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The Advertiser
3 days ago
- The Advertiser
2026 Honda Prelude has no direct competition, say Australian bosses
The Honda Prelude name will return to Australian showrooms for the first time in 25 years with its planned arrival in mid-2026, but it won't sit alongside any direct rivals nor set sales charts on fire, according to the brand. The Prelude was previously a mainstay in a highly competitive sports car market which has shrunk to a handful of models, including the Subaru BRZ and Toyota GR86, Ford Mustang, Nissan Z and Toyota Supra. According to Honda, none of these are direct rivals to the 2026 Prelude, which will be the first to offer a hybrid powertrain. "By the nature of it, it's going to be a little bit in the market. There isn't going to be anything you can neatly say, it's a direct competitor of that – it's just seen in a lot of different spaces," said Honda Australia managing director, Rob Thorp. CarExpert can save you thousands on a new car. Click here to get a great deal. The sentiment is backed up by Honda Australia CEO Jay Joseph, who told CarExpert: "Prelude is a really fun car, but it's not a high-volume car. "It's a bit of a Swiss Army Knife – it really doesn't fit neatly into a segment and I think that's the opportunity that we get to leverage." In the Prelude's final year in Australia, 2001, total sales across the 'Sports' segment were 8820 across all makes, making up 1.14 per cent of all the 772,681 new vehicles sold that year. In 2024, the same Sports segment saw 10,633 sales, making up an even smaller 0.87 per cent share of all new cars sold (not including brands like Mahindra, Tesla and Polestar brands, which don't report to the official VFACTS figures, and would reduce this number further). While the price of the Prelude in Australia is yet to be announced, it will enter a dramatically different battleground when it returns in mid-2026 – but does the sports car market have room for another competitor in Prelude? "Yes, we think it does," Honda Australia managing director Ron Thorp told CarExpert. "We've actually been planning this for a little while, and … the nature of the model is it doesn't fit a market segment easily. "It will, from a VFACTS perspective and pricing, but the customer who we think will be interested, it's going to be quite a wide, broad base." "If you look at [Civic] Type R, we know who wants to buy Type R," Mr Thorp said. "Looking at the Prelude, it could be a sports cars person, but you could sort of see, to be honest, older males who used to own them back in the 90s buying them again – I think it's going to reattract a lot of consumers back to the Honda brand. "You can see it opening up to a female audience as well because of the way it looks and drives and handles. "We sort of think that this is where the customer segment group might be," Mr Thorp said, with the Prelude potentially able to "attract a lot of different people from a lot of different areas". "It's also going to provide an opportunity to actually conquest and speak to new customers at the same time, and the combination of the two will allow us to generate great [brand] awareness and start to put Honda on a consideration list." More: Everything Honda Content originally sourced from: The Honda Prelude name will return to Australian showrooms for the first time in 25 years with its planned arrival in mid-2026, but it won't sit alongside any direct rivals nor set sales charts on fire, according to the brand. The Prelude was previously a mainstay in a highly competitive sports car market which has shrunk to a handful of models, including the Subaru BRZ and Toyota GR86, Ford Mustang, Nissan Z and Toyota Supra. According to Honda, none of these are direct rivals to the 2026 Prelude, which will be the first to offer a hybrid powertrain. "By the nature of it, it's going to be a little bit in the market. There isn't going to be anything you can neatly say, it's a direct competitor of that – it's just seen in a lot of different spaces," said Honda Australia managing director, Rob Thorp. CarExpert can save you thousands on a new car. Click here to get a great deal. The sentiment is backed up by Honda Australia CEO Jay Joseph, who told CarExpert: "Prelude is a really fun car, but it's not a high-volume car. "It's a bit of a Swiss Army Knife – it really doesn't fit neatly into a segment and I think that's the opportunity that we get to leverage." In the Prelude's final year in Australia, 2001, total sales across the 'Sports' segment were 8820 across all makes, making up 1.14 per cent of all the 772,681 new vehicles sold that year. In 2024, the same Sports segment saw 10,633 sales, making up an even smaller 0.87 per cent share of all new cars sold (not including brands like Mahindra, Tesla and Polestar brands, which don't report to the official VFACTS figures, and would reduce this number further). While the price of the Prelude in Australia is yet to be announced, it will enter a dramatically different battleground when it returns in mid-2026 – but does the sports car market have room for another competitor