It’s taken a while but Acura is finally getting ready to reveal its first long-range battery-electric vehicle.
The 2024 Acura ZDX will make its formal debut during Monterey Car Week Aug. 17. The luxury arm of Honda offered a teaser image of the EV today to draw attention to the upcoming event.
“Acura’s unyielding commitment to delivering on the Precision Crafted Performance brand promise will continue in the electrified future, exemplified by Type S models that put the driver experience first,” said Emile Korkor, assistant vice president of Acura National Sales. “As the most powerful and quickest accelerating SUV in the brand’s history, the ZDX Type S will deliver on this promise and bring an exhilarating driving experience to the electric vehicle market.”
Debut plans
Acura first announced plans to name its first battery car the ZDX a year ago this month, at the time noting that it will draw design influence from its latest Precision Crafted Performance concept.
Falling into the SUV category, the Precision Concept adopted a flat “floating” roof that should offer plenty of headroom for both front- and rear-seat passengers. Sweeping creases on the hood flow into the deeply sculpted body panels. And the back end echoes the angular shape of the front end.
We’ll have to wait for the debut of the ZDX — which will be staged at the Acura Design Studio in Southern California — to see just how closely the production EV hews to the look of the concept.
Two versions under development
Two versions will be offered, including the base ZDX and what Acura describes as the “ZDX Type S performance variant.” The latter is expected to adopt a two-motor layout delivering both all-wheel drive and a significant upgrade in horsepower and torque.
Both models will reach showrooms “early next year,” following shortly after the launch of the more mainstream Honda Prologue.
Like the Prologue, the Acura ZDX is a product of a joint venture between Honda Motor Co. and General Motors. Both are based on GM’s new Ultium architecture. That’s the same platform used in products like the Cadillac Lyriq and the Chevrolet Blazer EV — the Caddy now on sale and the Chevy set to reach showrooms later this year.
But while the underpinnings — including the Ultium lithium-ion battery pack — will come from Detroit, the design of the ZDX is uniquely Acura’s.
A helping hand from GM
Honda turned to GM to help speed up its entry into the battery-electric market. Until relatively recently, the automaker primarily was focused on alternatives, including hybrids, plug-in hybrids and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles.
It is now ramping up its EV efforts under new CEO Toshihiro Mibe, who wants to have all-electric models account for at least 40% of its U.S. sales by the end of the decade — though Honda remains committed to other forms of electrification.
More to come
Honda and GM are accelerating their alliances. The two are moving ahead on plans to develop new entry-level models aimed to come in at under $30,000, targeting mainstream buyers. Currently, only the Nissan Leaf and the Chevrolet Bolt compete in that price range.
GM earlier this year said it would end production of the current Bolt line by the end of 2023. But CEO Mary Barra last week said a new Bolt is in development. It may be based on the new platform GM is developing with Honda, said Sam Fiorani, chief analyst, AutoForecast Solutions.
Additional versions of that entry model are expected to be sold by both the Acura and Honda brands, said Fiorani.
The automakers still haven’t come up with a good looking front-end design once the grill is gone. This one is the worst.