now in just two states, California and Nevada.
