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Honda is discontinuing its Prologue. Owners noticed their recent monthly statement told them to "consider a hybrid." Honda Honda sold Prologue owners on going electric. Now, it wants them to consider a hybrid.

A blurb at the bottom of all Honda auto statements in July includes a section titled "Consider What's Next," which promotes the automaker's hybrid lineup and tells customers to "consider a hybrid" for their next vehicle.

The message landed awkwardly for Prologue owners. The SUV, Honda's only EV, was discontinued for 2027. The car company will have no fully-electric cars in its lineup next year.

Business Insider spoke with seven Prologue owners and lessees, including several who found the message frustrating — or darkly funny.

"The 'consider a hybrid' note on our statements is somewhat laughable," Oklahoma-based Benjamin Crabtree, who has owned a Prologue for a year, told Business Insider. "With very few exceptions, anyone who has gone fully electric would never want to downgrade to a gas or hybrid vehicle going forward."

Honda said the pitch was part of its effort to retain Prologue customers.

"Our focus is on Customer Lifetime Loyalty and retaining all of our existing customers by moving them into new Honda models," the company said. "We believe these would be great options for our returning Prologue customers."

The Prologue was supposed to bridge Honda into its next generation of EVs. The car was part of a joint effort with GM that also produced the Cadillac Lyriq, Chevy Blazer EV, and Chevy Equinox EV. The automakers scrapped their EV partnership in 2023 as costs rose and EV sales failed to meet expectations.

Honda's own electric ambitions have since unraveled.

The company confirmed in mid-July that Prologue production will end after the 2026 model year, with sales continuing into early 2027 with existing inventory. In March, Honda scrapped its planned US-built 0 Series EVs, while its joint venture with Sony ended before it could build the roughly $90,000 Afeela sedan.

Instead, Honda has said it's focusing on a new lineup of hybrid vehicles, including a 15-vehicle global slate by 2030.

That pivot disappointed some Prologue drivers — including Kevin Simpson, a California-based 2025 Prologue lessee — who had expected to remain with Honda for their next EV. He called the hybrid model pitch "mildly annoying and sadly ironic."

"I was following the development of the 0 Series Honda EVs, and intended one of those to be my next car," he said. "When Honda pulled the rug out from under me and other Prologue owners, I felt very let down by a company I have long admired."

Simpson said he is now considering the Rivian R2 or one of the electric vehicles developed jointly by Toyota and Subaru.

An EV rebound?

US EV sales have had a rough go in 2026. There are signs that high gas prices are giving them new momentum.  Bloomberg/Getty Images Honda has said its broader reassessment of its electrification strategy could result in write-downs of $15.7 billion. The cancellations leave Honda without a new battery-electric model in its US lineup for 2027.

The Japanese automaker is not alone in reworking its electric ambitions. Automakers — including Jeep-maker Stellantis, Ford, Volkswagen, and General Motors — have canceled vehicles, delayed projects, or recorded billions of dollars in charges as they respond to slower demand, high development costs, and the loss of federal EV incentives. The federal tax credit of up to $7,500 was no longer available for vehicles acquired after September 30, 2025.

However, signs indicate that the US EV market is stabilizing amid skyrocketing gas prices.

Americans bought an estimated 247,226 new EVs in the second quarter, up 14.7% from the first three months of 2026, according to Kelley Blue Book. Sales remained well below the same period last year.

Work at Honda? We want to hear from you. Contact Ben Shimkus at [email protected] or Signal at bshimkus.41. Use a personal email address and a nonwork device.

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Ben Shimkus You're currently following this author! Want to unfollow? Unsubscribe via the link in your email.

Ben Shimkus is a reporter for the Business News desk. He writes about cars, transportation, retail, and jobs. Ben's reporting has appeared in Rolling Stone, The Verge, Automotive News, USA Today, AutoBody News, LGBTQ Nation, TopSpeed, and Out Magazine. He's also held staff writing positions at The U.S. Sun and the Daily Mail. He graduated from NYU with a Master's in journalism in 2024. Email Ben at [email protected] or message him privately on Signal at bshimkus.41. 

