2026 Honda Prelude....Finally!

 

I absolutely love what they did to the back end of this car, love the fender flares and the aggressive stance.  Would have loved if they had a manual transmission option (Honda makes one of the best manual transmissions out there, such a short throw), but I will learn to love the S+ mode.

For those looking for more info on the S+ mode on this car, here is a link;  https://global.honda/en/tech/honda_s_plus_shift/

Tribute to a Forgotten Legend: 20 Pictures of Various Honda Preludes

Those of you that have followed this site for awhile will know that I am all for Honda bringing this car back, I also know that Honda has it in their mind that the new Honda SI and Accord are 'spiritual' successors to the Prelude.  Anyway, before I start to ramble on, here is a tribute to the what seems like Forgotten Legend that is the Honda Prelude, in various states of mod-ness....  Cheers!

Source;
Various

Toyota FT-1 Concept Heralds A More Exciting Future (And Maybe A New Sports Car--Supra?!?)

Wouldn't it be nice if this got Honda thinking about a Next Generation Honda Prelude, if only in concept form....?

by Matthew de Paula of www.forbes.com

The suspense is over. After years of hand wringing, diehard fans of Toyota’s defunct but beloved Supra sports car have been given hope of a successor.

Their salvation comes in the form of the FT-1 concept car, which Toyota unveiled today at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Although the Japanese automaker has not said whether it will build a production version of the curvaceous coupe, nor whether it would be called “Supra” if it did, the FT-1 is groundbreaking nonetheless. It represents the culmination of Toyota’s efforts to infuse excitement into its vehicles, much as the company’s luxury division, Lexus, is already doing. (Read more about Lexus’ efforts here.)

The Toyota FT-1 concept is a stake in the ground that signifies no more boring cars for Toyota.

“It really expresses the direction that we’re moving in and the company that we’re evolving into, which is one that develops more exciting vehicles with heart, more emotion, more driver-engaged products that speak to the excitement of driving,” said Kevin Hunter, president of Toyota’s Calty Design Research studio, in a one-on-one interview ahead of the concept car’s unveiling at the Detroit auto show.

The FT-1 has design elements that pay homage to past Toyota sports cars. The slant of the roofline and the wraparound windshield with blacked out roof pillars evoke the styling of the 2000GT, a slinky two-seater built from 1967 to 1970 and famously featured in the James Bond film “You Only Live Twice.” The rear of the FT-1 pays homage to the last generation of the Supra, called the Mark IV, which was built from 1993 through 2002.

The 2000GT and Supra lineage is also evident in the long hood of the FT-1. Both the 2000GT and Supra featured so-called in-line six-cylinder engines, which were long and dictated a certain proportion at the front of the car. “Even though we’re not saying exactly what engine is in the FT-1, we thought at least it should feel like it has a long hood and it has a powerful engine under the hood,” Hunter said.

Though it draws on Toyota’s heritage, the FT-1 is far from just a rehash of previous sports cars. “The surfacing is all new. We refer to it as ‘function sculpting,’ and that, I think, is in line with our bigger fundamental design philosophy of ‘vibrant clarity,’” Hunter said. “There’s something rational happening and there’s something emotional going on as well. And it’s kind of those two values merging that creates something new.”

The entire car appears to be shaped by the wind. Deeply sculpted intakes and outlets improve aerodynamics and channel air to cool the engine and other components. “It has to be dynamic, exciting, but it also has to function well as a sports car,” Hunter said.

This design and engineering ethos wrapped up in one can also be found at the pinnacle of motorsports: Formula One. Not by coincidence, the pointy nose of the FT-1 recalls the shape of an Formula One race car. “It was kind of on our mind, I guess, as we were designing the car,” Hunter said.

The interior of the FT-1 is stripped down like that of a race car.

Toyota designers completely rethought how the driver should interact with the vehicle and devised a head-up display, like something from a fighter jet, and large buttons on the steering that look like a video game controller. The goal was to reduce driver distraction.

