Honda Prelude Lease Deals

Why Lease a Honda Prelude?

Honda has brought the Prelude name back after a long time away, and it has done something quietly unusual with it. This is a two door coupe that returns 54.3mpg and emits 117g/km, because underneath the low roof it uses the same full hybrid system as the rest of the Honda range. You never plug it in.

That combination barely exists anywhere else. A coupe is usually a car you accept running costs for, and this one asks you to accept almost none. It is also refreshingly simple to order, because there is one grade, Advance, with no engine choice and no options maze. What you do need to go in knowing is that it has four seats rather than five, and that the rear two are not really for adults, which we cover properly below.

Honda Prelude Specification

A few of those are worth pausing on. 1,349mm tall is genuinely low, lower than most hatchbacks by a wide margin, which is where the look comes from and also why getting in and out takes a bit more thought. 1,480kg is light for a hybrid. And the 117g/km next to a 19 inch wheel and a coupe roofline is the headline that makes this car interesting rather than just handsome. It is around 4,530mm long and 1,880mm wide.

Is the Honda Prelude a Plug In Hybrid?

No. It is a full hybrid, which Honda calls e:HEV, with a 1.05kWh battery that the car charges itself. There is no plug and no electric only range figure, so do not expect the tax treatment or the commuting profile of a plug in. What the system does instead is use the petrol engine mainly as a generator for the 135kW electric motor, with the engine driving the wheels directly only at steadier higher speeds. In practice that means it pulls away and moves through town on electricity without you doing anything, and returns 54.3mpg without ever being charged. If you want a plug in or a fully electric car instead, the electric leasing pages set out what else is available.

Is the Honda Prelude Practical Enough for Every Day?

The boot is better than the shape suggests at 264 litres, or 269 if you count the sub trunk floor box, rising to 760 litres with the rear seats folded 70:30 to the roof. For a weekend away for two that is plenty.

The one caveat we want you to have before you order is the back seat, because it is the thing most likely to make someone regret this car. It is a four seater, not a five, and reviewers have been blunt about those two rear places, Auto Express calling them "a token effort". Rear over the shoulder visibility is very limited too, which is the coupe roofline doing what coupe rooflines do. If the back seats need to carry adults with any regularity, or children in bulky seats you have to lean in to fasten, go and try it with your actual passengers before you commit to three or four years. If they are for occasional use or extra luggage space, none of this will trouble you. For the same hybrid system in a shape that seats five properly, the ZR-V is the obvious alternative.

One more practical point, and it is an unusual gap: Honda does not publish a towing figure for the Prelude, showing a dash against both braked and unbraked on its own specification sheet. Do not assume it will tow. If you need to pull even a small trailer, ask us and we will get a definitive answer from Honda rather than guess.

What Is the Honda Prelude Like to Drive?

Quick enough rather than fast. 8.2 seconds to 62mph and 117mph flat out are respectable for a hybrid coupe, and the instant shove of a 315Nm electric motor makes it feel brisker than the numbers in normal driving.

Set expectations properly on the character, though. Reviewers have found the powertrain lacks punch when pushed and that the engine note is partly artificial, and there is noticeable tyre noise at motorway speeds. Honda's S+ Shift system simulates gears but gives you no true manual control, so it will not hold a gear at the limiter the way a proper gearbox would, and the engine cuts out early when you lift off, which produces a small pause before you accelerate again. There is also no adjustable lumbar support, which is worth knowing if you have a particular back. This is a comfortable, efficient and good looking coupe rather than a sports car, and judged as that it does its job well.

How Safe Is the Honda Prelude?

There is no independent rating yet. Euro NCAP has not crash tested the Prelude, which is normal for a model this new rather than a sign of anything, but it does mean there is no star rating to weigh and we are not going to borrow one from another Honda. If an independent safety result is central to your decision, ask us which cars in the class hold a current rating and we will tell you.

Honda Prelude Warranty and Leasing

Honda's warranty is better than the headline figure suggests. The vehicle is covered for 3 years or 90,000 miles, extending a year at a time up to 8 years or 100,000 miles as long as it is serviced at an authorised Honda retailer from the third annual service onwards. The hybrid components and electric powertrain start at 5 years or 90,000 miles and extend the same way, and structural corrosion cover runs to 12 years.

On a personal lease this is an easy car to make sense of, because leasing suits a desirable new model where nobody yet knows what the residual value will do. On a business lease, 117g/km is low for a coupe and worth putting in front of your accountant, though the bands and rates move with each tax year so take the current position from them rather than from us.

Why Lease a Honda Prelude with LetsLease?

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