2026 Honda Prelude: What's It Like to Live With?

Honda's sporty coupe is back with a hybrid powertrain. We're putting one through its paces for a year.

Edmunds' 2026 Honda Prelude

written by Jake Sundstrom
edited by Steven Ewing
8/28/2026
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What's new: The Honda Prelude returns for 2026 as a hybrid coupe with a $44,350 price tag.
Why it matters: The Prelude shares its powertrain with the Civic Hybrid and suspension with the Civic Type R, which sounds like a pretty great combination to us.
Edmunds says: Is it fun to drive? Fuel-efficient? Reliable? We'll find out over a year of testing.

The Honda Prelude is back! The 2026 Prelude is a hybrid coupe based on the Honda Civic, but it shares its suspension and brakes with the sporty Civic Type R. The well-equipped coupe kicks off its sixth generation with the promise of being a hybrid that's actually really fun to drive. We wanted to put that theory to the test, so we've added a Prelude to our One-Year Road Test fleet for a 20,000-mile test.

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What did we get?
Tested: Here's how the Prelude performed
How is the Prelude's real-world fuel economy?
Honda Prelude vs. low-cost sports cars: Here's how it stacks up against the Ford Mustang, Mazda MX-5 Miata and Subaru BRZ

See 13 2026 Honda Prelude vehicles for sale near you

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2026 Honda Prelude exterior

What did we get?

The 2026 Honda Prelude comes in one flavor, which is just called Prelude. So, uh, that's what we got. Honda loaned us this vehicle, which came in Winter Frost Pearl. Chilling. Every Prelude comes well equipped with a whole suite of driver aids, like adaptive cruise control, blind-spot warning and lane keeping assistance.

There are also plenty of luxury features to enjoy with the Prelude, including heated leather front seats and dual-zone climate control. You get a 9-inch touchscreen that uses Google as its operating system. But never fear, wireless connectivity for both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto is also a standard feature, along with an eight-speaker Bose sound system and a digital instrument cluster.

What does all that cost? $44,350. Our Prelude's paint job is a $655 option, but that's the only decision you've got to make when you spec one.

Save as much as $2,923 with Edmunds

2026 Honda Prelude pricing in Ashburn, VA

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2026 Honda Prelude dashboard

Tested: Here's how the Prelude performed


2026 Honda Prelude	Edmunds test results
Engine	2.0-liter inline-four hybrid
Power	200 hp
Torque	232 lb-ft
Transmission	e-CVT
Driveline	front-wheel drive
Fuel economy (city/hwy/combined)	46/41/44 mpg
Weight	3,249 pounds
0-30 mph	3.1 seconds
0-45 mph	4.8 seconds
0-60 mph	7.2 seconds
0-75 mph	10.8 seconds
Quarter mile	15.5 seconds @ 88.6 mph
Lateral grip (200-foot skidpad)	1.02 g
60-0 mph braking	113 feet
Sound level at idle	47.8 dB
Sound level at 70 mph	69.6 dB
Price as tested	$44,350

2026 Honda Prelude action, rear

How is the Prelude's real-world fuel economy?

EPA fuel economy rating: 44 mpg combined (46 city/41 highway)
Edmunds' observed fuel economy: 36.9 mpg
Best fill: 45.5 mpg
Worst fill: 33.5 mpg
Best range: 255.3 miles
Miles driven: 1,007 miles

2026 Honda Prelude group shot Mazda MX-5 Miata RF Subaru BRZ Ford Mustang

Prelude vs. Mustang vs. Miata vs. BRZ

Before we got our One-Year Road Test vehicle, we put a blue Prelude coupe up against other two-door, low-cost sports cars: the Ford Mustang, Mazda MX-5 Miata and Subaru BRZ. It's not the outright winner, but there are things it does better than other cars. See what we mean in the video below.

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by Jake Sundstrom

Jake Sundstrom has worked in the automotive industry since 2017. He has written hundreds of car-related articles. Jake is currently a features editor at Edmunds and has also contributed to National Hot Rod Association publications. When he's not driving cars, he's eating takeout inside of them (probably burgers, burritos or pizza).

edited by Steven Ewing

Steven Ewing is Edmunds' director of editorial content. An automotive journalist for more than half of his life, Ewing's been on staff at Winding Road magazine, Autoblog, Motor1.com, CNET, and he was the U.S. correspondent for Top Gear magazine. He's also contributed to publications like Automobile magazine, Car and Driver, The Drive, Jalopnik, Porsche Panorama, and more. Ewing has worked in the automotive industry since 2003. From testing prototype cars in the Arctic Circle to spilling a beer on a Formula 1 driver at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (oops), he's always got an interesting story to tell.

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