Honda has come out with special versions of their all-electric e hatchback and N-One kei car. Each one is inspired by a different form of motorsport and features upgrades to support that. The modified e is called the “e-Drag”, and, as you can probably guess by its name, its modifications are for drag racing. It’s based on the Advance trim, so right off the bat it has a bit more power than the standard model. The rest of its upgrades mainly focus on weight reduction and increased grip.
For the former, it features a full carbon
fiber body, with a lightweight front clamshell that encompasses the bumper,
fenders, and hood. It also has a completely stripped interior which includes a
rear seat delete and Kirkey aluminum bucket seats up front as well as fixed
acrylic windows in place of the conventional glass units.
The car also features full slick tires
mounted on lightweight 17″ wheels adapted from the original NSX. Moreover, it
has a Civic-based suspension that works along with an optimized front/rear
weight distribution for an optimized weight distribution that ensures better
launches.
And to make sure the tires are up to
temperature for those launches, the e-Drag also has a line lock system for
doing burnouts in preparation for a run. Lastly, the car comes installed with a
6-point roll bar and 4-point harness to comply to Japan’s drag racing safety
regulations.
Moving on to the N-One “K-Climb”, its
modifications pertain to hill climb racing, which means that it has to be light
and agile. To accomplish that, like the e-Drag, it also has a carbon fiber
body, although this one was so extensively modified for aerodynamics that the
hood is apparently the only body panel that retains its original shape.
And to help it through the corners, it
features adjustable dampers and sticky Yokohama Advan Fleva tires, as well as a
wider track width with arch extensions to compensate. And for added safety and
rigidity, it also has a 6-point roll bar.
These two are one-off concepts not intended
for production, but it’s always nice to see manufacturers having fun with their
vehicles like this.
