Honda Super-N (2026 – ) review

If you have somewhere to install a home charger it’ll cost a pittance to top the little Super-N up on a wallbox and cheap off-peak domestic electricity tariff. Honda reckons you can still go up to 200 miles at city speeds as well, which is this little tyke’s preferred habitat and means the teensy battery won’t be too much of a limitation. Shame it doesn’t charge at faster than 50kW on DC, though, which’ll mean a public top-up to 80 per cent will still take half-an-hour.​

Two things we know. One, Honda builds dependable, reliable cars and, two, EVs have fewer moving parts to go wrong compared to petrol or diesel vehicles. Therefore, we’d be mighty surprised if the Super-N turned out to have any problems on this score, especially as the car is so light and will put less strain on tyres, brakes and other components that wear out over time.

As yet, the Super-N hasn’t been assessed by independent safety body Euro NCAP, but Honda is not in the habit of making unsafe vehicles. Despite being so small, the Super-N has plenty of Honda Sensing branded advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and, while there’s not an awful lot of metal around the passenger compartment, Honda has achieved top safety scores on other small cars like the Jazz so we’ll live in hope. Honda also claims the structure is stronger than you might assume thanks to what it describes as its Advanced Compatibility Engineering programme.

For what it is the Honda Super-N is a comfortable little thing to travel in. But it’s not perfect. First of all, it’s a strict four-seater, with just two three-point seatbelts in the back. Up front you’d better be on friendly terms with your passenger as the narrow body means you sit very close together. Those of a larger persuasion might also feel hemmed up against the driver’s door, there aren’t many storage places in the cabin, the boot’s a tiddler and Honda’s decision to tune the suspension for fun driving manners means the Super-N sometimes struggles when it encounters larger lumps and bumps in the tarmac. However, generally the Honda is a pleasure to travel in, with a smooth and quiet level of ride comfort in the main. It also copes with motorway driving more adeptly than you might expect, even if this likely won’t be where most Super-Ns will spend their time.

There’s just one specification of Honda Super-N for the UK and it comes with a healthy roster of kit, including screens for the instrument cluster and infotainment – the latter compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay – as well as deeply sculpted bucket sports seats, radar cruise control, climate control, heated front seats and steering wheel, 15-inch alloy wheels and a banging Bose eight-speaker premium sound system with a subwoofer housed in its own box underneath the boot floor. It also has Honda’s theatre-style flip-up Magic Seats in the back, which can be tumbled out of the way to make for greater storage volume in the rear footwells if required. Best yet, the price is highly competitive, so the Super N is as affordable as it is charismatic and well-equipped.

Don’t go expecting a road rocket here, for the fact the Kei car regulations the Super-N is built to for sale in Japan places strict limits on power output as well as size. It is still a joy to drive, though, partly because of a mad ‘Boost’ function raising the power-to-weight ratio to something approaching that of a warm hatchback. If not a fully hot one! Better yet, Honda has mapped in a virtual gearshift pattern and noises inspired by some of its classic models, which makes it more fun to drive enthusiastically than some monotone electric equivalents. It also has great steering and lively, enjoyable handling, which means it is as much of a delight to drive out on the open road as it is scooting about in the town traffic its miniscule proportions excel in.