Honda surprised a lot of enthusiasts with the debut of the Prelude at last year’s Japan Mobility Show. Honda has since said that the sleek-looking coupe will be powered by a hybrid powertrain. Now, a report from Japan says the Prelude will come with a 6-speed manual transmission. If true, it would be the first gasoline-electric hybrid with a stick since the Honda CR-Z.
Japan’s Best Car reports that the Prelude will combine the 2.0-liter hybrid engine with dual electric motorrs from the Accord Hybrid, combined with the 6MT from the Civic RS (a Japanese spec that we don’t get, but can be considered similar to the Civic Si). If the engine tune remains the same, that would give the Prelude 204 horsepower and 247 lb-ft of torque.
If true, this would mean the Prelude might not just be a badge slap, but have a true claim to sportiness. Power-wise, that’s pretty much where the 5th gen Prelude left off when it departed the market in 2001, but torque is significantly higher. There’s just one more thing this car needs to be a true Prelude, and that’s a sunroof. This feature has been a calling card for the Prelude since it became the first Japanese car to have an electric sunroof when it debuted in 1978.
Honda has confirmed the Prelude for Europe and presumably Japan, but there’s still no word on whether it will come to the US. Hopefully it does, manual transmission and all.
The first Honda Insight was also available with stick shift, making it the first manual-shift hybrid.
Bring it!!
I would dump my BRZ in a heartbeat for a new Prelude.
that nose… more like a Prius… I hope honda make the rigth move and not a new CR-Z
the prelude was, if you ask me a lot like the Camaro, Mustang, Porsche 911 and Corvette, an evolutionary design where each successive generation calls back to the previous one.
i’d even go so far as to say the 5th gen was a retro redesign of the 1st gen in the same way the 5th gen mustang was and thus one of the first retro design cars of the 90’s and 00’s.
the new gen prelude has none of that, no dogbone grille, no long hood-short deck, not that wonderfull side window line, it looks like a faux mid engine CRX/CR-Z redesign but not a prelude and that’s a missed opportunity if you ask me. not an ugly car at all, i just dont see the prelude in it.
I’m not sure how to react to Honda’s decision to NOT go the “nostalgia route” with resurrecting this nameplate. Nissan’s Z takes cues from the old 240Z and 300ZX, and Ford Mustang keeps that fastback shape, and so forth. I know everybody made fun of that Supra spoiler when it came out in 1993, and nobody liked the 1997 Prelude when it was unveiled, but it seems like folks eventually acclimate. I guess I’m wary that this upcoming Prelude shape is somewhat forgettable.