Honda Prelude

The chassis benefits from parts from a different Civic—the Type-R hot hatch. Ars has sadly yet to sample the current-generation Type-R, but everyone I know who has driven one has come away smiling. Type-R parts include the front suspension’s dual-axis struts and the Brembo brakes, which are there for when regen braking via the hybrid system is no longer sufficient.

Adaptive dampers control the Prelude’s ride, and there are four different drive modes. The powertrain simulates a manual transmission with something called S+ Shift, which “delivers quick simulated gearshift responses through seamless coordination between the engine and high-power motor, including downshift blips, rev matching, and gear holding.”

If the end result is as good as Hyundai’s N E-shift, it should be fun to play with. And if it isn’t, you can just leave the car in automatic mode.

Beyond that, expect all the latest Honda advanced driver assistance systems (also known as Honda Sensing), and an Android Automotive-based infotainment system with Google built in and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

We’ll have to wait until sooner to the car’s arrival to get pricing, but expect the Prelude to start somewhere between $38,000 and $40,000.

The fact that Honda was working on a new Prelude coupe was not entirely secret—not after the automaker unveiled a show car at this year’s Long Beach Grand Prix. This morning, the Japanese automaker confirmed that the new Prelude will go on sale here in the US late in 2025.

“The return of the Honda Prelude as a hybrid-electric sports model demonstrates our continued commitment to offer a variety of exhilarating products to meet the needs of our customers,” said Jessika Laudermilk, assistant vice president of Honda Auto Sales. “The first three products in the Honda lineup in the 1970s were Civic, Accord, and Prelude, and soon all three will be back together again in our passenger car lineup as hybrids.”

Honda has often used the two-door Prelude coupe as a testbed for new technologies, including torque vectoring and four-wheel steering, and was praised by the late automotive writer LJK Setright, who owned several Preludes across the years.

An innovation in the next Prelude will be a new drive mode, called Honda S+ Shift, which it says “advances linear shift control to deliver maximum levels of driver engagement.” But as the Prelude will use a hybrid powertrain, there won’t be an option for a manual transmission in this generation.

Beyond that, Honda is keeping quiet on Prelude details until closer to the car’s arrival on sale next year.