Honda's new Ye Series EVs for China foreshadow U.S.-bound next-gen 0 Series

TOKYO — Honda is launching a series of sleek-looking, next-generation electric vehicles in China in a bid to rekindle its flagging fortunes in the world's biggest auto market and bridge the Japanese carmaker's shift to a lineup of software-defined EVs heading to the U.S.

The family of all-electric vehicles, called the Ye Series, goes on sale in China starting this year and features rear-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive layouts for more dynamic driving and handling.

Honda Motor Co. plans to introduce six Ye Series models by 2027. It will unveil two Ye models plus a concept at the Beijing auto show, which runs Thursday to May 5.

The new entries advance Honda's electrification strategy toward another next-generation platform that will land in the U.S. and other global markets from 2026. That platform, called the 0 Series, was unveiled at this year's CES in Las Vegas as is crucial to Honda's late-coming gambit to become a relevant player in the global EV market.

Honda sold 19,115 EVs globally in 2023, down from 22,256 the year before. To date, most of Honda's EV sales come from China. The carmaker offered no EVs in the U.S. until last month, when it began selling the Prologue crossover, jointly developed with General Motors.

In China — the world's biggest, most vibrant EV market — Honda has been struggling like many international players to boost its presence. China is Honda's second-biggest market, after the U.S.

But sales there essentially stagnated at 1.01 million vehicles in the first three quarters of the fiscal year ended March 31. Honda's U.S. sales, by contrast, rose 43 percent to 1.02 million.

In China, Honda saw EV sales slide to 16,901 in 2023, from 19,758 the year before.

The design language of the Ye family features clean surface lines, a technical-looking fascia with an undercut, inverted nose and thin, linear lighting motifs up front.

The vehicles get long wheelbases with short front and rear overhangs.

They will bear a redesigned "H mark" that Honda will use on its next-generation EVs, including the Honda 0 Series. It is updated from the classic Honda badging that debuted in 1981.

The Ye EVs were developed by Honda in China for the local market and are based on a newly developed dedicated EV platform called Architecture W. Honda won't say right now whether these vehicles may ever be sold or manufactured outside of China.

The name Ye stems from the Chinese character meaning "shine brilliantly."

The Ye platform follows the e:N Series of EVs that Honda developed for China and arrives before the upcoming e:Architecture platform that will underpin the global 0 Series.

The Ye entries come in two layouts — a one-motor, rear-wheel-drive version and a two-motor, four-wheel-drive setup. The collection at the Beijing show includes the Ye P7 crossover and Ye S7. There is also the Ye GT Concept, a low and wide sedan geared toward sporty driving.

Production versions of the GT Concept are set to go on sale by the end of 2025.

Honda is the only Japanese automaker to commit to fully phasing out internal combustion engines. The company wants to introduce 30 EVs globally by 2030 and sell nothing but full-electric or hydrogen fuel cell vehicles by 2040. In previewing the new 0 Series in January, Honda showed two concepts — the Saloon and Space-Hub — and debuted the H mark.