Now let’s hope that Honda Malaysia would actually bring in the real deal when this concept becomes reality next year.
To those who coming upcoming Kuala Lumpur International Motor Show (KLIMS) 2024 this December 5th to 11th, it might be worth making a bee-line to the Honda stand at the event. Such is because standing front and centre over there will be the all-new Prelude concept, which is making its first Asian appearance in the metal outside of its home market of Japan!
First introduced at the Japan Mobility Show late last year, this iconic nameplate has since already been tipped to enter production sometime next year. And given that Honda Malaysia has brought it along to KLIMS 2024, this could perhaps indicate that the Prelude may more than likely be eventually joining the Japanese automaker’s local lineup too.
Now if this upcoming Prelude were to arrive locally, it will be the first time that Honda Malaysia will have a two-door in its lineup again since the hybrid CR-Z departed from the showroom floor nearly a decade ago already. It will incidentally also be the first time that this coupe nameplate will be making an official local debut, if discounting the fact that Kah Motor actually sold brand new examples of the first and second generation cars over here back in the day.
Looking ahead into the future on the other hand, news of this Prelude’s imminent debut comes at a rather interesting time considering that Toyota themselves have just hinted about their intentions to revive the Celica nameplate. And going by the big T’s penchant to bring in all its sporty offerings over here, there could soon come a time for there to be quite the cornucopia of choice available to those in the market for a Japanese two-door.
Honda Malaysia has unfortunately not provided any further details regarding this Prelude than what has already been teased internationally, and that basically is not much info at all… The prior hints provided regarding this two-door nevertheless does point to it all but likely featuring a hybrid heart under that sleek silhouette, with said electrified powertrain potentially being the same 2.0-litre e:HEV unit as currently seen in the local Civic RS.
And while on the topic of Civic, it is currently expected too that the Prelude will be sharing largely the same chassis that underpins the mid-sized Honda sedan as well. This therefore sees for this latest iteration of Honda’s iconic coupe nameplate to (unfortunately) continues on from its predecessors and not exactly be the sportiest in its class, with it to more than likely not feature its third iteration’s fantastic party piece of four-wheel steering.
Having said that however, project lead for the Prelude, Tomoyuki Yamagami’s prior quote during its initial launch of “we as Honda have always sought the joy of driving” does bode well for this coupe to potentially net some slight handling tweaks from its sedan base. Claims that particular attention was paid to not only its controllability and drivability but also the “emotional aspect of the engine” (not to mention the Brembo brakes hiding behind those mean-looking 20-inch alloys) should further see this Prelude possibly be more than capable of putting a smile on the face of any petrolhead when behind the wheel.
Being entirely frank too, it is actually fine if this Prelude basically drives like a Civic. Such is not just as the aforementioned sedan is quite the tidy handler in itself already, but more so because for there to be a subsection of the demographic who actually has the money for something stylish that may perhaps prefer something a little less back-creakingly hardcore than the current offerings on the market.
Also, isn’t the absolutely stunning looks of this Prelude concept enough to seal the deal already?
