Every car is an argument about what matters, and the Honda N-Van makes its case with 658  and 53 PS. Honda built from 2018 — as electrification stopped being an experiment and the crossover took every market.
The story
The Honda N-Van (stylized as "Honda N-VAN") is a microvan produced by Honda for the Japanese market since 2018. Initially only available with a petrol-powered internal combustion engine, a battery electric variant was introduced in 2024.
The origin for the vehicle's name expresses "next generation light van" proposed by N series as see in the N-One, N-Box, and N-WGN: it is part of a renewed line-up of Kei class city cars. The "N" prefix was previously used for the late 1960s and 1970s N360; originally it stood for norimono which loosely translates to vehicle. For the new N lineup, the "N" represented New, Next, Nippon, and Norimono.
What is underneath
Under the skin sits 658 it is rated at 53 PS; other versions carried different engines, listed in the specification table below. Kerb weight is 940 kg. Power-to-weight lands near 56 horsepower per tonne, which is unhurried — enough for the job, not for the bragging. The gearbox is a 6-speed manual transmission / manual (All trims except +STYLE FUN Turbo) / Continuously variable transmission / CVT. The wheelbase is 2520 mm. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
Its place in the line
Where it sits in Honda's history is not in doubt: the Honda Acty / Honda Acty van / Honda Vamos#Vamos & Vamos Hobio / Honda Vamos & Vamos Hobio came before it; it was built at Suzuka, Mie (Suzuka plant), Japan. On a showroom list of its day it stood against the JAC Group JAC Refine S4, the Daihatsu Mira Tocot, the JAC Group Sehol E20X. Nearby in the Honda catalogue sit the Honda Envix and the Honda Crider.