“It’s very easy for your thumb to identify the input points that relate to the heads-up display,” Hunter said. “So ideally, you can do it blindly, not looking down at the steering wheel and always keep your eyes focused on the road.”

Whereas current cars, including Lexus models, use controllers on the center console to manipulate menus on a screen mounted in the middle of the dashboard, everything on the FT-1 is managed right on the head-up display using only the steering wheel controls. This sort of technology could eventually end up on future production vehicles, Hunter said.

Despite all of the Toyota FT-1’s exotic features, which also include a movable rear wing that raises at high speeds to increase stability, the concept is meant to project the possibility of an affordable sports car in keeping with Toyota’s position as a mass-market automaker. A production version of the FT-1 would cost far less than a Porsche or Ferrari, Hunter said.

“We felt it was important to bring a halo image to the Toyota brand, which could use a bit of strengthening in that area,” he said. “We know that Lexus has the LFA, Scion has the FR-S, and the Toyota brand is really lacking a sports car right now.”

Calty designers came up with the idea for the FT-1 a couple of years ago. They’ve been waiting for the right moment to bring it into the limelight.

To help sway board members and Toyota president Akio Toyoda to produce the concept car, Calty designers worked with Sony to create a virtual version of the FT-1 that could be “driven” in the video game Gran Turismo.

This turned out to be a shrewd move. When the FT-1 was presented in video-game form to the board, Toyoda was able to complete a virtual lap of Japan’s Fuji Speedway faster than his best real-world lap time in his own personal LFA supercar.

Needless to say, the FT-1 got the green light, which is to be expected, considering Toyoda’s passion for motor sports.

“This kind of high-performance car I think is ideal to symbolize the direction that our company is moving in,” Hunter said. “We all know Akio Toyoda said we need to develop more cool cars and more emotional cars.  And he used the term ‘waku doki,’ which means ‘with great passion and from the heart.’ We need to capture this kind of spirit in our new vehicles.”

Source;
http://www.forbes.com/sites/matthewdepaula/2014/01/13/toyota-ft-1-concept-car-heralds-a-more-exciting-future-a-surprise-debut-at-the-2014-detroit-auto-show/2/

Wouldn't It be nice if Honda was thinking about a new Prelude?

Here's a nice rendition of what the Next Honda Prelude might look like by John Nguyen.

This is more of a rant that a article....

For those that have been following this site for awhile, you'll know that I am a big fan of the idea for Honda to bring back the Prelude.  There has been talk of Honda wanting to bring a successor to the Honda S2000 and I think that that idea is great.  I know that Honda has the Honda Civic Si and the Honda Accord Coupe as 'spiritual' successors to the Prelude, but there's just something about having the Prelude as it's own entity.

Toyota is talking about bringing back the Supra, Nissan is thinking about bringing back the 200 Z car, and Subaru is full throttle ahead with the WRX!

C'mon Honda, at least talk about it!

Toyota's incoming chairman covets Supra-like sports car

C'mon Honda, let's get going on that next Honda Prelude! Higher than the Civic SI, low $30's....

Masatsugu Horie
June 12, 2013 - 9:19 am ET

OSAKA, Japan (Bloomberg) -- Toyota Motor Corp.'s incoming chairman said he wants the sports car the company is developing with BMW to be a mid-sized vehicle comparable to the discontinued Supra.

Takeshi Uchiyamada has been telling people that Toyota's next sports car should be like the Supra so that it doesn't overlap with the 86 coupe, he said in an interview today in Osaka at a gathering of members of the Keidanren, Japan's biggest business lobbying group.

Still, such decisions are up to engineers, Uchiyamada said.
"That's what I want but it's not me who makes the decision," said Uchiyamada, who's known within Toyota as the "father of the Prius" for his work developing the world's best-selling gasoline-electric car.

"It's futile if we make something similar" to the 86, he said.

Toyota and BMW announced this year they will jointly produce a mid-sized sports car as part of a broader collaboration between the two. Should Uchiyamada, who's leading the negotiations with BMW, get his wish, Toyota would be reviving a model that was last produced in 1999 after a 20-year run.

