Honda is constructing a sports activities automotive as soon as once more. The Japanese automotive firm has simply confirmed that it is going to be constructing a brand new era of the Prelude and that the automotive will probably be coming to the U.S.
It’s the primary Honda coupe in 5 years, and it marks the return of a nameplate that now we have been lacking for greater than 20.
Manufacturing Automotive Ought to Look Simply Like 2023 Idea
When Honda revealed its affordable-looking Prelude Idea automotive on the Tokyo auto present final yr, it was essentially the most thrilling new automotive from Honda in years. After it dropped the Civic Coupe in 2020, Honda’s SUV-heavy lineup wasn’t precisely interesting to fans in the best way that it had been because the 1978 launch of the unique Prelude.
However all is forgiven now that the Honda Prelude Idea is coming to life and coming to American sellers.
The automotive will probably be a hybrid, utilizing Honda’s newest two-motor hybrid system, and Honda has some methods in retailer to verify it’s a driver’s automotive similar to the Preludes that, nicely, preluded it.
Sure, the Sports activities Coupe Is a Hybrid
Not everybody will probably be thrilled the brand new Prelude is a hybrid, but it surely shouldn’t come as a shock. Not simply because electrification is occurring to almost each new car, however as a result of the Prelude has all the time been on the vanguard of tech for the automotive firm. Options like four-wheel steering and a torque-vectoring entrance differential made their debuts right here, amongst others.
Honda’s two-motor hybrid system, as utilized in vehicles just like the CR-V, Accord, and Civic, doesn’t use a transmission. As a substitute, it has one motor pushed by the engine to cost the battery and a second to energy the wheels. A clutch lets the engine drive the tires straight in some freeway situations.
A function Honda calls Linear Shift Management on its different hybrids makes them act extra like vehicles with standard automatics. It delivers faux shifts and the sensation of the automotive revving even when it isn’t. The Prelude will get Honda S+ Shift, which Honda says is an development of that.
It didn’t elaborate, however one thing just like the faux engine noises and shifts of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N EV can be tons of enjoyable on a automotive like this.
Prelude Might Outrun Civic Si
Within the Civic Hybrid, the two-motor system makes 212 horsepower and 232 pound-feet of torque. That’s sufficient to make it faster than the gas-only Civic Si, which bodes nicely for the Prelude being a enjoyable compact sports activities automotive.
The Prelude’s styling is a bit unusual for Honda. It’s very Toyota Prius-like, due to the entrance LED gentle bar and the glass trim on the rear. But it surely’s higher wanting than even the most recent Prius, and, after all, it’s a two-door coupe.
Honda isn’t saying a lot concerning the new mannequin, but it surely did present the idea with Brembo brakes and another particulars that promise to make it sporty.
Reborn Entrance-Drive Coupe in a World of Its Personal
The Prelude will probably be in a phase of just about one when it arrives at U.S. sellers in late 2025. The front-drive sporty coupe was once a significant phase with greater than a dozen entries. As we speak, there will probably be this automotive and virtually nothing else. The Fiat 500e and Mini Cooper 2-Door are the closest, although each are hatchbacks.
If Honda can convey this automotive to market for round $30,000, which is near the beginning worth of the Civic Hatchback hybrid, it ought to have a winner — a sports activities coupe for the worth of a Toyota GR86 and nicely beneath one thing just like the $43,000 Nissan Z.
