The folks over at Honda just unveiled their highly controversial new ultracompact car, the P-Nut (Personal-Neo Urban Transport), at the LA Car Show, and it really redefines what it means for a vehicle to have a small “footprint.” The new tinier form of transportation has a unique, McLaren-like staggered seating arrangement, which ensures that passengers also have ample leg room. The jury is still out on whether or not this nut has the full ability to stand on its own, so we’ll leave it to you to decide whether the P-Nut is all it’s cracked up to be.
According to the presenters, the blue section at the rear of the car is designed to accommodate a number of propulsion technologies including a
hybrid gasoline-electric powertrain or a batter-electric powertrain (we’re wondering why Hydrogen fuel cell was left off this list). Being a concept car, we don’t see it hitting the market any time soon, but we’re interested to see where this small car idea is going.
“The objective of the exterior and interior designers was to explore the potential for a new type of small segment category vehicle that overcomes many of the objections for existing ultra-compact designs,” states Dave Marek, director of advance design for Honda R&D Americans, Inc. “While the Honda P-NUT concept introduces function-oriented concepts, it also shows that small cars don’t have to compromise on style or amenities.”
+ Honda
I envision a whole new wave of upskirt videos in the future… a see through front grille? Do we need this for squeezing into tight parking spaces?
Otherwise, I love the cockpit, It’s VERY Mach 2.5.
I cant wait for these cars to come into market. I just wonder why does it take so long?
Was the author sarcastic about why hydrogne fuel cells were left off the list? It seems like that’s a step in the wrong direction. Instead of refining and transporting gasoline, fuel cells require gathering and transporting hydrogen. Hydrogen itself may be easier on the environment, but battery powered cars are even better (especially once a recycling program is started for old lithium batteries).