2026 Honda Prelude - Six Month Ownership Review

 After owning my Prelude for a little over six months, I thought it was time to post my thoughts on what the ownership experience has been like. I have also attached a video by YouTuber Jimmy Mak (J. Mak Media) that sums up much of what I think of the car.  (Scroll to the end to see the video)

                                                Fourth of July Party on Treasure Island

To understand this car one has to think of who it is NOT for. Once you know that you can appreciate what this car represents and the type of owner that will enjoy it.  The Prelude is not for someone looking for raw power and a loud exhaust, rather it is built for someone that is looking for a refined, well constructed versatile machine. The contrast is like comparing a grand piano to a drum set.  For me it pushes all the buttons I want - style, adjustable suspension, technology, fantastic handling, comfortable seats, excellent sound system, great fuel economy and enough power to make driving fun. 

I mentioned versatility- For example I bought a push lawn mower yesterday that was fully assembled. Opened the hatch, folded the mower handle down and in seconds I was on my way to do yardwork. The Prelude gobbled up the mower like a shark taking a big bite.  I also mentioned fuel economy; I'm consitently getting 45-46 MPG for all types of driving. 

I also mentioned adaptable suspension.  The engineers at Honda tuned each of the settings just right. The Prelude shares much of the suspension of the Civic Type R but the dampers are softer even in sport mode. The comfort mode delivers a luxury car ride at the soft end of the spectrum while GT mode is perfect for every day driving. You feel the car doing what you want it to with no hesitation in GT and Sport modes.  And then there's  Individual mode where you can custom tune your ride. All very nicely done Honda!

And when it comes to Style, this car has it in spades. I've owned some very nice cars including several Alfa Romeos and Porsches but none of them attracted attention like this.  I know the car is new and most people have not seen one, but I have had numerous people taking pictures of the car parked at the grocery store, people yelling out their window at stop lights asking "What is That?". I even had a woman knocking on my window before getting out of the car in a parking lot asking me to roll the window down so she can ask me about the car. It is crazy how much attention this car draws.

Summing it up- I've come to love this car like no other. I actually may keep this car long term. It's like I've built a friendship with it - it's always there for me doing its thing with ease.  It could be just crusing to the get groceries or doing some spirited driving on twisty back roads.  The car speaks to me in a language I understand and the car understands me!  To me it has the best parts of many cars I've owned rolled into one. And for that reason the price  ($43,850) that reviewers have complained about is worth it to me. As I say, you have to drive the car for a while to fully appreciate it!  Check out the video below that explains this well.

Who's it for? 2026 Honda Prelude Review - Hybrid Type-R?

Brought to you by Paul Ziegler, Publisher

Carcamerastory.com   Follow on Instagram @Wownowpics

Farewell Quaker Steak & Lube, Prelude vs Tesla and Sunshine Baby Runs

 

There's a lot of miscellaneous stuff that's going on here.  I have not posted for a while so I'm stuffing all the stuff into this one post. I have been lazy lately so forgive me for not sending out new content.

Above is a picture of my Prelude at Quaker Steak & Lube on Friday, June 26th where I had lunch with my daughter Kim, son-in law Grant and Grandson Zach. This is one our favorite restaurants and sadly, it will be closing on July 5th. We had to get one last bucket of wings while we take in the atmosphere only this place can create.  Race cars, motorcycles, boats and even an airplane hang from the ceiling here.  So much to take in that you could spend an entire afternoon looking at everything there. Here's a taste of what I mean:

    We will miss this place as will the Tampa Bay Cafe' Racers group that has been meeting here for       almost three years. What a shame to see the place close.

The next topic is a tale of two electrified cars- one a Tesla Model 3 and the other a semi-electrified Honda Prelude Hybrid.  

Each has advantages- the Tesla offers full self driving and all electric operation. No gas required. And the Honda offers the convenience of not having to plug in, great gas mileage of 40-50 MPG. My son-in law prefers the Tesla with full self driving while I want to drive and prefer the Prelude hybrid operation.

I went for a ride in the Tesla, and honestly it scared me. I don't think I could get used to the car driving me instead of me driving the car. Everyone has their own preference on this subject, but if you are a car enthusiast I think you will pick the Prelude.  If you are not much of a car enthusiast then the Tesla might appeal to you. It's nice to have the choice.  For me - NEVER an all EV.

The last subject is the Sunshine Baby IV racing hydroplane finally runs.  The initial start up took place at our project leader, Jim Aid's house last week. The initial start up revealed some problems with the head gaskets so we had to pull the engine yesterday. Back to the drawing board!

