TOCHIGI, Japan — The last manual Honda Prelude Type SH coupe I drove was a 2001 model. Stylish and whip quick, I took it by the scruff of the neck and whipped it around Oakland County, rowing its high-revving VTEC engine with abandon.

The 2026 Honda Prelude is not that vehicle.

The sleek, all-new Prelude, which enthusiasts have been thirsting for since it wowed as a concept at the 2023 Los Angeles Auto Show, is a new coupe for a new Honda generation. It lives up to its name as a gateway to Honda’s latest technology.

Where the last-generation Prelude was a performance brand halo pushing engine RPM and suspension limits (alongside the S2000 sports car), Prelude joins a 2026 model lineup already loaded with athletes: the manual pocket-rocket Civic Si and winged Civic Type R hot hatch. The

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