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Honda wants loyal buyers to stick with the brand as it moves through the launch of its 0 Series electric vehicles.
Jessika Laudermilk, assistant vice president of national auto sales for Honda, told Automotive News on Jan. 24 that the brand’s strong hybrid offerings are designed to be a customer’s first step before making the leap to a Prologue EV or the 0 Series SUV that will go on sale in the first half of 2026.
Laudermilk planned to discuss electric vehicles, among other topics, at Honda’s franchise meeting at the NADA Show last week, but a winter storm prevented leadership from traveling to New Orleans for the annual convention.
Honda’s meeting with dealers was scheduled for Jan. 25, but the automaker opted to a host a virtual meeting at a future time still being determined.
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Honda has maintained that its hybrid offerings are a key element to its plan to become all-electric by 2040.
“When we rolled out the CR-V hybrid and Accord hybrid — we ramped up production to be about 50 percent of the mix on both models to help bridge our customers to electrification,” Laudermilk said.
“We came out with a two-year lease strategy on the CR-V hybrid thinking that those customers would be well-positioned to get into a Prologue,” she said.
In addition to the Accord and CR-V, Civic offers a hybrid that commands about 30 percent of the model’s total sales. Its fourth hybrid — a resurrected version of the Prelude sporty coupe — will launch this year.
Laudermilk said the new Prelude will be positioned as a performance vehicle much like the original.
All hybrids are meant to provide a bridge between ICE and electrification, with the Prologue acting as a final jumping off point to the 0 Series.
Honda is developing CPO strategies to support Prologues when they come back to dealers, especially since a high percentage of customers are leasing, Laudermik said.
When Prologue leases are up, she said consumers will be able to move into the 0 Series SUV or another Prologue. The Prologue is expected to go through one complete life cycle before being retired early in the next decade. A midcycle refresh in 2027 is likely.
“We see all of these models as a stair-step approach to get customers ready for electrification and prepare our dealers to sell things like software defined vehicles with HondaLink, especially knowing 0 Series will be a lot higher tech,” she said.
Matthew Phillips, CEO of Car Pros, said Honda is trying to be deliberate in bridging customers to EVs.