Honda drops the first EV it brought to New Zealand

As electric vehicles continue to fly out the door in car dealerships around New Zealand, the local arm of Japanese carmaker Honda finds itself in an interesting predicament. 

The marque launched its first electric vehicle to our market, the e:N1 compact crossover, last year. The brand has confirmed that the model has officially sold out, with no new stock booked for our shores. 

Instead, Honda customers keen on a dedicated electric vehicle are being directed to the brand’s upcoming Super-One EV — a new nameplate that’s attracted a “very, very strong” amount of customer interest according to Honda New Zealand CEO Carolynn McMahon.

Speaking to CarExpert NZ, McMahon confirmed that the e:N1 has almost completely sold out locally barring a handful of units, including her own personal drive car.

“We launched [e:N1] in May last year, so it’s nearly been on the market for a year. And we did have a limited run of those vehicles, about 240 that we ended up bringing in. And we’ve sold out of them now,” said the chief executive. 

Asked whether the brand would look at bringing in more e:N1s, McMahon said “not at this point.”

“We were very lucky to get a batch last year, and into this year. The next stage is to look at the kei car and bring that in the second half. And then, future model line-up — we’ve got other iterations coming,” she said.

The Honda e:N1 was an intriguing fit within the electric SUV segment. Outgunned by most rivals when it came to range (Honda claimed a 330km range figure) and technology, the e:N1 was nevertheless a solid seller thanks to Honda’s brand reputation and a sharp $52,000 price tag.

As one door closes, another opens. Honda New Zealand announced it was taking expressions of interest from customers in the Super-One — a sporty electric ‘kei car’ that’s coming here later in 2026 — in April. 

On top of the Super-One becoming Honda’s sole EV in New Zealand, it’s also the first of Honda’s kei-car platforms to be sold new in our region. Technically speaking, the Super-One isn’t actually a kei car as its widebody doesn’t adhere to kei car dimensions. But, the standard N-One is a bonafide example of the breed. 

“I think with the current market environment, it’s the right time to be having electric vehicles. I think there’s been a lot of interest in the Super-One because of its electrification. But, I think the second half of it is the kei car concept. It’s such a cool looking, funky looking car,” said McMahon.

“I think those two things coming together have really blown us away with the expressions of interest. It’s been very very strong. [...] I’m delightedly surprised.” 

Local pricing for the Honda Super-One has yet to be confirmed.