My Black Beauty

[Alex_Waverley137 14]

Hi all,

glad to have stumbled upon this fine fresh board. Collected my 2026 Prelude in Crystal Black yesterday. It is one of the very first Preludes to run here in Germany and one of only 500 that are planned to be imported from Japan to western Europe (so the Honda dealer told me).

I have been driving Lexus hybrids for the last eight years now (IS 300h & ES 300h). Their new models do no longer speak to me, plus: they do not offer a sporty coupe any more (at least where I live). When I learned about the new Prelude around Christmas of last year, I was hooked. Since then I must have read/watched every single review in any medium possible.
And despite so many people clearly not understanding what this car is about, claiming it does not offer enough power etc., I came to the conclusion that I am one of the exact people this car was made for: Someone who

– mainly drives alone or with one passenger

– wishes a comfortable and composed ride with the possibility to have a little fun now and then

– does not want to spend a fortune on fuel

– loves a stylish coupe (that nearly no other manufacturer offers nowadays)

– does not care if the Prelude is "too expensive". (I would have bought this car even if it costed more. You only live once.)

So I traded in my ES 300h and am now the proud owner of a Honda Prelude. Have been driving Hondas in the late 1990s and early 2000s & always loved them, so I do quite enjoy to return to the brand.
(Maybe I'll do something about the rims in the near future – not sure about the black on black look. Might try out some Mugen-style wheels in a matte bronze tone … we’ll see.)

Looking forward to driving this beauty & reading lots of interesting stuff about the most interesting new car of the year (at least in my eyes).

Have a great day, enjoy your Prelude & always drive safely!

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Great car! Welcome aboard.

 

[CiceroGirl]

Only the rear window and the rear side windows are permitted. And yes, these come tinted from the factory.

Wow. It is amazing how many different “features” there are on a single car that you cannot order to spec!

 

[OldCoupeGRGuy7]

Have you thought about getting a space-saver spare wheel? If you gave these people a call, they could probably help...

https://www.thewheelshop.co.uk/

...or...

Home

No Spare Wheel? Check your boot. Be Prepared,

www.roadhero.co.uk

Just got a spacesaver from the wheelshop and am impressed with it. I got the full kit which has the bag and jack. Googled for a discount code and found one for a tenner off.
The jack and all of the bits go under the floor in the boot perfectly. The wheel in the black bag sits on the back seat behind the passenger. I like the passenger seat level with mine so it doesn't lay flat or go on the floor behind the passenger seat. It would if the seat was a few inches foreward. I have ordered a heavy duty cargo net - strong black webbing with long loops on each corner which holds 400kg. This will go over the wheel and anchor in the boot. Just gives me a little peace of mind on those Yorkshire dales trips.

 

[Passfeller134 7]

Took the Black Beauty on a road trip to Switzerland to drive on the legendary Furkapass like Sean Connery did in "Goldfinger" with his Aston Martin DB 5 back in 1964. (Buddy came along with his Mazda Miata.)
Absolutely spectacular drive, a once-in-a-lifetime experience! It was a pure joy to steer the Prelude through countless sharp turns 2500m above sea level. Power was always sufficient and the car felt like glued to the asphalt. Although there were many sports cars up there (most of them way more expensive than the Prelude), the Black Beauty made heads turn repeatedly - noone had seen the new Prelude in the flesh before. Highest fuel consumption I got when speeding up steep climbs was a tad over 7l/100km with an average (including the drive from Germany to Switzerland and back) of 5,4l/100km. What a wonderful car!

 

[OldCoupeGRGuy7]

This car was made for these type of roads. I have just booked a holiday next spring in the Cairngorms in far north east Scotland with September penciled in for the west coast.
Had it 3 weeks and done 1300 miles mostly in the Yorkshire dales - especially Buttertubs Pass. This isn't just one road. It is part of a 60 mile drive up in the dales not far from where I live. My complete drive is 120 miles in this scenery with the odd coffee and scone stop on the way.
What a fabulous car on tight twisty roads. Plenty of power and handling is perfect.
I wish I could click my fingers and whisk our American friends over here into Europe with their cars so we could all have a drive out together on these types of roads.

 

[Passfeller134 7]

This car was made for these type of roads. I have just booked a holiday next spring in the Cairngorms in far north east Scotland with September penciled in for the west coast.
Had it 3 weeks and done 1300 miles mostly in the Yorkshire dales - especially Buttertubs Pass. This isn't just one road. It is part of a 60 mile drive up in the dales not far from where I live. My complete drive is 120 miles in this scenery with the odd coffee and scone stop on the way.
What a fabulous car on tight twisty roads. Plenty of power and handling is perfect.
I wish I could click my fingers and whisk our American friends over here into Europe with their cars so we could all have a drive out together on these types of roads.

Beautiful scenery! Must be a real joy to drive there with a car like ours.
Yeah, a convoy journey with a whole bunch of international Prelude owners on twisty roads like these would be a great experience.

