This Prelude Convertible Render Answers A Question Honda Never Asked

  • Independent designer Theophilus Chin is behind the drop-top concept.
  • Making room for the folding mechanism forced the rear seats out.
  • Honda has never sold a factory drop-top version of the Prelude.

The much-anticipated return of the Honda Prelude has sparked plenty of debate among sports car enthusiasts, and a year after the hybrid coupe made its debut, that conversation has taken an unofficial detour. Independent digital artist Theophilus Chin decided to reimagine the car, and the result answers a question Honda never asked: what would a modern Prelude look like as a two-seat convertible?

More: Honda’s 2027 Prelude Gets A New $39K Limited Edition, But Only In Japan For Now

The digital concept keeps the basic silhouette of the Prelude coupe, but Chin chopped off the fixed roof structure and swapped in a retractable fabric top. To make room for the folding mechanism, the cramped rear seats of the standard model had to go, turning it into a dedicated two-seater.

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Renderings: Theophilus Chin

Naturally, the fictional model features a redesigned rear deck with a clean tonneau cover behind the headrests. The rest of the design is carried over, including the glider-inspired lines of the bodywork. The end result looks like something you would expect from the factory, although the FWD proportions with the short hood have inevitably been exaggerated due to the new bodystyle.

More: Honda Can Build A Prelude Type R With A Turbo And A Manual, But It Won’t

Beneath the visual makeover, the mechanical package would stay the same, pairing a 2.0-liter four-cylinder with two electric motors for a combined 200 hp (149 kW / 203 PS).

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Renderings: Theophilus Chin

The Prelude is based on the Civic platform with Type R components for the suspension. Power is exclusively routed to the front axle via an eCVT equipped with Honda’s S+ Shift technology to simulate stepped gear changes.

Would It Make Any Sense?

Honda never built a factory convertible Prelude, but that doesn’t mean none existed. The best-known example is the Prelude Solaire from the ’80s, built by a California-based company on the first-generation model. Even so, drop-top Preludes are rare, and there’s a very good reason for that.

More: The Prelute Is The Baby Ridgeline Honda Will Never Build

In theory, coachbuilders could pull off a similar conversion of the modern Prelude, though it would demand a lot of custom work. And rather than the folding fabric roof seen here in the renderings, such a project would probably work best with a removable hard top, sidestepping the costly redesign needed to fit a retractable mechanism.

The real question is who would actually buy a pricey limited-production FWD hybrid convertible in a segment that doesn’t exist, rather than putting their money toward a more exotic sports car.

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The Auto World

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