The 2024 Prologue rides on a platform co-developed by General Motors. It will also use the American carmaker’s cutting-edge Ultium batteries.

Designed during the pandemic, Honda used virtual reality to design the Prologue. Its Honda Design Studio in Los Angeles worked closely with Honda’s design and development team in Japan to come up with a modern and fresh design that “will look comfortable in the same showroom with existing Honda SUVs.”

The Prologue features clean, simple lines influenced by Honda’s global EV models, including the Honda e. It’s then balanced by what the carmaker calls a “neo-rugged look.”

The team also focused on aerodynamics, fine-tuning the body with a simple surface direction and fewer lines to improve range and reduce cabin noise. This is something that will become even more important for customers driving an EV, as the absence of engine sounds will make any wind noise and other sounds entering the cabin more noticeable.

An upscale Acura version is also in the works.

The Prologue is the opening salvo in Honda’s electrification efforts in North America. By 2026, the carmaker will start producing vehicles using its own proprietary Honda e:Architecture while still deepening their relationship with GM. By 2027, GM and Honda will release a new series of affordable EVs riding on a co-developed platform.

By 2030, Honda aims to sell nearly 500,000 electric vehicles in North America alone. This will require a new dealership facility design that will provide a more modular and flexible space. Dealerships there will also be required to install EV charging stations based on their expected EV sales volume.