2026 Honda Prelude POV Cold Start, Test Drive (Two-Motor Hybrid System with 2.0-liter I-4)

POV cold start and drive of the all-new 2026 Honda Prelude feat. Honda's fourth-generation, two-motor hybrid system paired with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder gas engine. The revived Prelude was one of my most anticipated drives of #MAMA26SR, and of this model year. As I've dug into the Prelude's history and analyzed reactions and commentary about its revival for 2026, I think it's important to remember the Prelude was never a sports car from the factory. I am sympathetic to enthusiasts' disappointment over the lack of a manual transmission and understand that giving up pure internal combustion for an electrified powertrain seems sacrilegious, but there is a seemingly good essence of the original Prelude woven into this new Prelude, and there is plenty of room for improvement. This is Prelude, 30 years later. Let's break down the Prelude's powertrain. Honda’s two-motor hybrid system consists of five core components: an electric generator motor that powers the hybrid battery; an electric propulsion motor – which effectively replaces a transmission with a single speed direct drive unit that drives the wheels directly; a 2.0-liter Atkinson-cycle gas engine that is connected to the electric generator/starter motor and functions as an electrical generator, supplying power to the hybrid battery and/or the propulsion motor (the engine does drive the wheels via lockup clutch, primarily in highway cruising conditions); an Intelligent Power Unit (IPU), which houses the battery and its controlling hardware; and a Power Control Unit (PCU), the system that controls all hybrid functions. The battery consists of a 72-cell lithium-ion battery pack with a 1.06-kWh capacity. With this setup, the Prelude According to Honda, the fourth-gen hybrid system uses an all-new 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine with added direct multistage fuel injection. Honda claims the new engine increases power and significantly reduces emissions. Total power output for the Prelude is 200 horsepower and 232 Ib.-ft. of torque. The engine didn't kick on at initial ignition in the standard drive mode (*unsure if alternative weather conditions would change this, activating the Prelude's S+ Shift system did get the 2.0-liter four-cylinder to fire up with a low rumble. The engine did kick off before the RPMs dropped. Though my time with the Prelude was brief, | thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. I've not driven any previous generation of Prelude, so to me this is simply a hybrid Honda sporty-intended coupé; it's not really a sports car, and it's not quite a grand tourer (though Honda says it's engineered to deliver a "Grand Touring experience", so more like a roadster? There's something amusing about the Prelude. It's augmented in powertrain engineering and sound - kinda like Darth Vader; you hear the gas engine like you hear James Earl Jones' voice, with an added overtone of enhanced acoustics and synthesis that don't entirely align with one another, particularly when S+ mode is engaged and the Prelude is in Sport mode. Is this what the modern car is/is this what the modern Honda is? Something that's electrified, less conventionally engineered, and mildly artificial...? Anyway, the Prelude's suspension and brake components, shared with the Civic Type R, make for a nimble and direct feeling drive experience. The route I drove this Prelude on included a forested area that wound around a lake; it proved very fun to tap into Sport and S+ shift modes with. Turn-in proved quick with instant throttle response going in and out of curves. I don't know; thirty years have passed. The engineering of a non-Grand Touring, sporty coupe is different today, yet the intended delivery still seems to be the same? There's looks, capability, and engineering, but all formulated using the tech of today. The new Prelude is fun, regardless of whether it's not exactly like the Prelude that came before it. Shot on GoPro Hero11 featuring binaural (3D) audio. The use of headphones is recommended. Instagram:   / carappiehl   0:01 External view, vehicle unlock, vehicle entry 0:15 Vehicle ignition sequence 0:27 Interior cold start (engine wouldn't kick on until S+ mode was activated) 1:20 Begin test drive, low speed driving around Road America 4:16 Medium acceleration in Comfort mode 5:15 Hard acceleration in Comfort mode with S+ activated 6:15 Dynamic driving on curvy roads 8:35 Light acceleration in Comfort mode with S+ activated 9:30 Casual driving around golf course and residential area 11:27 Hard acceleration in Sport mode with S+ activated 12:02 Medium acceleration in Sport mode with S+ activated 12:40 Crossing over railroad tracks 12:52 Hard acceleration in Sport mode with S+ activated 13:37 Reentering Road America and casual driving on race grounds 15:45 Parking, vehicle off, vehicle exit 16:09 Vehicle lock and external view