Honda teases autonomous electric work vehicle

Honda may be slow with passenger electric cars but its commercial vehicle division just unveiled the third generation of the electric Autonomous Work Vehicle. While we patiently wait for the electric Civic Type-R, contractors have an electric Honda that makes their work a breeze.

What is the AWV? In essence, it is a flatbed truck that carries all the heavy loads, building materials and everything that’s required around the construction site. It is all-electric and fully autonomous - all it needs is to be pointed to its destination and off it goes. You can see it in action on this short video:

The third generation of the Honda AWV comes with an easy to use tablet-based control system, the load capacity has been increased to 2,000 lb (907 kg) and there’s room for two pallets on its bed. The bed itself has been lowered for easier access.

It’s not a slouch either, the AWV can travel at up to 10 mph and it can operate for up to 10 hours on a full charge. When fully loaded, this electric helper can travel for up to 28 miles which doesn’t sound like a lot but that’s more than enough for a construction site.

Honda is looking for construction companies interested in testing the vehicle in its element. The AWV will be on display later this month at the Las Vegas Conexpo 2023. A fully autonomous and electric work vehicle from Honda - we didn't see that coming. While we would prefer to see a passenger EV heading to showrooms, at this point any electric vehicle from Honda is a ray of hope. For now we'll just enjoy the Honda e and those lucky Chinese folk can enjoy Honda e:NP1.

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