Honda e:Ny1 review

Make and model: Honda e:Ny1 Advance
Description: Compact electric SUV
Price range: £42,195 (plus options)

Summary: The Honda e:Ny1 is an easygoing electric SUV with decent space and smooth performance, but higher noise levels and everyday irritations make it feel average for the price.

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Introduction

Honda has a reputation for doing things its own way. Even when the rest of the market charges off in one direction, Honda often takes its time, refines the engineering and then arrives with something carefully considered. So when the e:Ny1 appeared as the brand’s mainstream electric SUV, expectations were reasonably high.

This is Honda’s family-sized EV, broadly comparable to the petrol HR-V and aimed at buyers who want to switch to electric power without stepping into something overly futuristic or intimidating. It’s practical, sensibly sized and pitched at the heart of the market.

After a full week of living with it in typical UK conditions, though, the overriding feeling isn’t that Honda has produced a bad electric car. It’s that it hasn’t produced a particularly distinctive one either. Nothing is disastrously wrong, but very little feels class-leading — and at this price, that matters.

For a broader ownership picture, see our full Honda e:Ny1 Expert Rating.

Price and equipment

The e:Ny1 sits in a competitive part of the electric SUV market, but it isn’t pitched as a budget option. It’s priced alongside established European and Korean rivals, which means expectations around refinement and polish are naturally higher.

Equipment levels are generous. There’s a large central touchscreen, digital driver display, leather-style upholstery, wireless smartphone connectivity and a full suite of safety systems. On paper, it looks well kitted out.

The issue isn’t what you get. It’s how cohesively everything works together once you’re using it every day.

Inside the car

Climb inside and the first thing you notice is the huge portrait-oriented 15-inch touchscreen dominating the dashboard. It’s unusual in a market where most systems are landscape-shaped, and visually it looks modern and quite smart. The graphics are clear and well presented, and at a glance it feels contemporary.

However, most of the car’s functions are routed through that screen, including the climate controls. That means you’re often tapping and scrolling rather than simply reaching for a physical dial. Over the course of a week, that becomes more irritating than impressive. It isn’t that the system is unusable — it’s just not especially intuitive when you’re trying to adjust temperature or ventilation on the move.

You quickly find yourself relying on the steering wheel buttons instead, which are actually quite well laid out and easier to use without taking your eyes off the road. In a slightly ironic twist, the old-fashioned buttons end up feeling like the most user-friendly part of the cabin.

The seats in our test car were finished in a pale grey leather-style trim, which looks attractive and brightens up the interior nicely. Whether it would stay that way is another question. Dark denim jeans, for example, felt like a potential long-term enemy. Comfort-wise, the seats are adequate rather than outstanding. They’re fine for everyday journeys, but they don’t offer the sort of support that makes a long motorway drive feel effortless.

One curious detail is the glass roof arrangement. The front seats get a simple, manually retractable blind that works perfectly well. The rear seats, however, use removable shade panels that have to be taken out by hand and stored somewhere else. It feels like two different design teams solved the same problem in completely different ways. It works, but it’s an odd solution.

There are some thoughtful touches. The cupholders are pleasingly deep and hold tall bottles securely, and the charging port is located in the nose of the car, which makes forward parking at public chargers straightforward. Our test car came with both a Type 2 cable for wallboxes and public charging and a three-pin domestic plug cable, which is useful flexibility.

Practicality is decent rather than exceptional. Because the e:Ny1 is based on the petrol HR-V rather than a dedicated electric platform, it doesn’t make quite as clever use of space as some purpose-built EVs. There’s no separate front boot for charging cables, so they live under the boot floor. That’s fine until the boot is full of luggage and you need to get to them.

Driving range and charging

Battery range is a key consideration for any electric car, and here the e:Ny1 delivers broadly what you’d expect on paper. In practice, though, the usable range feels quite sensitive to heating and air-conditioning use, particularly in colder weather. Turning the climate system on has a noticeable impact on the projected miles remaining.

On the plus side, the range indicator itself seems reasonably honest. Over longer drives it didn’t appear wildly optimistic or pessimistic, which is reassuring when planning journeys.

Regenerative braking is a key function for electric cars, as it’s a way of gaining ‘free’ energy to gradually recharge the battery every time you lift off the accelerator or step on the brake pedal. But on the e:Ny1 it’s not particularly convincing. Even when set to its stronger setting, it feels relatively mild, and frustratingly it doesn’t always stay where you’ve left it. We found ourselves repeatedly adjusting it upwards because it seemed to reduce itself. Over a week, that becomes a small but persistent annoyance.

On the road

Electric cars are often praised for their refinement, and around town the e:Ny1 feels smooth and easy to drive. The transition between electric power and any background systems is seamless, and it’s simple to thread through traffic.

At higher speeds, though, the refinement doesn’t quite match the best in class. Wind and road noise are more noticeable than in several rival EVs, which slightly undermines the calm atmosphere many buyers expect from an electric SUV. It’s still quieter than the equivalent petrol HR-V, but among EVs it doesn’t feel especially hushed.

The ride is acceptable, leaning towards firm rather than cushioned. Over rougher surfaces it doesn’t glide in the way some competitors manage. Steering and braking feel safe but somewhat vague, lacking the precise feedback that inspires real confidence on faster A-roads. It’s not difficult to drive, but it doesn’t feel especially engaging either.

Another persistent irritation is the driver assistance systems. Like many new cars, the e:Ny1 will warn you the moment you drift 1mph over the speed limit. Over a few miles that’s mildly annoying. Over a week, it becomes genuinely wearing.

Verdict

The Honda e:Ny1 isn’t fundamentally flawed. It’s practical enough, reasonably well-equipped and easy to drive. The electric range is workable, and the cabin has some thoughtful touches.

What it lacks is a clear reason to choose it. It doesn’t feel especially refined, especially spacious for its size or especially polished in daily use. The touchscreen-heavy interface can frustrate, the regenerative braking setup lacks consistency, and the overall experience feels more generic than you might expect from a brand with Honda’s engineering heritage.

It’s not a bad electric SUV. It’s simply an average one — and at this price point, average isn’t always enough.

For a broader ownership assessment, including safety, running costs and reliability data, see our full Honda e:Ny1 Expert Rating.

Similar cars

If you’re looking at the Honda e:Ny1, you might also be interested in these alternatives.

Audi Q4 e-tron | Citroën ë-C4 | DS 3 Crossback E-Tense | Hyundai Ioniq 5 | Hyundai Kona Electric | Kia Niro EV | Mazda MX-30 | MG 4 | MG ZS EV | Nissan Ariya | Peugeot e-2008 | Skoda Enyaq | Subaru Solterra | Toyota bZ4X | Vauxhall Mokka-e | Volkswagen ID.4 | Volvo XC40 Recharge

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