Honda is no stranger to making fast automotive vehicles, whether it’s sports cars or high-performance motorcycles built for on and off the racetrack. While Honda originally had roots in the motorcycle industry, it dove headfirst into manufacturing cars a couple decades later. By 1963, Honda had launched its first passenger car, the S500, and has produced several other models since then, including one tiny sports car with a familiar-looking name: the S660.
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In 2015, Honda launched the S660 in the Japanese auto market as an addition to its line of small cars. Known for its turning-friendly capabilities, the Honda S660 was a car of contradictions: compact but open. Despite its Kei-sized body, the open-air cabin and high-speed turning capabilities are just some of the reasons that it made our list of small cars that are fun to drive. After all, sometimes two seats, a mid-sized engine, and the wind in your face is more than enough for a good time.
However, despite being one of the best Honda sports cars ever made, it never made it out of Japanese soil and Honda made the decision to drop the S660 from its lineup in 2021. Although, in the same year, it did release the Modulo X Version Z, which was the last model for its S660 vehicles. So, if it’s so beloved and iconic, why did Honda stop making it?
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Why Honda cut the S660 from its roster
Although Honda didn’t disclose the official reason why it needed to retire the S660, there are a couple of things that happened around this time that give us a few clues. In 2019, Japan joined the list of countries that agreed to the United Nation’s push for requiring advanced emergency braking systems (AEBS) for newly manufactured cars and light commercial vehicles, which was set to be implemented in 2022. If you factor in the additional legislation on passenger vehicle fuel economy standards that took effect in 2020, this would have required Honda to make big changes in the S660 (that may not have been feasible).
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Not to mention, a year before the S660 was edged out, Nikkei reported Japan’s 2050 goal for achieving net-zero emissions from the automotive industry. This sustainability goal included expected emissions from a vehicle’s end-to-end lifecycle, which includes manufacturing and passenger use. In the years that followed, Japan made several other moves toward a fossil fuel-free future, such as increasing subsidies for domestic EV battery manufacturers, and its efforts seem to be paying off so far. As of 2024, Reuters shared some promising results with Japan’s sustainability initiatives with the country clocking in record-breaking emissions reductions.
During that time, Honda has produced some pretty great electric vehicles, like the Honda CR-V PHEV and Honda e:NP1. In 2024, Honda’s commitment to the EV movement in North America hasn’t slowed down with plans under way to open manufacturing facilities in Canada.
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Mourning the compact Honda cars of the past
Unfortunately, the S660 isn’t the only beloved tiny car in Honda’s garage heaven that never made it to America. In the past, the U.S. also missed out on the Honda N-Box and the quirky, fever dream that was the Honda City Turbo II (along with its Motocompo scooter).
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Earlier this year, we discussed the ongoing trend of small cars getting bigger. Of course, while there’s a myriad of reasons why this is happening, from existing tech limitations to legal requirements and the need for additional utility space, it’s definitely okay to mourn the loss of models that would have been perfect for you.
That said, if you want a piece of the little sports car that never left Japanese shores, you can get the die-cast model versions of the Honda S660 instead. On eBay, you can find plenty of listings for the Honda S660 die-cast models which range (at the time of writing) from the 1:56 Tomica ($16.87) to the 1:64 Master Mugen S-Series ($27.38) and the 1:43 Ebbro ($125.63).
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