Honda final 12 months introduced plans to launch a pair of sports activities fashions powered by batteries. However unexpectedly, a brand new idea Prelude that made its debut this week sported a hybrid powertrain.
Honda confirmed on Wednesday that it was creating the Prelude idea from the 2023 Tokyo auto present for manufacturing. Honda additionally made strikes to resume the Prelude trademark earlier this 12 months.
Launched in Japan in 1978, the Prelude has historically been a sporty front-wheel-drive coupe that draped sleeker bodywork over dependable mechanical elements shared with extra mainstream fashions. Manufacturing ended after the 2002 mannequin 12 months, bringing to a conclusion a formidable run that spanned 5 generations.
Regardless of being an idea, the Prelude on show in Tokyo seems to be prepared for manufacturing. However whereas it was anticipated to be an EV in manufacturing, Honda’s U.S. spokesperson Andrew Quillen has since confirmed that the idea, a minimum of, sports activities a gas-electric drivetrain.
That poses some fascinating questions on the way forward for the idea—whether or not it’ll provide an EV drivetrain in manufacturing in any respect—and of the way forward for the 2 promised electrical sports activities automobiles.
It had been recommended {that a} Honda BEV sports activities automobile may share some underpinnings with different Honda EVs within the works. These underpinnings doubtless will not be the Ultium platform and battery expertise set Honda borrowed from Basic Motors for the 2024 Prologue and 2024 Acura ZDX crossovers, on account of latest developments between Honda and GM.
Honda had additionally been engaged on a line of inexpensive EVs with GM as a part of an prolonged collaboration between the 2 automakers, however that plan has since been scuttled. The primary mannequin on this collectively developed platform was due in 2027.
Honda has as an alternative pulled ahead its personal EV platform for medium and large-size fashions, the primary of which is due in 2025 and prone to be a crossover. It is also cooperating with Sony on a brand new Afeela-branded lineup of small electrical automobiles.
Honda plans to have a minimum of 30 EVs accessible globally by 2030. Certainly one of these would be the second sports activities mannequin introduced final 12 months, regarded as a brand new NSX supercar.
For now, the long run appears vibrant for this hybrid Prelude idea—however much less clear for the 2 promised battery-electric Honda sports activities automobiles.
Replace: Honda has since clarified that the Prelude idea presents a hybrid powertrain, not a battery-electric powertrain. Our preliminary model of this story reported that the automobile had an EV drivetrain.
