14/12/2025

theSunday Special XIV ON SUNDAY DEC 14, 2025

The interior of the Prelude is a little of Civic and the e:N1.

How Honda has engineered this entire experience is nothing short of phenome nal, and it adds a character to the car that you simply need to experience for yourself to understand. IS THERE ANYTHING NOT TO LIKE? The car itself is nothing short of fantas tic. We could argue all day about whether or not it is a real Prelude with some saying it probably should be called the successor to the CR-Z since it is a hybrid. But we can all agree that the Prelude name made eve ryone pay more attention to it than a CR Z ever could. The only problem that I may have with it is the price tag. There are rumours sug gesting that the Prelude will be priced even higher than the RM399,000 tag on the Civic Type R. That is because coupe’s have a higher tax rate than sedans. With a price tag of upwards of RM400,000, that may be hard to digest for purists. But I do hope that Honda Malaysia has a couple of tricks up its sleeve since the teasers have already begun and it is only a matter of time till the

struts, which is carried over from the Civic Type R. This works to reduce torque steer which is important for a front-wheel-drive car. The rear on the other hand is kept in check by multi-links, which is not at all surprising. But the Prelude also comes with adap tive dampers which it also shares with the Type R. This works together with the selected drive mode, of which there are four – Comfort, GT, Sport, Individual, to either give you more control of the car or to trudge along in comfort. The Prelude also has wider track dimensions which improves stability and corner entry. And yes, it is the same as the Type R as well. Even the brakes are the same as the Type R, and yes they are from Brembo. So, as you have probably figured out by now, a lot of the important bits under neath the car are from the Civic Type R, and that is what gives it its agility in and out of corners. In long sweeping corners, the car feels planted and confident. Under heavy brak ing for a tight 90° corner, the front bites hard while the rear sticks in place and does not threaten to break grip and swap places with the front. This is also achieved with a technology called “enhanced agile handling assist”. This system works by subtly braking the inner wheels during cornering and thus allowing for a more precise line from cor ner turn-in to exit. The handling is short of being on a knife’s edge and that is a good thing because you don’t want a car that feels too fidgety.

The sports seats of the Prelude hold you in place when you want to have fun.

good that it you really wouldn’t mind it. Then there are the gearshifts. Fake as well because there is no gearbox, power is sent directly to the wheels through the electric motor. Called the Honda S+ Shift, this simu lates a performance transmission by pro viding downshift blips, rev matching and even seems to hold a gear in fast, flowing corners. It also simulates the power cuts which we usually experience in between shifts, so you really do get the little jolt in your spine during acceleration.

The Prelude is ultimately designed to be a GT than it is, say a successor to the Civic Type R – but there are two elements that make it feel like a proper sports car though. The first is the engine note. If you have ever driven the Civic hybrid, you may know that the engine does not sound very spirited – but not in the Prelude, and the reason it sounds so good is because the engine note is augmented and piped into the cabin through the speakers. And though it may not be real, it sounds so

car is launched here. SPECIFICATIONS Engine: 2.0-litre, four-cylinder, Atkinson-cycle Transmission: Honda S+ Shift Power: 200hp Torque: 315Nm Price: Not available We like: Super fun to drive. We don’t like: Might be pricey.