With the surging popularity of EVs in the auto industry, we also gained a new term: range anxiety. Range anxiety refers to worries by folks like you and me about whether an EV can go far enough on a full charge to work well for what we need from a vehicle—a concern about how easy it is to recharge EVs also goes along with this. While many of us still worry about these things, car companies have been doing everything they can to make vehicles that are designed to allay these concerns and deliver impressive performance and features that meet our needs.
The 2024 Honda Prologue is a great example of this since it’s the first all-electric SUV from Honda and, therefore, has a lot to prove. One would hope to see Honda come out swinging in this regard, with performance that works well and a wide range of features designed to enhance the experience of owning an electric SUV. Fortunately, that’s exactly what one finds with the Prologue and everything available along with it. So let’s have a look at the kind of range the Prologue offers, along with how fast it charges and the features offered by Honda to make owning and enjoying the Prologue easier.
Way #1 – Solid Performance and Range
At the heart of range anxiety is the worry that your vehicle won’t be able to get you where you need to go or that recharging is going to be a massive hassle. The Prologue addresses this first issue by having impressive range, particularly for this being Honda’s first electric SUV. Every Prologue has an 85 kWh battery, which is good even if it’s not particularly exceptional. With that in mind, you then have a couple of options for the Prologue in terms of performance.
The EX and Touring trims come with front-wheel drive (FWD) and a single motor standard, though they have a dual-motor all-wheel drive (AWD) configuration available. With FWD, the Prologue delivers 212 hp and 236 lb-ft of torque, with an estimated 296 miles of range from a full charge. If you go with an AWD configuration, then you get 288 hp and 333 lb-ft of torque, which is excellent power for an SUV like this. The EX or Touring with AWD gets an estimated 281 miles of range from a full charge, while the top-end Elite trim that comes with AWD standard can go an estimated 273 miles when fully charged. These numbers won’t set new records in the auto industry or anything, but they’re right near the 300-mile target that seems to be ideal.
Way #2 – Honda Portable Charging Kit
Great range from a fully-charged vehicle is one thing, but the other side of range anxiety is a worry that recharging will be difficult or inconvenient. I’ll admit that your specific situation has a big impact on how convenient an EV is on a daily basis, so keep that in mind as we go forward. That being said, Honda is certainly doing its best to make charging easy by giving you numerous options that are all designed well. For starters, the Honda Portable Charging Kit makes it easy to charge the Prologue at home or elsewhere.
This kit can use a standard 120-volt household outlet to charge the Prologue, providing about 30 miles of range from an eight-hour charge. That’s not ideal, but it’s convenient if you have no other options. The better choice is to use this kit with a 240-volt outlet (the larger ones used for appliances like dryers and ovens); with this connection, you can get 200 miles of range in an overnight eight-hour charge. This makes charging the Prologue easy, though if you want a better option, then Honda has you covered there too…
Way #3 – Honda Home Charging Station
This is arguably the strongest and weakest argument for choosing an EV, and it comes down to whether this type of setup would work for you. The Honda Home Charging Station can be installed at your home and provides improved charging functionality for the Prologue, even better than a standard 240-volt plug with the Portable Charging Kit. It’s a fairly small, wall-mounted home charger that connects directly to your electrical panel and can fully charge the Prologue in eight hours.
Of course, the obvious drawback is that this type of charger doesn’t work for everyone’s setup, and that’s why it’s either an advantage or a drawback. If you live in an apartment or rental, then having a Home Charging Station installed is likely not an option that will work for you. Even if you have your own house, you might not be interested in installing something like this; in each case, you’re missing out on one of the biggest advantages of owning an EV. Personally, I’d say it’s an integral part of the full EV experience, but it’s not for everyone.
Way #4 – Easy Public Charging Support
No matter what your situation looks like, you’ll still want to take advantage of public charging facilities. Honda understands this and makes it easy for you to utilize the growing network of public charging stations across the country. You can use the HondaLink app on your phone or through the Prologue infotainment system to find public charging stations nearby, which makes it easy to locate a station anywhere you go.
Using a Level 2 public charging station, which is a dedicated 240-volt connection, the Prologue can get about 34 miles of range from an hour of charging. That’s not ideal for a long, cross-country road trip, but it can work well for a charge to get you around town while you eat lunch. Fortunately, the Prologue can also utilize Level 3 DC Fast Charging stations and get roughly 65 miles of range from just a 10-minute charge or go from 20% to 80% charge in about 35 minutes. This is the way to go when you’re making a long drive or need to top up in a short time.
Way #5 – Numerous Incentives and Benefits
Not only is the Prologue easy to keep charged and offers good range, but Honda is pretty aggressively providing a number of incentives to help its customers. Note that this is what’s available at the moment, and things can always change. For starters, if you’re interested in a Portable Charging Kit, then you can get a $250 installation incentive from Honda along with $300 worth of public charging credits. If you plan to primarily make use of public charging, Honda offers $750 worth of public charging credits with EVgo, one of the largest public charging networks in North America, making it easy and inexpensive to charge the Prologue.
If you’re in a situation where you can get a Home Charging Station installed, then Honda has you covered there too. Right now, it is offering a $500 installation incentive along with $100 of public charging credits for the Prologue through the HondaLink app. That’s not going to pay for your next vacation or anything, but it’s a nice savings if you’re already interested in getting one of these stations installed. You might also be able to take advantage of local incentives and programs that offer benefits for EV owners, as well as take advantage of off-peak charging rates when charging your vehicle overnight in your area. This entirely depends on where you live and what’s available, but it’s worth looking into.
Does the Prologue Reduce Your Range Anxiety?
There’s a lot to like about the 2024 Honda Prologue, and it does a great job of establishing what Honda has planned for the future of its EV lineup. Honda has no shortage of hybrids available (the Civic, Accord, and CR-V all have hybrid options), but this is the brand’s first big step into an all-electric landscape. I think it’s a good first effort and shows Honda understands what drivers need when looking for an EV that will work for daily driving and long-term plans. Whether this is enough for you or not depends on your situation and what you’re looking for in your next vehicle. But if you want an electric SUV that drives well, offers good range and performance, and comes from a company doing its best to support EV owners, then the Prologue could be the perfect option for you.
