HomecarsHonda combines Type-R handling with hybrid efficiency for 2026 Prelude

Honda combines Type-R handling with hybrid efficiency for 2026 Prelude

carsSeptember 4, 2025
2 min read
Honda combines Type-R handling with hybrid efficiency for 2026 Prelude
Will the new Prelude be the best of both worlds when it goes on sale this fall? ...
Reading Settings

At the end of last year, we learned that Honda was bringing back the Prelude. Although Honda has varied the ingredients over the years, the recipe for the Prelude remains the same: a sleek coupe body and some cutting-edge technology under the skin, like four-wheel steering, as rhapsodized by the verbose but usually insightful motoring writer LJK Setright. Today, the new car broke cover ahead of its arrival in showrooms later this fall.

It's a handsome shape, though I can't quite get over the resemblance to the Toyota Prius, at least as far as the nose of the car is concerned. Then again, I'm on record as adoring the shape of the current Prius—did you know its windshield is more steeply raked than a Lamborghini Huracan? But from other angles, the Prelude is more unique. The proportions are low and wide, with some details that signal its sportiness and others that suggest a focus on reducing drag and maximizing efficiency.

That makes sense when you know what's under the hood. It's the same 2.0 L Atkinson cycle engine and hybrid system from the Honda Civic, which, in the right hands, is capable of up to 50 mpg (4.7 L/100 km). We'll know the exact EPA fuel efficiency numbers closer to the car going on sale in late fall. Combined power is 200 hp (150 kW), with 232 lb-ft (315 Nm) of torque.

Read full article

Comments

Source: Ars Technica

Share this article

Related Articles

Tesla kills Models S and X to build humanoid robots instead
Jan 313 months ago

Tesla kills Models S and X to build humanoid robots instead

EVs that were once industry-leading have long since been left behind. ...

{"_":"https://arstechnica.com/cars/2026/01/tesla-kills-models-s-and-x-to-build-humanoid-robots-instead/","$":{"isPermaLink":"true"}}2 min read
Read More
How far does $5,000 go when you want an electric car?
Jan 303 months ago

How far does $5,000 go when you want an electric car?

You won't be going on road trips, but a very cheap electric runabout is possible. ...

{"_":"https://arstechnica.com/cars/2026/01/how-far-does-5000-go-when-you-want-an-electric-car/","$":{"isPermaLink":"true"}}2 min read
Read More
Tesla: 2024 was bad, 2025 was worse as profit falls 46 percent
Jan 293 months ago

Tesla: 2024 was bad, 2025 was worse as profit falls 46 percent

More than half its profit came from emissions credits as sales fell 8.6 percent. ...

{"_":"https://arstechnica.com/cars/2026/01/2025-sees-teslas-annual-revenue-fall-for-the-first-time/","$":{"isPermaLink":"true"}}1 min read
Read More