Toyota spokesman Naoto Fuse declined to comment beyond saying nothing has been decided.

Uchiyamada, 66, is scheduled to become Toyota's next chairman at the company's annual shareholders' meeting this week, replacing Fujio Cho, who will become honorary chairman.

President Akio Toyoda, grandson of the founder, runs day-to-day operations at the world's biggest carmaker.


Source;
http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130612/OEM02/306129942/toyotas-incoming-chairman-says-he-wants-supra-like-sports-car#axzz2W6g8R8dx

Toyota to let loose two more sports cars after the 86

C'mon Honda, Next Gen Prelude is just waiting to happen!!!!

By Samuel Ee
SINGAPORE - The radical new Toyota 86 compact coupé is only the first of three new sports car line-ups that the Japanese carmaker is planning as part of a new business model that seeks to create a bond with buyers.

"The 86 is in the middle but we don't know when the other two will be ready," says Tetsuya Tada, the chief engineer of the 86, the first sports car for the Japanese giant carmaker in recent history.
A lightweight 2+2 model, the 86 has a 2.0-litre horizontally opposed engine in front to drive the rear wheels in classic fashion.

Mr Tada continues: "The 86 needed five years to develop, so at least five years is required for the others. A normal passenger car about two to three years. But sports cars need special parts, so it's five years."

Also not determined is whether the other two cars will be coupés or convertibles, or if they will have different engine/drive layouts "because technology changes, so we have to find the best layout".

So it is entirely possible that one of the line-ups could have a mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout like the discontinued two-seater MR2 (also called the MR-S in its final iteration).

But one thing is certain - the higher-end sports model is likely to be introduced before the entry-level car.

Mr Tada explains with a smile: "The president (Akio Toyoda) has asked me to make a successor to the Supra as soon as possible." The chief engineer was speaking in Germany at the recent launch of the Toyota 86 Experience to highlight the model's sporty abilities.

"The 86 was not conceived for pure speed but for driving pleasure," he explains.

It was inspired by the AE86 Levin of 1983, the original lightweight Toyota coupé which also happened to be Mr Tada's first car when he joined the firm.

It also has the ability to be extensively customised as per owner's wishes.

"The philosophy of the 86 is that it is an open concept," says Mr Tada.

The conventional way is for the carmaker to produce a car and call it perfect, which means the users don't have to or can't do anything else.

For example, if the rims and tyres are changed, the manufacturer's warranty is void.

Instead, the 86 was created as a car with the potential to change into something the customer wants it to be.

"Why? Because if you ask 100 people what you think of the car, you will get 100 answers. They all have different views," he said.

Hence the open concept, which will satisfy customers because the car evolves with them and make 100 people's dreams come true.

Taking it one step further, Toyota has even made Playstation integration possible.

A black box can record a track day session, and the telemetry downloaded to be played back and shared with other gamers on their Sony Playstation consoles. As a result, the addition of a turbo or supercharger can be simulated to see how it will enhance the naturally aspirated 86's performance.

So far, the success of the 86 has been a surprise, not least of all for rivals Nissan and Honda.

"They realise from the 86's sales that they have to go back to this kind of car. If everybody goes back to their roots, everyone can have a one-make race," says the former racer.

He reveals that Toyota wants to make sports cars again because "it is a very important strategy".

"We have two pillars - an ecological car and driving fun. We must balance these two aims otherwise users won't recognise us a true carmaker."

But Mr Tada notes that the mass production of sports cars has ceased to be a conventional business.
After the financial crisis of 2009, Toyota realised that it could no longer sell cars to dealers to make money because "the car population (was) not going to increase in future".

"So this is a new business model. When customers buy a car, it creates a new bond between the manufacturer and the owner - we do not just profit from selling the car," he said.

Source;
http://www.asiaone.com/Motoring/News/Story/A1Story20121101-380919.html

JMVDesigns fleshes out a 201? Honda Prelude HC2

It's been no secret that here at The Honda Portal, I've been pining for a Next Generation Honda Prelude, and with what Toyota and Subaru have been doing (and doing quite well I might add), I think the market is right for another go around with a Honda Prelude!  C'mon Honda, show off more of your racing roots (I know that the Civic Si and the Accord Coupe are the spiritual successors to the Prelude, but I think that there's room for a non-hybrid performance car!), with a  RWD, high performance 4cyl.

