Do you remember the Honda N Concept_4 from last year’s Tokyo Motor Show? Well, what you see pictured here is the final production version of the small hatchback that is slated to go on sale in Japan this fall.
Sourced from a leaked Japanese market brochure, these scanned images reveal the exterior and interior of the new Honda that will probably rival the likes of the Fiat 500 in the city car segment.
Note that we are not entirely sure about the name, which we translated to N-One (or N-1) from Japanese.
The cosmetic changes over the original N Concept 4, itself a follow up to the 2009 EV-N study, are restrained and include the regular head- and tail lamp fixtures (instead of LED units), and the redesigned tail gate that now sports a thick decorative chrome strip right above the license plate holder.
The styling of the N-One harks back to Honda’s original N series of kei-cars from the 1960s and 1970s, and especially the N360, built between 1967 and 1972.
Inside, the N-1 appears less retro with the lower half of the dashboard being almost identical to the one found on Honda’s recently launched N Box +, while the upper part is different.
The parts sharing with the JDM N Box + continues underneath the body as the two models use the same platform and running gear.
We don’t have any information on the engine choices, but we expect the N-1 to be offered in Japan with Honda’s 660cc three-cylinder petrol engine in both naturally aspirated and turbocharged versions linked to a CVT driving the front- or all-four wheels.
At last year’s Tokyo Motors Show during the presentation of the concept model, Sho Minekawa, Honda Managing Officer and CEO for regional sales in Japan, said that he expects the N Box + and the N-1 to help double the brand’s mini-vehicle sales to around 280,000 units.
Honda has not said if it has any plans to offer the car in markets outside of Japan.
Many thanks to our Japanese tipster 福田隆二!
Photo credits: 福田隆二
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