in Prelude? "Yes, we think it does," Honda Australia managing director Ron Thorp told CarExpert. "We've actually been planning this for a little while, and … the nature of the model is it doesn't fit a market segment easily. "It will, from a VFACTS perspective and pricing, but the customer who we think will be interested, it's going to be quite a wide, broad base." "If you look at [Civic] Type R, we know who wants to buy Type R," Mr Thorp said. "Looking at the Prelude, it could be a sports cars person, but you could sort of see, to be honest, older males who used to own them back in the 90s buying them again – I think it's going to reattract a lot of consumers back to the Honda brand. "You can see it opening up to a female audience as well because of the way it looks and drives and handles. "We sort of think that this is where the customer segment group might be," Mr Thorp said, with the Prelude potentially able to "attract a lot of different people from a lot of different areas". "It's also going to provide an opportunity to actually conquest and speak to new customers at the same time, and the combination of the two will allow us to generate great [brand] awareness and start to put Honda on a consideration list." More: Everything Honda Content originally sourced from: The Honda Prelude name will return to Australian showrooms for the first time in 25 years with its planned arrival in mid-2026, but it won't sit alongside any direct rivals nor set sales charts on fire, according to the brand. The Prelude was previously a mainstay in a highly competitive sports car market which has shrunk to a handful of models, including the Subaru BRZ and Toyota GR86, Ford Mustang, Nissan Z and Toyota Supra. According to Honda, none of these are direct rivals to the 2026 Prelude, which will be the first to offer a hybrid powertrain. "By the nature of it, it's going to be a little bit in the market. There isn't going to be anything you can neatly say, it's a direct competitor of that – it's just seen in a lot of different spaces," said Honda Australia managing director, Rob Thorp. CarExpert can save you thousands on a new car. Click here to get a great deal. The sentiment is backed up by Honda Australia CEO Jay Joseph, who told CarExpert: "Prelude is a really fun car, but it's not a high-volume car. "It's a bit of a Swiss Army Knife – it really doesn't fit neatly into a segment and I think that's the opportunity that we get to leverage." In the Prelude's final year in Australia, 2001, total sales across the 'Sports' segment were 8820 across all makes, making up 1.14 per cent of all the 772,681 new vehicles sold that year. In 2024, the same Sports segment saw 10,633 sales, making up an even smaller 0.87 per cent share of all new cars sold (not including brands like Mahindra, Tesla and Polestar brands, which don't report to the official VFACTS figures, and would reduce this number further). While the price of the Prelude in Australia is yet to be announced, it will enter a dramatically different battleground when it returns in mid-2026 – but does the sports car market have room for another competitor in Prelude? "Yes, we think it does," Honda Australia managing director Ron Thorp told CarExpert. "We've actually been planning this for a little while, and … the nature of the model is it doesn't fit a market segment easily. "It will, from a VFACTS perspective and pricing, but the customer who we think will be interested, it's going to be quite a wide, broad base." "If you look at [Civic] Type R, we know who wants to buy Type R," Mr Thorp said. "Looking at the Prelude, it could be a sports cars person, but you could sort of see, to be honest, older males who used to own them back in the 90s buying them again – I think it's going to reattract a lot of consumers back to the Honda brand. "You can see it opening up to a female audience as well because of the way it looks and drives and handles. "We sort of think that this is where the customer segment group might be," Mr Thorp said, with the Prelude potentially able to "attract a lot of different people from a lot of different areas". "It's also going to provide an opportunity to actually conquest and speak to new customers at the same time, and the combination of the two will allow us to generate great [brand] awareness and start to put Honda on a consideration list." More: Everything Honda Content originally sourced from: The Honda Prelude name will return to Australian showrooms for the first time in 25 years with its planned arrival in mid-2026, but it won't sit alongside any direct rivals nor set sales charts on fire, according to the brand. The Prelude was previously a mainstay in a highly competitive sports car market which has shrunk to a handful of models, including the Subaru BRZ and Toyota GR86, Ford Mustang, Nissan Z and Toyota Supra. According to Honda, none of these are direct rivals to the 2026 Prelude, which will be the first to offer a hybrid powertrain. "By the nature of it, it's going to be a little bit in the market. There isn't going to be anything you can neatly say, it's a direct competitor of that – it's