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The 2024 Honda Prologue is a two-row electric crossover SUV with space for up to five. Larger and more spacious than the Honda CR-V, the Prologue is closer to Honda’s Passport in overall dimensions. The Prologue’s rivals include the Tesla Model Y, Volkswagen ID.4, Kia EV9, and Nissan Ariya—as well as the Chevrolet Equinox, with which it shares GM’s Ultium battery and propulsion platform.
We’ve only sat in the Prologue, folded its seats down, and scrutinized its cargo, cubbies, and trim enough to see that it’s smartly designed. It’ll be months before we get to drive it or even sample its screen interface—but count on an update before it reaches dealerships sometime in the first half of 2024. (Read more about how we rate cars.)
Everything. The Honda Prologue is a completely new vehicle, and it’s Honda’s first electric SUV. Honda sees it as a next step for families with the CR-V who want a fully electric vehicle, and it also resumes Honda’s EV offerings after the limited-availability Clarity Electric was discontinued in 2020.
The Prologue was co-developed with GM, and it’s built on GM’s Ultium battery system and propulsion toolkit. That means it’s powered by the same Ultium large-format batteries, manufactured with LG, as other new GM EVs, while it also utilizes GM’s new-generation permanent-magnet electric motors.
Starting with the constraints of the platform, Honda designed everything above it—the entire “top hat”—without influence from GM. And Honda’s gone such a softer route in its styling, you’re unlikely to ever see the connection. Honda calls the Prologue’s design “neo-rugged,” with blacked-out details that establish just enough SUV cred, but don’t expect standout ground clearance or even an off-road mode here.
With respect to styling, the Prologue is more of an establishing statement for the brand’s U.S.-bound EVs from here on. It effectively splits the difference in front versus today’s CR-V and Accord, with a smooth grille-less look flanked by LED headlights, running lights, and turn signals. The profile looks wagon-like from some angles, including at the rear where the LEDs are set high as part of a horizontal strip featuring the Honda name spelled out in script that matches what’s used on the European Honda E and on Honda’s established Chinese-market EVs. In top Elite guise, the big 21-inch wheels help give it presence, too.
The 2024 Prologue will be offered in EX, Touring, and Elite levels, with EX and Touring models available with single-motor front-wheel drive or dual-motor all-wheel drive; the top Elite is only offered with AWD. In dual-motor AWD form, the Prologue’s propulsion system will make 288 hp and 333 lb-ft. Base models will have one motor at the front wheels, with output not yet disclosed. Honda also doesn’t yet have a curb weight for the Prologue and hasn’t yet revealed acceleration and performance figures, but for context Honda said it prioritized spaciousness, comfort, efficiency, and range more than performance.
The Prologue is about 192 inches long, with a width of about 78 inches, which is about the same as Honda’s gasoline-powered Passport, or a Jeep Grand Cherokee. But at 65 inches high and built on a long wheelbase of nearly 122 inches, over a big 85-kwh battery pack, its cabin has very different proportions. Between the Prologue’s front and rear rows there’s loads of legroom, although headroom is at a bit of a premium in the outboard backseat positions (a two-position recline presents options). The layout helps make the most of cargo versatility, with easy load heights and the rear seatbacks folding mostly flat to expand the cargo space from 25.2 cubic feet to 57.7 cubic feet. There’s an additional 5.0-cubic-foot well below the rear floor, but no frunk.
The Honda Prologue will be able to fast-charge (with the CCS port) at 155 kw. Honda says that’s good for recovering 65 miles of range in just 10 minutes, or to get from 20-80% in 35 minutes.
Its interface presents mostly as a member of the Honda family, with an odd piece of GM switchgear here and there—the column shifter especially. To the left of the steering wheel there’s a regen paddle that taps into multiple brake-regen modes, and Sport, Normal, and Econ drive modes altogether provide an interface not far from that of Honda’s current hybrids.
The center console follows a traditional SUV layout, with a wide, tall center console and two huge cupholders that can handle 32-ounce Nalgene bottles or small coffee cups. There’s a wireless charging pad, while there are two 45-watt USB-C ports in front, and another two in back, plus a 110-volt AC socket. Rear-seat occupants get climate-control vents but not controls.
Top Elite models will get upgraded upholstery plus Bose premium sound, while the Touring and Elite get a panoramic sunroof. The base EX comes with heated front seats, a power driver’s seat, dual-zone climate control, and 19-inch wheels. The Elite adds perforated leather upholstery, accent stitching, a heated steering wheel, and ventilated front seats.
Honda also ramps up its use of Google Built-In for the Prologue’s 11.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system, with an EV twist. In addition to Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, the system’s route-planning features will help drivers plan charging waypoints along the route and help precondition the battery pack for maximum charge rate on arrival. It will also allow a full-screen Google Maps view, and if the configurable gauge cluster isn’t doing it, there’s also a supplemental head-up display on the top Elite versions.
Honda Prologue safety and driver-assist technology
The Prologue comes with automatic emergency braking front and rear, active lane control, blind-spot monitors with steering assist, adaptive cruise control, a rear pedestrian alert, cross-traffic braking, and more. It was designed and engineered primarily as a North American vehicle, and Honda is targeting top U.S. crash-test results from the IIHS and NHTSA.
How much does the 2024 Honda Prologue cost?
Honda hasn’t yet detailed pricing for the 2024 Prologue, but it says that the base EX, in front-wheel-drive form, will start in the upper-$40,000 range. Don’t expect the Prologue to overlap at all with its Acura ZDX cousin, so expect a fully loaded Elite to land in the upper-$50k range. Detailed pricing may arrive late in 2023.
In the meantime, Honda has detailed some of the charging perks it’s planning to offer Prologue customers. They’ll be able to choose from an 11.5-kw home charging station plus a $100 charging credit and $500 installation incentive, a 7.6-kw mobile charger plus a $300 charging credit and $250 installation incentive, or a $750 charging credit. It’s also planning to help customers find installers through a service called Honda Home Electrification.
Where is the 2024 Honda Prologue made?
Honda still hasn’t officially announced where the Prologue is due to be assembled, but it’s likely to be made starting early next year at GM’s plant in Ramos Arizpe, Mexico. Based on pricing, assembly point, and battery sourcing, it’s likely that the entire lineup of the Prologue will qualify for a federal EV tax credit, potentially up to $7,500—potentially dropping its effective starting price for many households to the low $40,000 range.
