Honda S2000 EV rumoured, Mazda confirms electrified MX-5

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Honda is marking its 75th anniversary this fall, and the U.K.’s Car magazine says it has insider info that “hinted at the timeline” for a new EV model. Apparently the Japanese automaker will mark the milestone celebration with the release of a new battery-powered Honda S2000, its first-ever electric sports car. While we don’t have any further details about performance specs, it’s suggested the EV will be built on the brand’s e:N platform.

It’s also possible the S2000 EV could receive the R badge, based on what Honda technical consultant Kotaro Yamamoto told Car mag: “Type R stands for racing. It’s pleasure transported. An electric car can deliver this, and a Type R is not obliged to use a combustion engine. Even in a fully electric society, there will still be Type Rs delivering ultimate driving pleasure.”

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The rumour mill at Mazda is also abuzz. The automaker has plans to make its entire lineup battery-powered by 2030, and it sounds like a fifth-gen MX-5 Miata is in the works. According to MotorTrend, Mazda has confirmed there will be an electrified 2026 MX-5 Miata, but didn’t go into detail about whether it will be fully electric or some type of hybrid.

Still, the arrival of an electrified version of a decades-old favourite like the MX-5 is exciting. The Japanese automaker likes to celebrate the Miata — in 2019, it released a limited-run Mazda MX-5 Miata 30th Anniversary Edition at the Chicago Auto Show, and the brand has said that the MX-5 a “is no longer its own creation,” but that “it belongs to the fans around the world who have supported the development of the model.”

As we approach the fall, there’s sure to be further details announced around both of the new electric sports cars, but for now we’ll have to rely on the little teasers that Honda and Mazda continue to trickle out.