just seen in a lot of different spaces," said Honda Australia managing director, Rob Thorp. CarExpert can save you thousands on a new car. Click here to get a great deal. The sentiment is backed up by Honda Australia CEO Jay Joseph, who told CarExpert: "Prelude is a really fun car, but it's not a high-volume car. "It's a bit of a Swiss Army Knife – it really doesn't fit neatly into a segment and I think that's the opportunity that we get to leverage." In the Prelude's final year in Australia, 2001, total sales across the 'Sports' segment were 8820 across all makes, making up 1.14 per cent of all the 772,681 new vehicles sold that year. In 2024, the same Sports segment saw 10,633 sales, making up an even smaller 0.87 per cent share of all new cars sold (not including brands like Mahindra, Tesla and Polestar brands, which don't report to the official VFACTS figures, and would reduce this number further). While the price of the Prelude in Australia is yet to be announced, it will enter a dramatically different battleground when it returns in mid-2026 – but does the sports car market have room for another competitor in Prelude? "Yes, we think it does," Honda Australia managing director Ron Thorp told CarExpert. "We've actually been planning this for a little while, and … the nature of the model is it doesn't fit a market segment easily. "It will, from a VFACTS perspective and pricing, but the customer who we think will be interested, it's going to be quite a wide, broad base." "If you look at [Civic] Type R, we know who wants to buy Type R," Mr Thorp said. "Looking at the Prelude, it could be a sports cars person, but you could sort of see, to be honest, older males who used to own them back in the 90s buying them again – I think it's going to reattract a lot of consumers back to the Honda brand. "You can see it opening up to a female audience as well because of the way it looks and drives and handles. "We sort of think that this is where the customer segment group might be," Mr Thorp said, with the Prelude potentially able to "attract a lot of different people from a lot of different areas". "It's also going to provide an opportunity to actually conquest and speak to new customers at the same time, and the combination of the two will allow us to generate great [brand] awareness and start to put Honda on a consideration list." More: Everything Honda Content originally sourced from:
Man of Many
3 days ago
- Man of Many
New Honda Prelude Revealed With Civic Type R DNA, Coming to Australia Mid-2026
By Ben McKimm - News Published: 31 Jul 2025 Share Copy Link 0 Readtime: 4 min Every product is carefully selected by our editors and experts. If you buy from a link, we may earn a commission. Learn more. For more information on how we test products, click here. Honda revives Prelude; affordable hybrid sports coupe launching mid-2026 in Australia Targets Mustang, Z, MX-5, GR86 with Civic e:HEV powertrain Type R suspension, wide tracks, and Brembo brakes promise engaging dynamics CVT-based 'S+ Shift' mimics manual; true manual unavailable Sleek exterior, blue-white cockpit; driver seat specially bolstered for sport There's a new affordable sports car on its way to rival the Ford Mustang, Nissan Z, Mazda MX-5, and Toyota GR86. That's right, Honda is bringing back one of its most famous nameplates with the launch of the new Honda Prelude (6th-generation). Due to arrive in Australia in mid-2026, the vehicle is a launch platform (Prelude) to the brand's latest-generation 'e:HEV' hybrid technology, but with a sporty twist. It will be powered by the same two-motor hybrid-electric powerplant as the Civic hybrid. It's sad to see that the new Honda Prelude won't use the 2.0-litre turbocharged 4-cylinder engine in the Civic Type R (329HP/420Nm). However, it will be underpinned by the same suspension, wide front and rear tracks, and Brembo front brakes from the Civic Type R, so we expect it to be a pretty fun momentum car. Sadly, the six-speed manual transmission won't carry over either. It's been replaced by a CVT transmission that mimics the sound and feel of a traditional gearbox and sends power to the front wheels only. Honda calls it the 'S+ Shift system,' and it works with the Active Sound Control (ASC) system in the car to augment a gearbox by syncing the 'upshifts' with engine RPM each time you pull on a paddle. Honda says the new Prelude will 'deliver high levels of driver exhilaration and engagement, including unmatched driving dynamics and fun-to-drive feel,' but we'll be the judge of that once we get behind the wheel. Let's take a closer look! 2026 Honda Prelude | Image: Supplied / Honda While the powertrain choice is a tad disappointing, it's still refreshing to see a compact sports car in the era of oversized, overweight vehicles. The design is near-perfect. It's exactly what a modern-day Prelude should look like, with clean surfacing, a sleek nose, glider-inspired headlights, black chrome plating on the front grille, and a low-slung roofline. Wheels are pushed to the edges to create a wider track, while a closer look reveals a large diffuser and flush door handles. 