We can dream right?

BTW, great job to jmvdesigns and check out the rest of their galleries here;
http://jmvdesign.deviantart.com/gallery/?offset=24

Motortrend: Toyota Supra Successor Back in the Pipeline

C'mon Honda, if Toyota can have a FT-86 and a Supra in their lineup (wouldn't it be nice to see a next gen MR2 as well), surely we can have a Accord Coupe, Civic Si, and a NEW PRELUDE!....

May 03, 2012

By Peter Lyon

Illustrator: Holiday Auto Magazine

As the Supra, Celica, and MR-S (MR2) progressively disappeared over the last decade, so too did the excitement from Toyota's lineup. But sports cars are back in the Japanese giant's product plan, led by the Lexus LFA and the new Scion FR-S, which is just about to hit showroom floors. And now it appears the green lamp is finally about to be lit on a long-awaited Supra successor.

Several years ago, Toyota's U.S.-based product planners pitched a new hybrid sports car with looks, power, and environmental credentials. Unveiled at the 2007 Detroit auto show as the FT-HS, the concept reportedly pointed the way toward a reinterpretation of the Supra.

 

The financial crisis of 2008 prevented the FT-HS from becoming anything more than an attractive concept. But the spirit of that coupe survived and is reportedly being channeled into the design of the on-again, off-again, on-again Supra project. The edges and sharp angles you see in the attached illustration at top are how one artist interprets the direction Toyota is believed to be heading with its new sports car.

The car's final body is expected to be dropped onto the chassis of the GRMN MRS prototype, which has already undergone testing at Fuji Speedway. GRMN stands for Gazoo Racing Meister of Nurburgring, and was named after Nurburgring expert Hiromu Naruse, Toyota's late godfather of sports car development.

Unlike the rear-drive FT-HS, the new sports coupe (it's unlikely to be called Supra) would employ an all-wheel-drive system and generate upwards of 400 horsepower. The car is rumored to feature a mid-engine-mounted, 3.5-liter V-6 hybrid setup mated to a CVT lifted from the new Lexus RX, but tuned for higher performance. The engine would drive the rear wheels, while in-wheel electric motors would power the fronts. GRMN's expertise would be utilized to help develop the car.

The million-dollar question is when we'll see it in production. It's no secret that company CEO Akio Toyoda -- weekend racer, sports car addict, and the driving force behind bringing the extravagantly priced LFA to market -- is enthusiastic about a Supra successor. Toyota bosses haven't officially approved the project, but if Toyoda has his way and the economy shows continued signs of recovery, the new coupe could be on showroom floors by late 2015 for less than $60,000.

Source;

http://www.motortrend.com/future/future_vehicles/1205_toyota_supra_successor_back_in_the_pipeline/

Next Generation Honda Prelude?!?!?

Well, not sure what any of this really means (any higher ups in Honda that I've spoken to have always denied any re-kindling of the Prelude), for all I know these are just conceptual ideas by non-official Honda people, but I for one have not been shy about wanting to see a Next Generation Honda Prelude! Thought I'd pass this along.

Using google translate, this is what I found;

"The highly anticipated 42nd edition of the Tokyo motorshow will be held this year from wednesday November 30 to Sunday 11 December. Among the constructors announce to the event, Honda will be the focus of the show with his series of prototypes and new electric and hybrid cars, marketed in 2012.

In addition to some clichés circulating on the web, Honda has not given all the details sure the prototype of the world eagerly awaited electric.

Although the undercarriage is that of the Honda Accord, the Prelude has stood out as a two-door coupe with a silhouette rather low (4.09 m long and 1.29 m high).

Honda recently unveiled seven new concepts set for the submission of the Tokyo Motor Show. Among these figure prototypyes a 100% electric cabriolet that is sure to stir the curiosity of visitors: the small sports EV concept.

