Honda Surprises Everyone With Prelude Hybrid Concept

This looks pretty much ready to go.

Honda’s been on a nostalgia kick, as of late. First, it resurrected the Passport moniker for a midsized crossover. Then, it brought back the Integra name for an upscale sport compact. Now, it looks like it’s the Prelude’s turn for a retro resurrection – Honda surprised everyone with an electrified Honda Prelude concept, which debuted at the Japan Mobility Show.

Thus far, Honda’s electrification efforts have been very much focused on pint-sized kei cars, or uninteresting crossovers. The Prelude concept may just change that. “The Prelude Concept is a specialty sports model that will offer an exhilarating experience that makes you want to keep going forever and extraordinary excitement you never felt before,” said Honda Director, President, and Representative, Toshihiro Mibe. “This model will become the prelude for our future models which will inherit the “joy of driving” into the full-fledged electrified future and embody Honda’s unalterable sports mindset.”

Man, the Prelude concept certainly is a looker, if not a bit familiar. The proportions are sleek and low, and the rear haunches and roofline melt into a more graceful interpretation of the now-deceased Honda Civic coupe. Yet, the Prelude is longer and appears wider than the old Civic coupe, no doubt giving credence to the old Prelude’s hierarchy above the Civic in Honda’s lineup.

Honda didn’t give any specifications for the Prelude concept. All we know is that it’s a hybrid, but given its fairly modest proportions, it may share a lot in common with gas-powered models. A potential Civic Si-powered Honda Prelude could be a hit, but we’ll just have to wait and see if and when the car comes to production.

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