The Honda e electric hatchback looks like a fun little thing and that's something a lot of journalists from Germany agreed upon as well. Adding to its accolades, the Honda e has become the first-ever Japanese vehicle to win the 'German Car of the Year' title at the Car of the Year 2021 awards. The German Car of the Year awards is decided by a jury of leading car journalists from Deutschland. The panel of journalists rank the cars based on their usability, driving characteristics, market relevance and innovation levels. There are five categories - Compact, Premium, Luxury, New Energy and Performance, the winners of which then compete for the Car of the Year title.
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The Honda e also won in the New Energy category and was competing with winners of other categories for the top award
The Honda e also picked up the trophy in the New Energy category, before taking the big win of the year. The winners in other categories were Volkswagen Golf (Compact), Volkswagen ID.3 (Premium), Polestar 2 (Luxury) and BMW Alpina B3 (Performance).
Speaking on the prestigious victory, Katsuhisa Okuda, CO & President of Honda Motor Europe said, "For Honda e to be the first Japanese car to be awarded German Car of the Year is a great honour and one we are incredibly proud to receive. Customer and media response to the Honda e since it was first unveiled has been overwhelmingly positive. The Honda e is a perfect example of a product with a unique design, featuring cutting-edge technology and advanced intelligent connectivity to keep owners connected with their everyday life. We are very thankful for this award."
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The Honda e Prototype was appreciated for its practicality and everyday usability
Tomofumi Ichinose, Honda e Large Project Leader added, "Honda e represents a new type of mobility where the car plays a central role in creating a "seamless connection" between various facets of life. Honda e was also developed to be the best urban commuter in response to environmental issues, especially in city areas. Development of Honda e was a big challenge, however at the same time, it was fun to envision a beautiful and brighter future in which Honda e plays its part. Team members and I are delighted to receive this award, a recognition that the vision this car represents has value."
The Honda e was launched in Europe earlier this year and compiles a retro design theme with modern technology. The Honda e can be had with two electric motor options. The lower-spec version makes 100 kW (134 bhp) while the more powerful model gets a 113 kW (151 bhp) electric motor. Both versions offer 315 Nm of peak torque. A 35.5 kWh lithium-ion battery pack provides a range of 220 km on a single charge. The company says that the battery can be charged up to 80 per cent in just 30 minutes with a fast charger.
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The Volkswagen ID.3 and the Polestar 2 were EVs to pick-up awards in other categories
The Honda e's victory also points towards the changing trends of the auto industry and the growing acceptance of EVs. The Porsche Taycan was crowned the German Car of the Year 2020, while the Jaguar i-Pace was crowned with the same title in 2019. Similarly, the i-Pace also won the World Car of the Year, World Green Car and World Car Design of the Year awards in 2019. The Taycan won the World Performance Car of the Year in 2020.
