Honda · 1962–present
Honda S360
The Honda S360 is a prototype sports car with a 360 cc (22 cu in) engine developed by Honda. It was one of the first automobiles created by the company known for their motorcycles. The S360 was unveiled on 5 June 1962 during the 11th Nation Honda Meeting General Assembly held at Suzuka Circuit, but was never put into production. It used a 356 cc AK250E series DOHC inline-four engine shared with the Honda T360 kei truck.
Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Successor: Honda S500
All Honda S360 data: UK builds, safety, recalls, model years →
History
In May 1955, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry announced a promotional program called the "People's Car." Their executive summary of the foreseen car was described as, “a four-seater with a top speed of 100 km/h, priced at ¥150,000." It immediately established the engineering target for manufacturers producing passenger cars of the coming era. Eventually several mini passenger models debuted in answer to MITI's proposal, including Suzuki's Suzulight in October 1955 and the Subaru 360 in March 1958. Honda hired nearly 50 engineers between 1957 and 1958 and created a new research facility all in preparation for car development. Since the Honda corporation had little experience with automobile design most of the engineers on the project, including project manager Yoshio Nakamura, were hired from failing automaker Tokyu Kurogane Industries. While consumers expected Honda to shortly begin automobile production, Soichiro Honda remained somewhat cautious about the matter. In the December 1959 issue of the Honda Company Newsletter (Vol. 50), Honda stated, "we shouldn’t rush into auto production... until we conduct thorough research and are absolutely confident that every requirement has been fulfilled, including the performance of our cars and production facilities." Over the next couple of years, Honda would build and test prototypes rather than try to market automobiles. The 11th National Honda Meeting General Assembly was held on 5 June 1962 at Suzuka Circuit. Honda showcased products and conducted test drives throughout the event. The all-new Honda S360 eventually took to the track with Soichiro Honda behind the wheel and Yoshio Nakamura, manager of the development project, in the passenger seat. The S360's entrance impressed the representatives of Honda's f
Sections adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0); text is shortened. Read the full article for the complete history and citations.
Specifications
- name
- Honda S360
- Manufacturer
- Honda
- Production
- 1962
- Assembly
- Suzuka Plant, Suzuka, Mie, Japan
- Successor
- Honda S500
- Layout
- FR layout
- Class
- sports car
- Body style
- 2-door roadster
- Engine
- 356 cc AK250E I4
- Related
- Honda T360
Specification summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Measured facts from Wikidata (CC0). Check the linked sources for citations.
More photos
Sources
- Wikidata — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q762624CC0 1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_S360CC BY-SA 4.0 · Text © Wikipedia contributors; revision 1180630142 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Honda_Sports360_prototype_01.jpgCC BY-SA 3.0 · Photo: Maysy · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Car Model Index — https://models.autoculturesociety.com/Compiled record. Sources that do not permit reuse are not copied; this index is credited instead.