Check out the videos on my YouTube Channel- Paul Ziegler 8505  Here's a quick link:Sunshine Baby

And here's the motor coming out:

That's the update for June- more updates on the way as we keep making improvements. New head gaskets are being installed next week.

Brought to you by Paul Ziegler, Publisher of Carcamerastory.com.

  Follow on Instagram @Wownow pics

Honda Prelude - Reviewers Got it WRONG Brian Makse Tells Why

 I came across this video below done by professional, Brian Makse.   He says what I was saying in my previous blog post; essentially this is the right car but the wrong drivers are looking at it to meet their expectations. That's a very bad combination.

                   Porsche / Prelude         Prelude/ Porsche        Look Similar?   Read on:

     Now we have the look alike comparison over,  here's one of the best reviews of the Honda Prelude

     you will find anywhere- by Brian Makse, someone that knows what they are talking about!   

           Click Below to see Video

In this video Brian confirms everything I was trying to say in my previous blog post. If you like driving a car at its limits you will love this video.   Take that all you Pelude haters- it just shows your incompetence in reviewing a new car model.

Brought to you by Paul Ziegler, Publisher  Carcamerastory.com

Follow on Instagram @wownowpics

New Honda Prelude, The Right CAR and Wrong DRIVERS

The title of my post today explains much of what all the fuss is about with the new Honda Prelude. I've never seen such mixed emotions about a new car introduction. For many drivers the car is a disappointment with not enough power and no stick shift. For a smaller group of drivers, the car is exactly what they want.   This post will attempt to explain why Honda got it right and the typical car enthusiast has it wrong. Those 'old school' Honda fans have not caught up with the times and it will take time for their thinking to change, if ever.  We all wish we could go  back to the past but the past is not coming back; we must look forward for our 'sport' to survive.  Honda Prelude is the future of sporty cars for the everyday driver in the mid price space. A small but growing group of drivers are coming to know this car as THE future of fun cars. Yes, this is a new kind of sports car but it also has buckets of practicality. With the Prelude you get more than a sports car, you get a daily driver that's got room to haul luggage, golf clubs, your garage sale purchases, etc.  The car is economical to drive at a combined 44 MPG, range of over 500 miles and no need to look for a charging station. Top it off with great looks and this car is the future we never dreamed possible. Honda also spiced things up with mutiple drive modes, adaptive dampers, the Type R's suspension and brakes and the all new S+ shift that simulates gear changes.  I believe this car is as revolutionary as the Porsche Boxster that debuted in the late '90's.

        Two pictures above show my 'as modified' with stripes and upgraded Honda Prelude wheels.

For the past couple of years Honda fans have been waiting with much anticipation about what the final production version would be after it's prototype made the rounds at all the major car shows.  Most thought it would be like the original five generations of Preludes; a light, peppy, high reving sports coupe with a stick shift. What Honda brought us was a modestly powered Hybrid with no transmission, a tame four cylinder motor and dual electric motors that combined is rated at 200 HP and 232 Ft-Lbs of torque. Many call this a big fail on Honda's part but those people are missing the point. Measuring this car with standards used for 75 years like 0- 60 times and brute power is just wrong.  We live in a different world where the old norms are fading and new technology is taking over and all the measures we used to use need to be replaced with things much more relevant. Now it is electrification, fuel economy, technology, handling and fun driving experience taking over for horsepower. 

One thing that will not change is the driving experience. How the car makes you feel, how it looks and drives are relevant today. How fast it is 0-60 is only a small measure of the car and the lack of a stick shift is not a total loss. 

The remainder of this post is my seat of the pants review having driven the Prelude in comparison with many Hondas and other cars in my recent past.  My review is based on driving experience of the following cars:

Porsche Boxster S from 2001, Alfa Romeo GTV from 1972, The present generation of the Honda Civic Si, and the latest Civic Hybrid Hatchback Sport and the Civic Hybrid Hatchback, Touring.

DESIGN AND LOOKS

How does the car look?  On this count the Prelude scores a 9 out of 10. It has to look good; love at first sight must be there. This category is subjective but most agree it is a 'looker'. Here's some Porsche's where you can see the styling cues that were applied to the Prelude.  This includes the Taycan where lots of similarities are seen.   Included are front, roofline and rear tail lights.

                                           Porsche Taycan-  Looks like the Honda Prelude

Then there's the Porsche 2014 Cayman seen below:

                                         2014 Porsche Cayman - a similar profile

     See the Cayman's swooping roofline and back window.  When sitting in the Prelude looking in the rearview mirror, I swear I was in my Cayman looking at that long descending rear window in the rearview mirror. It is identical to the view in the Prelude.   And yes, that's Hurley Haywood's autograph I obtained on the picture when I saw him in the Porsche Coral at the Sebring 12 Hour race many years ago.

