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This Could Have Been the S2000 Replacement If Honda Decided to Build It

On September 9, Car and Driver came up with pictures of a mysterious sports car Honda could be developing as a new electric two-seater with striking looks. The vehicle looked so modern few would believe it was a concept developed in 2012, as a reader would later clarify. The Honda Sport was supposed to replace the S2000. Based on Car and Driver images, we asked the rendering artist João Kleber Amaral to imagine what a production version would look like, and here it is, in three different colors.
Honda Sport would look like this if it ever reached production lines 21 photos
Photo: João Kleber Amaral/autoevolution
Honda Sport would look like this if it ever reached production linesHonda Sport would look like this if it ever reached production linesHonda Sport would look like this if it ever reached production lines37-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S200037-Mile 2000 Honda S2000
According to Sebastien Clarke, the Honda Sport was designed by Brian Oh. Clarke worked on the scale model with Christopher Dickhoff, and the idea pleased the Honda honchos. The natural consequence was getting the scale model to become the mockup you can see in the Car and Driver article. It is a pity that it apparently died as a non-running prototype, becoming an expensive decoration piece.

Should Honda have produced the Sport concept, it would bear the logo in a very unlikely place: at the bottom of the windshield, between that glass piece and the hood. Amaral said that it had such dramatic proportions that no production vehicle could work as a basis for his work: the rendering artist had to design everything.

In 2012, the Sport would probably have used a combustion engine placed between the axles. Clarke told Car and Driver it was conceived to be a low-cost, lightweight vehicle designed to use simple, proven, and analog technologies. It is a pity it did not make it into production lines to replace the S2000.

If the Japanese company decided it was a good idea to produce it right now, we’d bet it would get the same battery pack as the Honda e and probably the same motor in the rear axle. It is not unlikely that it would get an extra one for the front axle to make it an AWD tiny beast. Considering Honda did not even try to sell the Honda e in the U.S., such a sports car would only live in other markets if it had a shot after all. Thank Amaral for allowing us to see what we will probably never have in Honda dealerships.
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Editor's note: The gallery contains images of the S2000, which the concept car was supposed to replace.

About the author: Gustavo Henrique Ruffo
Gustavo Henrique Ruffo profile photo

Motoring writer since 1998, Gustavo wants to write relevant stories about cars and their shift to a sustainable future.
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