With Americans doing ever more shopping online, automakers are racing to come up with just the right delivery solutions. Honda redefines the “last mile” van with the new Fastport eQuad Prototype, an electric quadricycle designed for use in crowded urban situations. Among the unique features of the rickshaw-like vehicle: the ability to keep going by simply swapping out its battery pack. Headlight.News has more.
A rendering shows how Honda’s Fastport eQuad could traverse crowded urban environments.
Like most Americans, you do at least some shopping online – and might have noticed how rapidly shipping services like UPS, FedEX and Amazon Prime are migrating to battery-electric vehicles.
But while those new vans may be clean and energy efficient, they may not be the best solution on crowded city streets, or so Honda is betting.
The Japanese automaker today revealed a downsized alternative, dubbed FastPort eQuad, a “micromobility vehicle and software-defined platform designed for use in bike lanes to enable the delivery of goods in urban areas.”
What is it
A rendering of the flexible Fastport eQuad cargo box.
A quick look at the Fastport might bring to mind the classic Asian rickshaw. But delivery drivers don’t have to pedal this quadricycle. It uses a drive-by-wire electric propulsion system which, when loaded up with a maximum payload, should provide as much as 23 miles between charges.
At that point, Fastport either can be parked and plugged in for a recharge – or, if needed, an operator simply can swap out the battery pack and keep going.
“The Fastport team has worked tirelessly to create the Fastport eQuad, a zero-emission alternative to delivery vans that solves the challenge of last mile urban logistics by meeting the needs of urban residents expecting on-demand deliveries of packages, groceries and other items,” said Jose Wyszogrod, general manager and founding member of Fastport.”
The quadricycle may look primitive but, explained Honda, it features an AI-powered software, its instrument panel offering “real-time insights that enhance driver and fleet-management operations. The system also can download over-the-air software updates, as they’re developed.
Two packages
The Fastport eQuad offers a partial enclosure for the driver.
Two versions of the quadricycle are being developed:
- The Large Box model measures 89 inches in length and can carry up to a 650 lb payload;
- The Small Box model measures 75 inches and payload drops to 320 lbs. Honda has yet to determine its range.
The cargo boxes aren’t fixed in place, as with a traditional delivery van. Like Fastport’s battery pack, can be swapped out, depending upon the needs of the moment.
Both versions of Fastport have a top speed of 12 mph, meaning they could potentially run in bike lanes, where available, “allowing users to reduce traffic congestion and navigate urban areas more efficiently,” said a statement from Honda.
As for drivers, there’s no traditional cabin but they get at least some protection from the elements with “a canopy with UV coating and a ceramic tint option, along with a ventilation fan and full-frontal enclosure.”
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Fastport eQuad uses AI to lay out routes and make it easier to track drivers.
Production plans
Honda will formally reveal the FastPort eQuad prototype at the Eurobike conference in Frankfurt, Germany, running June 25-29.
But it won’t stay a concept vehicle for long. It sees market opportunities in both Europe and North America and plans to begin production of a first edition package in “late 2025” for the U.S. market out of its Honda Performance Manufacturing Center in Ohio. It will ramp up operations in 2026.
Honda did not yet disclose production plans for the European version.
Pricing will be revealed closer to production.
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