 

[Alex_Waverley137 14]

I am lucky enough to live in Pennsylvania and to drive a BRZ and (occasionally) my wife's Prelude. We got us some roads here as well!

Last Sunday I did a bit of petrol-therapy Shooting the Gaps (Sterrett's Gap, Waggoner's Gap and Doubling Gap).

Sterrett's Gap is the means to an end in that it gets you over the summit outside Carlisle to the downhill run that leads to the rolling and winding roads through high farmland. Doubling Gap/Tuscarora Trail is another story. It has great twisties and a couple of hairpins that will definitely get your attention. And it is a great ride.

Waggoner's Gap is... different. Driving it from north to south in a good sports car is a life-changing experience. There are long straight runs at the end of which are hard reverse banked hairpins that will shrink your testicles to the size of raisins.

Just past the Hawk Watch there is a tight left that brings you out of the trees and the entire Cumberland Valley is spread out below you.

 

[pillred50 41]

I am lucky enough to live in Pennsylvania and to drive a BRZ and (occasionally) my wife's Prelude. We got us some roads here as well!

Last Sunday I did a bit of petrol-therapy Shooting the Gaps (Sterrett's Gap, Waggoner's Gap and Doubling Gap).

Sterrett's Gap is the means to an end in that it gets you over the summit outside Carlisle to the downhill run that leads to the rolling and winding roads through high farmland. Doubling Gap/Tuscarora Trail is another story. It has great twisties and a couple of hairpins that will definitely get your attention. And it is a great ride.View attachment 680

Waggoner's Gap is... different. Driving it from north to south in a good sports car is a life-changing experience. There are long straight runs at the end of which are hard reverse banked hairpins that will shrink your testicles to the size of raisins.

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Just past the Hawk Watch there is a tight left that brings you out of the trees and the entire Cumberland Valley is spread out below you.

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Could almost be the West Country in England where I live; that's quite a view.

 

[OldCoupeGRGuy7]

I am lucky enough to live in Pennsylvania and to drive a BRZ and (occasionally) my wife's Prelude. We got us some roads here as well!

Last Sunday I did a bit of petrol-therapy Shooting the Gaps (Sterrett's Gap, Waggoner's Gap and Doubling Gap).

Sterrett's Gap is the means to an end in that it gets you over the summit outside Carlisle to the downhill run that leads to the rolling and winding roads through high farmland. Doubling Gap/Tuscarora Trail is another story. It has great twisties and a couple of hairpins that will definitely get your attention. And it is a great ride.View attachment 680

Waggoner's Gap is... different. Driving it from north to south in a good sports car is a life-changing experience. There are long straight runs at the end of which are hard reverse banked hairpins that will shrink your testicles to the size of raisins.

View attachment 681

Just past the Hawk Watch there is a tight left that brings you out of the trees and the entire Cumberland Valley is spread out below you.

View attachment 682

It looks like you are lucky as we are here in Europe to have plenty of good driving roads.
When I watched the reviews I got the feeling many were driving the car on unsuitable roads - long, straight and flat which aren't what these cars are made for.

 

[Passfeller134 7]

Took the Black Beauty to beautiful Austria over the weekend. Road trip of 1000km/621 miles. One day I drove for 7h straight (because when men drive without their better halves, they don't do breaks). No back ache at all, fuel consumption (with lots of German Autobahn/cruise control on 130km/h) averaged on 5.5l/100km (43 MPG US or 51.4 MPG UK).
My conclusion: This is a great car to travel (with one or two persons)!

 

[OldCoupeGRGuy7]

I hadn't thought about when blokes go out they don't need to stop for coffee and cakes every 10 miles.
It is clear to me that this is not a sports car but is a GT (gentlemans) tourer.
I have found myself looking to see if I can find a badge in the similar font to the prelude on the back that says "GT" as that would look good. Found a porsche GT badge but still not sure.
Probably needs a group buy from someone who has the 3d printer to make them in gloss black.

 

[Passfeller134 7]

I hadn't thought about when blokes go out they don't need to stop for coffee and cakes every 10 miles.
It is clear to me that this is not a sports car but is a GT (gentlemans) tourer.
I have found myself looking to see if I can find a badge in the similar font to the prelude on the back that says "GT" as that would look good. Found a porsche GT badge but still not sure.
Probably needs a group buy from someone who has the 3d printer to make them in gloss black.

Great idea! I'd be in for one of those, too, if something turned up ...

 

[PR76UDE156 97]

I hadn't thought about when blokes go out they don't need to stop for coffee and cakes every 10 miles.
It is clear to me that this is not a sports car but is a GT (gentlemans) tourer.
I have found myself looking to see if I can find a badge in the similar font to the prelude on the back that says "GT" as that would look good. Found a porsche GT badge but still not sure.
Probably needs a group buy from someone who has the 3d printer to make them in gloss black.

I like coffee and cakes every 10 miles though?