Honda Prelude History

Sports car · 1979–2001

Sample hero image — replace with real model photography.

History

The Prelude was Honda's upscale sport coupe across five generations from 1979, often debuting Honda's newest technology.

The third generation (1988) offered the world's first mechanical four-wheel steering in a mass-production car; later Preludes brought VTEC and the Type SH's torque-vectoring 'ATTS'.

After the original ended in 2001, Honda revived the Prelude name as a hybrid coupe for the mid-2020s.

Generations

First generation · 1979–1982 (1979–1982)

The original Prelude sport coupe.
Second generation · 1983–1987 (1983–1987)

Pop-up-headlight Prelude; a popular sporty coupe.
- 1984
  Photo: “1984 Honda Prelude EX coupe (18235608554)” by Jeremy from Sydney, Australia / Wikimedia Commons , licensed under CC BY 2.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
Third generation · 1988–1991 (1988–1991)

Introduced mechanical four-wheel steering — a world first for a mass-production car.
- 1991
  Photo: “1991 Honda Prelude Si States” by TTTNIS / Wikimedia Commons — CC0 1.0 . Cropped to 16:9.
Fourth generation · 1992–1996 (1992–1996)

Wider, more aggressive Prelude with VTEC engines.
Fifth generation · 1997–2001 (1997–2001)

Final original Prelude, including the torque-vectoring Type SH.