Published July 8, 2026 4:28pm EDT | Updated July 8, 2026 4:41pm EDT

The recall affects 2018-2020 Honda Odyssey vehicles Honda is recalling more than 325,000 vehicles over faulty rearview image displays, which could increase the risk of a crash, according to federal regulators.

The recall affects 2018-2020 Odyssey vehicles, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced on Wednesday.

A total of 325,588 vehicles are covered by the recall effort.

HONDA RECALLS MORE THAN 880,000 VEHICLES OVER REAR SUSPENSION FAILURE RISK

Honda is recalling more than 325,000 vehicles over faulty rearview image displays. (Honda / Fox News)

The NHTSA said the recall was issued due to rearview cameras that may not display properly.

"Water may enter into the rearview camera, which can cause the rearview camera image to fail to display when the vehicle is in reverse," the recall notice reads.

A display malfunction could increase the risk of a crash, the NHTSA said.

The recall affects 2018-2020 Odyssey vehicles. (Scott Olson/Getty Images / Getty Images)

The announcement expands a previous recall, which affected certain 2019-2020 Honda Odyssey vehicles.

Owners affected by the recall may take their cars to Honda dealers, so the rearview camera can be replaced free of charge, according to the NHTSA.

Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed on Aug. 24.

HONDA RECALLS 99,000 VEHICLES OVER FLAW THAT COULD TRIGGER UNINTENDED AIRBAG DEPLOYMENT

A total of 325,588 vehicles are covered by the recall effort. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images / Getty Images)

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This comes after Honda issued two separate recalls in recent months that included other car models.

This included more than 880,000 vehicles being recalled because a key rear suspension part can rust and fail, and nearly 99,000 cars that were recalled over a defect that could cause airbags to deploy unexpectedly during a crash.

Honda Motor’s CEO and President, Toshihiro Mibe attends a media briefing about financial results in Tokyo, Japan, May 14, 2026. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

CompaniesTOKYO, June 26 (Reuters) - Honda Motor (7267.T), opens new tab Chief Executive Toshihiro Mibe secured support for his reappointment to the Japanese automaker's board at its annual ​meeting on Friday after apologising to shareholders for the company's poor financial ‌performance.

Honda is seeking to recover from costly strategic missteps after posting its first annual loss in seven decades last month, hurt by more than $9 billion in restructuring costs for its electric-vehicle business and ​competition from Chinese rivals.

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"I would like to express my deepest apologies to our ​shareholders for the significant concern and inconvenience caused by the net ⁠loss recorded in the previous fiscal year's financial results," Mibe told shareholders at the ​start of the meeting.

Aside from backing Mibe, Honda shareholders approved the company's 10 other ​board nominees, including nine who were up for reappointment and one new director.

Amid an EV subsidy rollback, Honda decided on its EV-linked writedown with market share of battery-powered cars in the U.S. sharply ​below the company's forecasts, meaning sales of its planned models would have required ​big incentives, Mibe said.

If it would have gone ahead with selling its planned EVs, "it would mean the ‌automotive ⁠business itself staying in the red for at least five years, possibly as long as seven," Mibe said, adding that it would have created an extremely critical situation at the company.

In recent months, Mibe has drawn scorn from retired Honda executives over ​the mishaps, with former ​chief executive Nobuhiko ⁠Kawamoto visiting Tokyo headquarters in April to urge him to resign, people familiar with the matter have told Reuters.

The former executives have criticised ​Mibe for neglecting China, the world's biggest auto market, and ​for the ⁠company's failed bet on EVs that caused Honda's loss and highlighted a growing dependence on its profitable motorcycle division.

Near the end of the meeting, a shareholder proposed filing a motion ⁠that ​called for Mibe's dismissal, but the chief executive declined ​to put it to a vote, saying the issue was not on the agenda and the proposal ​could therefore not be considered.

Reporting by Daniel Leussink; Editing by Thomas Derpinghaus and Kevin Buckland

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