                                                       My 2001 Porsche Boxster S

And then there's the 2001 Porsche Boxster S. When sitting in the Prelude looking forward you see the crest of the two front fenders, just like you would see sitting in the Boxster. The car has so many Porsche cues you could think, hey this is the new Porsche ________   fill in the blank!

Finally the king of the hill comparison- the familiar design of the 911:

                                                         My friend, Denny Brown's 911

And here again is that swooping roofline and large back window- like a glider/ like the Prelude. Was all this intentional?  I think so.  Honda took great design and made it their own with Japanese flair.

A couple of my previous Civics below:

My 2022 Honda Civic Si                         

HOW DOES THE PRELUDE DRIVE?

Now that I covered the design and looks, how does the Prelude drive compared to some of these cars. I can speak from experience with the cars I have owned including the current generation Civic Si, the 2001 Porsche Boxster S, the 1972 Alfa Romeo GTV and the Civic Hybrid Hatch Sport and Touring models.

This is a very quick summary of my first impression when compared to the  other cars above. First let's look at the two cars most similar to the Prelude, the Civic Hatchback Hybrid Sport and the Civic Hatch Hybrid Touring. Similar in that they share the same 200HP Hybrid poweretrain.  That's where the similarity ends. The Civic Hybrids have a softer suspension in all modes and there is slighly more body roll with the Hybrid Hatch models. With the Prelude in comfort it closely resembles the Hatch models but there's a distinct improvement in cornering with the Prelude, even in the Comfort mode. It corners much flatter and the Prelude seems more stable.  That's the advantage of having adaptive dampers and the Type R suspension.  The brakes on the Prelude are also more robust because they are Brembo brakes lifted from the Type R. 

The most interesting thing I have found is how similar the Prelude driving dynamics are to the Porsche Boxster S and the Porsche Cayman. Both Porsches have more power and are lighter but the Prelude does not seem that underpowered under 50 mph and it hides its 350 pound weight disadvantage because of its 232 Ft- Lbs of instant torque from the twin electric motors. Also the turning radius on all seem fairly close which was a pleasant surprise. I mention this because it is so dramatically better than the two Civic Hybrids. Doing a U turn with the Civic takes much more room and when you consider the Prelude has 19" wheels vs the Civic's 18 inch wheels it shows the Type R suspension is genius!  You would not know this is a front wheel drive car. Another factor is the Prelude's wheelbase is 102.4 inches while the Civic Hybrid Hatchback has a wheelbase of 107.7 inches. And the 2001 Porsche Boxster has a wheelbase of 95.2 inches.  The way the Prelude turns when comparing to the Boxster, it doesn't feel that much different for the difference in the wheelbase of the two. Lastly, the Civic Si has a stiffer suspension than any of the cars mentioned and it does handle very well, but is not as capable as the Prelude, nor is it as fun to drive.

That's my point of this whole agrument about the Prelude being a flop on paper shows the reporters writing the reviews have not spent time driving the Prelude to see how good it is!  They are making assumptions based on old stanndards for sports cars that look at 0-60 times and horsepower figures. They don't take into account the superior and instant torque of the Prelude. 

And just for fun I threw in my 1972 Alfa Romeo GTV to demonstrate it's not about horsepower. It's about the whole package, including torque, overall weight, suspension tuning and wheelbase. The Alfa has 130 HP, and 134 Ft-Lbs of torque but weighs only 2150 pounds and has the shortest wheelbase of the bunch at 92.5 inches.  At the time, the Alfa was THE sports car to own.  All the car reviewers raved about it, yet it was slow with 0-60 timesof 8.9 seconds.  So why all the haters talking about the new Prelude?  I believe they are the wrong drivers for this car that is so right!

                                                    My 1972 Alfa Romeo GTV 

I will be writing a second, longer term test drive where I sample the S+ mode and my impression of that new technology.  So far I am completely happy with my Honda Prelude; try it, you will come to like it.

Merry Christmas to all my readers and I look forward to continuing this conversation soon. Tomorrow  I leave to visit family in Rochester, NY but will be back to this desk to bring you some more of my thoughts.   Cheers,   Paul Ziegler, Publisher Carcamerastory.com. Follow on Instagram @wownowpics.

Sunshine Baby Motor Rebuild Done By Don Garlits

First, a little history to put this into perspective. It was a sunny day on October 2, 2023 when Jim Aid and your blog author stopped in at the Don Garlits drag racing museum on our way back from Detroit towing a special surprise to show Don. It was a racing hydroplane from 1959 he worked on for original owner Ray Gassner. The story of how Jim Aid working with Tom D'Eath who connected Jim to current owner, Hayden Harris deserves a blog post of it's own. Look for that incredible story soon.

