Honda Prelude Concept: Electric coupe delights its fans

Honda delights automobile enthusiasts with the Prelude Concept that it introduced today at the Japan Mobility Fair.

This special concept vehicle offers a feature that has been missed since 2012: rotary engine. Much like last year's Vision Study design, the Prelude Concept is slightly larger than the current MX-5 Miata, making it look like a modern interpretation of the RX-7 legacy.

Prelude Concept: Electric powertrain

However, unlike that legendary coupe, the Prelude Concept uses its two-rotor engine not to power the wheels, but to charge a battery of no particular capacity.

This battery then feeds an electric motor whose technical data is not specified. Although there is some uncertainty about the R-EV's powertrain, no matter where the energy source is, there is plenty of power: a full 365 horsepower.

Honda says the rotary engine can run on a variety of fuels, including hydrogen and renewable fuel, and the battery can also be charged via a plug-in outlet at home.

Prelude Concept: Is it really a concept?

The Prelude reveal came at the end of Honda's concepts presentation for the show, and details about the powertrain were missing. In fact, there are no details, only that the vehicle is electric and that in the future Honda plans to combine electrification with driving pleasure.

You decide how to evaluate this information. While Honda is leaving us hanging on the details of the Prelude Concept, our eyes are seeing a vehicle that doesn't really look like a concept.

The front design is very similar to the Civic, only without the grille. Body lines are symmetrical but not pointed. Brembo brakes appear prominently behind factory 20-inch wheels. There are traditional side mirrors in place of the side cameras, and there is a subtle but noticeable spoiler at the back. The only real concept feature is the all-black windows. These windows imply that there is nothing worth seeing inside.

So, now the real question is: will Honda actually produce this? Currently, the company is being quite mysterious about the details, but Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe made interesting statements after the introduction of the Prelude Concept. So there may be a high probability that the concept will be produced!