While the electric vehicle (EV) emergence has slowed a bit, there still remain many new entries into the EV field that are quite intriguing and welcomed, such as the new Honda Prologue. Honda’s new foray into the EV field is at the helping hand of General Motors by utilizing their Ultium platform, where the new Honda Prologue we have this week is heavily based on the Chevrolet Blazer EV. Such collaborations between automakers are nothing new, and it seems the joint efforts of Chevrolet and Honda have paid off well after we have a week with the new Honda Prologue bringing a simplistic approach to a decent electrified crossover.
On the outside there’s a lot to like visually as Honda has their hand on a good-looking design aesthetic and color choices, such as the teal-looking North Shore Pearl paint on my test vehicle. Driving around town there were plenty of head turns and questions asked of me when parking at local stores about the Prologue and if it was electric. Some knew, and others may have mistaken it for a new Land Rover, based on a quick glance at the rear. Either way, Honda did the exterior justice.
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Newly introduced as a fresh face in the Honda lineup is the new Prologue, a fully electric crossover that underneath shows its Chevrolet Blazer EV fundamentals, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Those fundamentals are mostly decent in the top-trim Prologue AWD Elite having a dual motor setup for all-wheel-drive touting a total of 288 horsepower and 333 lb-ft of torque. That power feels adequate in most cases thanks to the instantaneous torque, which ultimately gives you a perception of the vehicle being quicker than it really is. Zero to 60 mph takes place in about 6 seconds flat while most will not go wanting for additional power.
Ride quality is pretty good, much better than something like the Ford Mustang Mach-E, while you’re treated to an eerily quiet cabin. Out on the road, the Prologue AWD Elite is surefooted and feels mostly hunkered down, which is partly a characteristic of its meaty 275/45R-21-inch Bridgestone Alenza tires wrapping the cheeky-styled 21-inch aluminum wheels. Here, there seems to be a lot of tire making contact with the road, possibly creating a bit of extra rolling resistance than competitors. Such resistance may cost some range, whereas the Prologue AWD Elite has a range of 273 miles at a full charge. During my tests all week long that range figure seemed to be spot on for using local highways. However, city driving seemed to greatly extend the range where I was on pace to get as much as 290 miles out of a charge.
EPA estimates for electric consumption come to 99 MPGe city (2.94 miles per kWh), 84 MPGe highway (2.49 miles per kWH), and 92 MPGe combined (2.73 miles per kWh). The battery, the same 85-kWh Ultium pack found in the Chevrolet Blazer EV, maxes out at a charge rate of 155 kW when using a 350 kW DC fast charging stall. Mind you, using a 150 kW DC fast charger you won’t get a charge rate anywhere near 150 kW, so it’s best to use a 350 kW feed. Charging up using that 350 kW will give you 85 miles of energy in 15 minutes and as much as 128 miles added to the range in 30 minutes.
You can’t get around the fact that the Honda Prologue utilizes a lot of Chevrolet content, which makes a decent play on the Prologue being rather simplistic in its approach to interior content and its layout. There’s nothing that’s really glaring or out of place inside the new Prologue, while the seating areas are spacious, and the power front heated and ventilated seat adjustments make it easy to find an optimal position no matter your size. The heavy use of the Chevrolet content makes the Honda Prologue somewhat of a confusing offering where the only reminder that you’re in a Honda is the steering wheel logo, and maybe the Prologue has Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration – something that GM is keeping out of its new EVs. It’s a rather interesting proposition, and some may think of the Prologue as the Chevrolet Blazer EV but with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. I’m actually serious as some cross-shoppers may take notice of such and opt for the Prologue over the Chevy Blazer EV just because of that extra and highly sought-after integration feature. However, the simplicity of the interior space with the center infotainment touchscreen mounted tall on the dash somewhat fits the Honda design and feel. There are other welcoming aspects of the interior, such as the large, rubberized center console surface big enough to lay a full-size iPad on or the convenience of larger-sized cupholders. Even the operation of the infotainment unit is reworked, taking an approach to appease those who are accustomed to how Honda does things.
Overall, the interior space is inviting and properly fits the segment for the Prologue. The one drawback is the cargo space and the low visibility out of the short rear window. Honda could have helped address the visibility hinderance with a digital rearview camera mirror system, but that’s actually something that the Chevy Blazer EV offers that the Honda Prologue doesn’t along with a bit more cargo room in the Blazer EV – Yes, there will be some clever decisions made for those cross shoppers! One thing to remember, there’s no frunk (front trunk) so you have to make due with the rear cargo space or fold down the 60/40-split rear seat backs.
Honda keeps with the tradition of bundling all features with each trim level, with there being three levels for the new Prologue, EX, Touring, and the Elite trim. Fortunately, all safety features are bundled up in each trim except for the front and rear park assist, rear pedestrian alert, and the surround vision system (360-degree camera system) reserved for the Elite trim. Otherwise, you get the typical active safety features of forward collision alert, automatic emergency braking, front pedestrian braking, lane keep assist, adaptive cruise control, blind spot alert with steering assist, lane change alert, rear cross-traffic alert with braking, and traffic sign recognition.
The new Honda Prologue starts at $47,400 for the base EX front-wheel-drive trim before any fees or options, which gets a range of 296 miles or 281 miles if you opt for the all-wheel-drive dual motor setup. Moving up to the Touring trim the pricing will start at $51,700 and then $57,900 for the Elite trim, which only comes in all-wheel-drive with my test vehicle landing at $59,750 with its optional $455 paint and a destination charge of $1,395.