We stopped by unannounced; would Don be there?  Would have time to see us?  Would he remember  building an engine over 65 years ago for a hydroplane?  He sure did!  Don built the original Chrysler Hemi for owner Ray Gassner from St. Petersburg who would campaign Sunshine Baby in major races all over the country. I should also mention Tom D'Eath would be the racer/ driver responsible for winning many races with SB IV, creating a winning record for Sunshine Baby IV. It become a national champion and set a world record speed of 173 MPH! Here's some pictures from that day in October. 

Jim Aid in 2023 with Don who is all smiles as the sight of the boat brings back memories.

So that's the backstory- Now here we are September 12, 2025 picking up the motor Don rebuilt!

                                                  Wally and Jim checking the straps.

Well folks, it's finally done, the Baby's Hemi has been rebuilt by Don Garlits who built the original motor 65 years ago! Here's some amazing pictures I took on September 12th when we picked up the motor from Don.  In this post you will see Don explaining some of the technical aspects of the rebuild.

The Sunshine Baby team members including Captain Jim Aid, Technical advisors Wally Osinga and Norm Cameron and myself as camera man. We headed out on the two hour drive from St. Pete to the Don Garlits Museum in Ocala to meet with Don and pick up the motor. We arrived a little after noon and Don was there to greet us still dressed in his work jeans and tee shirt.We were overeflowing with excitment like kids on Christmas morning waiting to see what Don had in store for us.   

Don spent a good hour with us going over the technical aspects of the work he did to rebuild our motor and some of the challenges he encountered. It was an awe inspiring master class in the art of engine building. Don's knowledge of Chrysler's legendary Hemi engines was impresive. We were in the company of one of the best and it gave us chills to see him explain with ease what and how he did this job.

Here are some pictures that show some of the details that went into the rebuild. Go to the Paul Ziegler 8505 YouTube channel to see video that is as cool as it gets when you consider Don is still here today doing the work he did 65 years ago!  Below you will see some of the still shots taken when we picked up the motor.

Click here to see YouTube Videos

                                                   Chrysler spaceship power!

                       Don explaining the details of rebuilding the Sunshine Baby motor.

Don's notebook

Loading up for the trip home.

Fully Loaded

Motor and Blower

Don teaching the 'young' guys!

Brought to you by Paul Ziegler, Publisher Carcamerastory.com and author of Echoes From The Glen.

Follow on Instagram @wownowpics and on YouTube Paul Ziegler 8505 channel

Let There Be Light- For The Sunshine Baby IV

 Our project captain, Jim Aid decided it was time for new lighting in the skunk werks shop, better known as Jim's garage. The team has been working under old, outdated fluorescent lights since the beginning of the project and Jim decided to spring for all new lighting in the shop. Thank you Jim!

Here's are some pictures to see how the operation went.  Starting with the contractor, Maury Creech Electric.  Their crew arrived at noon on Wednesday and within about two hours, they transformed the workshop from something old to something new.

                             First step- move the Sunshine Baby IV out into the driveway

                                            
                                                   Team member Wally looks on:

Jim inspecting the work:

                                      You can see the old, yellow fluorescent bulb in foreground

                                    with new, LED bulbs in the rear.  It made a huge difference.

                                                    Here's the job, nearly completed:

        

The work continues with another new set of steering cables that will be fabricated and the return of 

the rebuilt motor in the next few weeks from Don Garlit's shop in Ocala, Florida. Stay tuned!

Brought to you by Paul Ziegler, Publisher,  carcamerastory.com.  

Engine Update For Sunshine Baby IV

 The last big piece of the puzzle for refurbishing the Sunshine Baby IV is the motor. Here's pictures of one of the most famous engine builders of all time, Don Garlits working on our motor! This is historic considering he built the original motor for Ray Gassner in 1959 and he's still at it.

To get a real appreciation for who Don Garlits is take a look at this short video of Don's life and accomplishments.  Click on the link below -it will make his involvement with our Sunshine Baby IV project come alive.

Who Is Don Garlits?

Take a look:                   

                                    Don Garlits with our 392 Chrysler Hemi block.

And here he is hard at work rebuilding the motor for the Sunshine Baby IV rebirth.

                                                                The master at work.

I thought this post would add meaning to the rebuilding/ refurbishing of the Sunshine Baby IV. Here's 

what the motor looks like all assembled and in the boat. This is what it looked like before the rebuild:

Hope you liked this update; stay tuned for more to come as we pick up the finished motor and get

it back in the boat.

Brought to you by Paul Ziegler, Publisher of carcamerastory.com and author of Echoes From The Glen.