Honda’s 1984 HP-X concept was the carbon fiber future we expected

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With sonar, GPS, and buttons to go along with its built-in screens, this doorless concept car had the right ideas.

By Umar Shakir, a news writer fond of the electric vehicle lifestyle and things that plug in via USB-C. He spent over 15 years in IT support before joining The Verge.

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Wedge-shaped concept car photographed in front of a building

The perfect shape for a car, and a mouse.
Image: Honda

Take a look at this HP-X concept from 1984 that has been restored, seemingly so Honda can show the world how cool futuristic cars used to look.

As a car born in the Knight Rider era, the HP-X placed advanced tech within the driver’s reach, including a CD player, GPS, real-time telemetry, and “special sonar” technology that warns you about road conditions. At the time, Honda called this tech suite its “electronic driver support system.”

Picture of the interior of the HP-X, with a screen in the cnetrer console and in the dash in front of the driver.

Picture of the interior of the HP-X, with a screen in the cnetrer console and in the dash in front of the driver.
The 1984 HP-X has screens with GPS, at least conceptually.
Image: Honda

The HP-X was designed to run on a Honda F2 racing-based engine: a 2.0-liter DOHC 24-valve V6. And since there are no doors, the clear Perspex canopy comes off, so you can jump in like a fighter jet pilot. The canopy also helps with looks, aerodynamics, and functions as an air brake. The design likely inspired future two-seater vehicles such as the Honda and Acura NSX.

To make it lightweight, the mid-engine wedge-shaped wonder was built with uncommon-at-the-time car materials like carbon fiber, Kevlar, and honeycomb paneling. According to Honda, “the first-generation NSX embodied many of the ideas and innovations first explored in the HP-X” when it debuted a couple of years later.

On Wednesday, Honda also highlighted a 2024 Red Dot Design Award for its similarly-smooth Saloon concept EV. Part of the Honda Zero series presented earlier this year as an antidote to the trend of “thick” EVs, seeing it next to the HP-X shows how much the idea of a “thin” and “light” vehicle has changed in the last forty years.

Honda Saloon EV concept vehicle, shown from a read angle

Honda Saloon EV concept vehicle, shown from a read angle
Honda Saloon EV concept
Image: Honda
HP-X concept shown from a rear three-quarter angle

HP-X concept shown from a rear three-quarter angle
You have to take the canopy off to get in because there are no doors.
Image: Honda

The HP-X originally debuted at the 1984 Turin Auto Show, and after being restored by Italian design firm Pininfarina, it’s now entering the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance (or competition of elegance). Considering the show is in California, it would have been nice if they plopped a few battery packs in and made it into the coolest EV yet.

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