Tested: 2026 Honda Prelude Hybrid

First glance: This product is really not a concept car?

Admit it, when I first saw this 2026 Prelude Hybrid in the parking lot, I almost thought I had crossed it. The low-lying wedge body, the hidden door handles, and the light strip running through the rear-has Honda really mass-produced a concept car? Five minutes after driving, three passers-by took out their mobile phones and took pictures. A child pointed to its "H" sign and shouted "New North God of War". I was even a little embarrassed because even I couldn't help but look back three times. But don't get me wrong, it's not a burst super sports car. It's more like a fitness instructor in a suit-there are muscles hidden under its elegance. The air intake grille on the front face is a little smaller than the trailer, but the slender LED headlights give the entire front of the car a kind of "Don't mess with me" coldness. The color of the paint is called "Red Flame Blue", and purple particles will appear under the sun. To be honest, it is a bit beautiful.

Sit in: The familiar smell of Honda, but more "something's wrong"

I was a little disappointed when I pulled the door open and found that the interior wasn't as radical as it looked-but I was relieved. The center console is still the familiar Honda layout, but the 12.3-inch curved screen is finally no longer the ancestral "refrigerator panel". The steering wheel has a first-class grip, and the gearshift paddles are made of metal, which will freeze your hands when you get off in winter. The seat is tighter than the Civic Type R, and a fat man like me, who is 190 pounds, almost got caught. The most surprising thing is that the dashboard can simulate a "fuel truck tachometer"-it's purely a pleasure for hybrid cars, but I just like it. Back row? Forget it, you can sit two children, but adults can only pray that the journey will not exceed twenty minutes. The trunk is surprisingly deep, and you can put two sets of golf bags down-provided you are willing to tuck the bags into the narrow, long opening. Honda's storage space is always like this, allowing you to jump between scolding and gratitude.

Turn it on: I laughed out loud and scared myself

Press the start button, there is no roar of the V6, no high-frequency sound from the motor, only a "READY" sign lights up on the instrument panel. It's as quiet as in a library. But as soon as you step on the accelerator, things change. This 2.0L Atkinson cycle engine with dual motors is said to have a comprehensive horsepower of more than 280 horses (Honda officials never release the precise figure, and the way they hide it is very similar to a TV drama leaving suspense). In sports mode, the throttle responds as fast as a kick-0 - 60mph officially says 5.7 seconds, but my body feels definitely faster, because the torque squeezed by the motor will hit the back of your head into the headrest. What's even more amazing is the analog sound wave system. It can actually restore the high-pitched VTEC sound of the old Prelude model. Moreover, it is not a cheap synthetic sound, but a truly grainy mechanical sound. I admit that I slammed the accelerator for ten minutes in S gear in the basement and grinned like a fool.

Corner: Drive forward, but the rear wheels will "help"

This is probably the most dividing part of the whole car. Honda insists on using the predecessor platform-do you know what that means? Push head, torque steering, and wail of the front wheels when going out of corners. But! The Prelude Hybrid is equipped with the "Interactive Steering Torque Vectoring" system. To put it bluntly, the rear wheels can also be slightly steered (up to 3 degrees), combined with torque vector distribution. The result is that when you enter a corner, the rear of the car will proactively "retract" it in, as if someone was pushing you from the side. The first time I ran the mountain road, I broke out in a cold sweat and thought I was going to swing my tail. In fact, it steadily pulled the front of the car into the corner. When the floor oil was out of the corner, the front wheels were not spinning crazily-the traction control was adjusted extremely cleverly. However, the electronic smell is still a little too heavy. The steering wheel's road feel has been severely attenuated. You can hardly feel the grip limit of the tire, so you can only guess by relying on your butt and ears. This may be a sin for purists, but for daily mountain runs, this car is like equipped with automatic navigation.

Fuel consumption: It picks up the dignity of hybrid vehicles

After driving home on the mountain road, I specially reset the fuel consumption count. Traffic jams in urban areas stop and go, showing 42MPG (about 5.6 liters/100 kilometers); the highway is fixed at a fixed speed of 80mph (128km/h), and it is stable at 35MPG (6.7 liters). You know, I use exercise mode almost the entire time, and I also use floor oil from time to time. If you turn on ECON mode, you can probably go for 50MPG. More importantly, the all-electric range is about 35 miles (56 kilometers), enough for daily commuting. Honda's i-MMD system is really mature to the extreme-when switching between EV mode and hybrid mode, you can't feel the setback in power connection at all. You can only stare at the energy flow map to find out when the engine has intervened. The fuel tank is only 40 liters, but it runs nearly 700 kilometers with full oil and electricity. Go to your gas station and increase the price.

Conclusion: Love it, hate it, but you can't ignore it

To be honest, after driving this car, I fell into a wonderful dilemma. On the one hand, it does not use a four-wheel drive system with a rear motor (the Toyota GR Supra Hybrid next door is said to have a four-wheel drive), nor does it have a manual transmission. The simulated sound wave is always fake, and the rear space is basically useless. On the other hand, it's really easy to drive, with a foul view, ridiculously low fuel consumption, and a sense of paranoia like "Honda fans have built them for themselves." Price? It is expected to start at around $43,000-cheaper than the BMW 2-Series Gran Coupe, but a lot more expensive than the Toyota GR86. Is it worth it? If you want a hybrid coupe that can travel every day, drive mountains on weekends, and make neighbors envious, then it is the answer. If you want pure rear-drive fun or the acceleration of a straight-line king, go out and turn left to the Mustang or GR Supra. But to me, the Prelude Hybrid is like an old friend who suddenly changed into a high-tech skin, and the core is still the "Type R's schizophrenic cousin." I may scold it for a hundred times, but every time I lock the car and leave, I will still turn back every three steps.