At last year's Tokyo Auto Show, Honda surprised everyone by revealing the Honda Prelude Concept. The company has already confirmed it'll eventually produce the two-door hybrid coupe, and a new report from Best Car Web provides an insight into the car's alleged powertrain details, dimensions, and Japanese price.
We already know it'll have a hybrid powertrain, which the chief engineer Tomoyuki Yamagami said would serve as a "prelude" to Honda's future electric vehicles. Best Car believes it'll have the same 2.0-liter four-cylinder e:HEV engine that powers the Accord and Civic hybrids, making a bit more than both with a combined 207 horsepower. The last Prelude in 2001 made 200 hp in the US.
The Prelude will supposedly measure 169.3 inches long, 70.5 inches wide, and 51.2 inches tall with a 101.4-inch wheelbase. That makes it bigger than the two-seat Mazda MX-5 Miata at 154.1 inches long, which isn't surprising, and nearly identical to the Toyota GR86 in size with matching wheelbases.
Honda is reportedly positioning it as a premium model positioned above the two-door Toyota. It'll apparently cost ¥4.2 to ¥4.5 million ($27,325 at $29,277 today’s exchange rate) in Japan, more than the ¥2.9- to ¥3.6-million ($18,867 to $23,422) GR86, but it’s best to the the publication’s report with a big grain of salt as its past reports haven’t always been accurate.
Model | Length | Wheelbase | Width | Height |
Mazda Miata | 154.1 in. | 90.9 in. | 68.3 in. | 48.6 |
Toyota GR86 | 167.9 in. | 101.4 in. | 69.9 in. | 51.6 in. |
Honda Prelude | 169.3 in. | 101.4 in. | 70.5 in. | 51.2 in |
Ford Mustang | 189.4 in. | 107.0 in. | 75.4 in. | 55.0 in. |
The Prelude isn't expected to arrive until the second half of 2025, and it won't be the "sportiest, zippiest car" in the world, so temper your track-day expectations. It is also unclear whether Honda plans to sell it in the United States. The automaker is developing the Prelude in both left- and right-hand-drive configurations, so there's a chance we might get it here, but nothing is official.