This two-door coupe has been translated into five generations. Competitor of the Toyota Celica, 4-cylinder sports coupe appeared a few years before the Prelude, it faces other Nissan Silvia, Isuzu Implse, Mitsubishi FTO, Mitsubishi Cordia, Ford Probe and Mazda MX-6."

Source;

http://visions-autos.sport24.com/r16293/Honda/

What If? What would you like to see on the Next Generation Honda Prelude?

Well, I would have to class this one as a big 'wish' on my part. Honda has been pretty adamant about leaving the Prelude retired. Whenever I have asked a higher up in Honda why they aren't bringing the Prelude back I get the 'that's basically what the new Civic Si is' or 'that's what the new Accord Coupe is'. I could definately make a case for the 06' Civic and up as a spiritual successor, but c'mon, at least have a special 'Prelude edition' or something.

Anyways, I digress, if Honda (and that's a big IF) were to ever think about bringing back the Honda Prelude, what do you think it should have?

Post your ideas in the comments section, and let's see what comes up, who knows, maybe Honda's listening....

I'll start it off....
-NO hybrid!
-6 speed manual is a must, with a base model Automatic available.
-SH-AWD
-a high performance 4cyl, say a tweeked 2000 S2000 2.0litre variant, raw, with 250hp.
-dual exhaust
-panoramic moonroof
-low to the ground with a sports tuned double wishbone suspension
-18" alloys with HP rubber

MotorTrend: Is Honda Returning to Its Sports Car Roots?

At a press conference in early February, Honda CEO Takanobu Ito shocked the world's media when he nonchalantly revealed plans to launch a detuned production version of the V8-powered HSV-010 race car. Of course, he was referring to a road-going variant of the NSX successor project, which was shelved several years ago.

As it turns out, the next NSX (which is expected to be powered by a 400-plus hp V-8) features heavily in the company's renewed plan to pump out as many as three sports cars over the next several years.

Just over six weeks ago, a killer earthquake and tsunami threatened to cancel this about-face from Honda, and rob us of some of the most exciting news to come out of Japan since the Nissan GT-R surfaced three years ago.

But a reliable source close to Honda tells us that while these plans have been postponed as the company sorts out its parts supply problems, they are not dead in the water. In the last few weeks, we have been hearing that Honda is working on a high performance coupe powered by a 3.5 liter V-6 plug-in hybrid, a concept that Ito himself briefly mentioned.

The rebirth of the Acura RSX, the car you see pictured here in an artist's representation, is also on the near-term agenda. According our sources, the next-gen RSX will inherit a version of the just-launched ninth-generation Civic Si's 201 hp, i-VTEC 2.4 liter gas engine with slick 6-speed manual and helical LSD. Fitted with specially tuned sports suspension, the new RSX will also employ an interior inspired by the current Civic Type R and an exterior in a sharp, wedge shape.

Further down the line, Honda is also said to be developing a "more reasonably priced" C-segment sports coupe. Driven by a strong request from North American Honda dealers, this coupe is being developed with that market in mind and will incorporate Accord hardware.

One other concept that we have covered before and awaits the results of Honda's so-called "R-evaluation executive session" is a successor to the Beat. The original Beat was an open-top two-door, mid-engined 660cc minicar that could rev to 8500 rpm, and the next generation promises to be a new interpretation of that concept with a 1.3 to 1.5 liter gas engine. If built, don't expect the Beat to come to the U.S. We have also heard rumors of a hotter CR-Z getting a 190 hp-plus 2.0 liter gas unit, but that's all we have at the moment, rumors.

Source;
http://www.motortrend.com/features/auto_news/2011/1105_is_honda_returning_to_its_sports_car_roots/index.html

What Could have been, the Next Gen Honda Prelude HC2

I have displayed the front pic before but I hadn't seen the side and rear views before, so I thought I'd pass it on. Great looking car, even today.

Source;
http://jmvdesign.deviantart.com/art/Honda-Prelude-HC2-Renders-89341046?q=gallery%3Ajmvdesign%2F4106748&qo=22