GM and Honda announced in April 2020 that they will jointly develop and build a new generation of electric vehicles for Honda using General Motors' Ultium battery platform, deepening a partnership that began with hydrogen fuel-cell collaboration in 2013 and has since expanded into one of the most significant cross-manufacturer EV alliances in the automotive industry.
What the GM and Honda EV Partnership Covers
Under the agreement announced on April 3, 2020, General Motors and Honda will jointly develop two all-new electric vehicles for the Honda brand, manufactured at GM plants in North America. Both vehicles are based on GM's highly flexible global EV platform and powered by proprietary Ultium batteries. Honda's engineering teams will tune both models to deliver the distinct road feel Honda buyers expect, while the production efficiency and battery economics come from GM's manufacturing scale.
The vehicles were initially targeted for the 2024 model year across the United States and Canadian markets. Connected services will combine GM's OnStar safety and security platform with Honda's own HondaLink system, plus driver-assist technologies developed across both companies' engineering programs.
The Strategic Alliance: Beyond EVs
In September 2020, Honda and GM signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding to form a broader North American auto alliance that extends well beyond electric vehicles. The alliance covers platform sharing, joint purchasing, shared R&D, and connected services, effectively making two of the world's largest automakers into strategic partners across almost every dimension of vehicle development.
This follows a long history of collaboration: the companies have shared fuel-cell development since 2013, established a joint venture to produce hydrogen fuel-cell systems in Michigan in 2017, and agreed to share next-generation battery development in 2018. The 2020 EV agreement is the most commercially direct expression of that relationship yet.
The official Honda announcement is archived on the Honda Global corporate newsroom, and the full strategic alliance MoU is covered by GM Authority.
Electric Vehicles at TheArsenale
The GM-Honda alliance is a signal that electrification has moved from niche to the center of mainstream automotive strategy. If you want to experience what the best electric vehicles look and feel like today, TheArsenale's Electric collection brings together the most compelling renewable-energy vehicles across every category. The Smart Electric Drive Blackout by TheArsenale is a custom urban EV made in collaboration with TheArsenale Edition, while the Robocar autonomous electric race car represents the technological frontier. For the broader car collection, explore TheArsenale Cars.
