The 2026 Super-One makes more sense in Australia than the old e because it will be priced more competitively, according to a Honda executive.
Electric Cars
More competitive pricing is what has secured the Australian showroom arrival of the 2026 Honda Super-One electric car, which scuppered the preceding Honda e from arriving Down Under.
Although Honda Australia’s first electric vehicle (EV) will be the Kei-class-based Super-One, the e – in production from 2020 to 2024 – was offered in right-hand drive and, at one point, considered for local showrooms.
Speaking to Drive after the 2025 Tokyo motor show, Honda Australia President and CEO Jay Joseph said the business case is much more favourable for the Super-One due to technological maturity.
“The Honda e was our first real in-house developed EV, and we had a lot to learn,” Joseph said.
“It is a fantastic product … lot to love about that car, but it was our first effort, and you can see that there were things we had to learn.
“And the way we built it, it was a very expensive vehicle, and we can’t afford to sell vehicles in Australia that aren’t profitable – we’re a business and we need to be able to operate as one.
“That vehicle just didn’t make sense, especially from a financial perspective that the price we would have needed to sell it at – and the additional investment for homologation, for regulation – it didn’t really make sense.
“We’ll be able to offer it [Super-One] at a price that we think is reasonable for what that car offers.”
While Honda Australia is yet to reveal exact pricing of the Super-One – or key details like power outputs, battery size, and driving range – it will be the most diminutive mass-market EV in the country, smaller than even a BYD Atto 1 and Fiat 500e.
However, with advancements in EV technology over the last five years – as well as more widespread adoption in Australia – the Super-One is likely to offer more performance and range than the retro-inspired e.
For reference, the e featured a rear-drive electric motor that produced as much as 113kW/315Nm, while its 35.5kWh battery was rated for 222km of driving range when equipped with 16-inch wheels.
Of note, the Super-One will feature a front-drive electric motor.
The Honda e was also priced from just over £30,000 in the UK, converting directly to around $AU60,000, but its positioning close to the HR-V Hybrid would indicate it would have arrived in Australia around $40,000.
Joseph also said the philosophy of the Super-One will differ from its all-electric peers, focusing more on driver engagement – through its simulated gearbox – rather than class-leading numbers.
“I really like that car because it expresses fun … and in the crowded BEV marketplace, which I would argue is a bit of a sea of sameness, I think it’s important to have an expression of fun to stand out, and I’m really happy that’s our first BEV in Australia,” Joseph said.
“That car goes on sale second half of next year, we’ll share a lot more detail as we get closer.”
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Tung Nguyen has been in the automotive journalism industry for over a decade, cutting his teeth at various publications before finding himself at Drive in 2024. With experience in news, feature, review, and advice writing, as well as video presentation skills, Tung is a do-it-all content creator. Tung’s love of cars first started as a child watching Transformers on Saturday mornings, as well as countless hours on PlayStation’s Gran Turismo, meaning his dream car is a Nissan GT-R, with a Liberty Walk widebody kit, of course.