2026 Honda Prelude | Image: Supplied / Honda 2026 Honda Prelude | Image: Supplied / Honda 2026 Honda Prelude | Image: Supplied / Honda 2026 Honda Prelude | Image: Supplied / Honda When we look inside, the main colour is 'blue × white,' which Honda says expresses the concept of PRELUDE with a light white and deep blue coordination. We love the instrument panel and its attention to detail on the ivory skin finish. Meanwhile, the driver's seat and the passenger seat have different specifications, which is very Ferrari-like. The driver's seat has an increased hold suitable for sports driving, while the passenger seat provides 'moderately wrapped comfort,' according to Honda. Tech-wise, there's a D-shaped design steering wheel with a full-graphic instrument cluster behind it, exclusive to PRELUDE, but further details will be shared closer to the local launch. We don't have specific engine power or torque figures available, but the 2.0-litre 4-cylinder petrol-electric hybrid system in the Civic hybrid e:HEV produces 135kW (approximately 181 HP) and 315Nm of torque. 2026 Honda Prelude | Image: Supplied / Honda The new Honda Prelude will arrive in Australia in mid-2026. 'We're thrilled to add this iconic nameplate to the Honda line-up next year,' said Honda Australia automotive director Robert Thorp at a media roundtable in Melbourne. When asked about who's going to purchase the new Prelude, Thorp said: 'To be honest, older males who used to own them back in the 90s, (could be) buying them again, but you can see it opening up to a female audience as well because of the way it looks and drives and handles, which we've heard about (internally),' he said. 'Maybe they owned one back in the 90s, or had a used one, because that's what they bought during uni and in the 2000s. But this might be something that brings them back.' We don't know how much the new Prelude will cost when it arrives in Australia next year, but Thorp says it will be competitive: 'We think we'll be able to bring a great value package to market.' 'We're very confident that this will be a model that will attract a lot of interest.'
Herald Sun
3 days ago
- Herald Sun
Honda Prelude returns to Australia in 2026 with hybrid power
Don't miss out on the headlines from Motoring. Followed categories will be added to My News. After vanishing from Australian showrooms more than two decades ago, the Honda Prelude is back. Honda Australia director of automotive Robert Thorp confirmed yesterday that the beloved Japanese two-door sports coupe will return in hybrid form mid-2026. 'We're thrilled to add this iconic nameplate to the Honda line-up next year,' he said. 'Prelude taps into a rare combination of nostalgia and performance with broad appeal across generations of Honda customers, old and new.' Originally launched in 1978, the Prelude earned a reputation as one of the most technologically advanced Japanese cars of its time with features like the world's first four-wheel steering system and electric sunroof. Honda Prelude concept next to the original. Picture: Supplied Now reinvented as a 'speciality sports' hybrid, the new Prelude ditches the turbochargers for a 2.0-litre Atkinson-cycle engine with Honda's latest e: HEV hybrid technology, the same powertrain found in the Civic Hybrid, but retuned for a sportier feel. Official specifications are still under wraps, but power figures are expected to mirror the Civic's 135kW electric motor, with total power estimated around 149kW, similar to the discontinued 2001 Honda Prelude VTi-R (147kW). With an estimated 0-100km sprint of approximately 6 seconds, the new Prelude won't rival full-blown performance cars, but it will outpace some competitors. It represents the return of stylish, reasonably affordable coupes that have disappeared from Australian roads – cars like the Toyota Celica, Holden Calibra, Subaru SVX, Mazda 626 and Ford Probe. The 2026 Honda Prelude concept debuted last year at Goodwood Festival of Speed. Picture: Supplied Inside, you can expect the Prelude to have a new 9-inch infotainment system, a 12-speaker Bose premium sound system, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The Prelude has been redesigned with the driver's seat and the passenger seat offering different specifications. The driver's seat will have increased hold suitable for sports driving, while the passenger seat will provide more comfort. Originally launched in 1978, the Prelude earned a reputation as one of the most technologically advanced Japanese cars of its time. Picture: Automobiles/Honda Honda has also redesigned the vehicle to be more practical with rear-folding seats, hidden storage compartments, and an accessible luggage area. Pricing has yet to be revealed, but it is likely to be high given that the Prelude has always been one of Honda's premium products. With the market for sporty coupes shrinking in Australia and hybrid options being rare, the 2026 Prelude is a smart move by Honda, which could hit a sweet spot. Full Australian specifications will be revealed close to its arrival in 2026. Originally published as The cult classic is back: Honda Prelude
