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Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Honda’s sports-car story runs from the Prelude personal coupe, launched in 1978, through the open S2000 and mid-engine NSX to today’s hybrid Prelude. The sixth-generation Prelude began sales in Japan on September 5, 2025; Honda’s 2026 announcements point to further enthusiast-focused development, but its HRC parts and concepts are not confirmed production offerings.
What was Honda’s first sports car?
There is no single official answer in the cited Honda history to the broad question of which car was Honda’s “first sports car.” Honda does identify the Prelude, introduced in 1978, as its first personal coupe. That makes it an important starting point for Honda’s sports-car story, without settling how the company defines every earlier or contemporary model category.
Honda says the first Prelude brought technologies including Japan’s first electric sunroof and four-wheel ABS, and calls its four-wheel steering a world first. Those are Honda’s descriptions, with the geographic qualifier “in Japan” applying to the sunroof and ABS claims. In a 2025 interview, Prelude development leader Tomoyuki Yamagami recalled that the car “featuring Honda’s cutting-edge technologies, including Japan’s first electric sunroof and 4-wheel ABS, as well as the world’s first 4WS.”
How did Honda’s sports cars develop?
Rather than following one body style, Honda’s sports-car history spans personal coupes, open sports models and a mid-engine sports car. The Prelude, S2000 and NSX represent distinct ideas; the Type R designation later became a performance-focused strand across Honda models.
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| Model or lineage | Honda’s historical description | Milestone |
|---|---|---|
| Prelude | Personal coupe | Launched in 1978; sixth generation returned in 2025 after about 25 years away |
| NSX | Mid-engine sports car | Debuted in 1990; NSX-R became the first Type R model in 1992 |
| S2000 | New-generation open sports model | Launched in 1999 |
| Type R | Performance series pursuing speed and driving pleasure, in Honda’s account | Began with the NSX-R in 1992 |
Prelude: the personal coupe
Launched in 1978, the Prelude became a recurring Honda nameplate, returning in 2025 as a sixth-generation model. Honda’s design team describes the new car’s concept as “Unlimited Glide,” inspired by gliders. The company says its development aimed to balance responsive driving, environmental performance and everyday usability; these are Honda’s stated goals, not independent test findings.
S2000: the open sports model
Honda’s corporate timeline records the S2000 as a new-generation open sports model launched in 1999. This establishes its place in the company’s history, but the cited timeline does not establish a discontinuation date. It is therefore not possible to give a sourced answer here to “When did Honda stop making the S2000?”
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NSX: the mid-engine sports car
The NSX debuted in 1990 as a mid-engine sports car with an all-aluminum monocoque body. Honda described that construction as a world first for a production vehicle at the time. Across its evolution, Honda notes changes including greater displacement, a six-speed manual transmission and aerodynamic revisions, along with Type-T open-top and Type-R high-performance variants.
Type R: a performance lineage
Honda dates its first Type R model, the NSX-R, to November 27, 1992. In its account, Type R pursues speed alongside driving pleasure. The designation is best understood here as Honda’s performance-series identity, rather than as one particular body style or powertrain.
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What is the new Honda Prelude?
The sixth-generation Prelude is an e:HEV hybrid sports model. Honda announced that sales in Japan would begin September 5, 2025, after the nameplate’s return following about 25 years. That date is specific to Japan; it does not establish availability, pricing, trim or stock in other markets.
Honda says the car is based on the Civic Type R chassis with dedicated Prelude settings. The company identifies a dual-axis front strut suspension, adaptive dampers, high-response steering and a uniform-rigidity driveshaft among its engineering features. Honda’s stated aim is to blend sports-car responsiveness with environmental performance and everyday usability.
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- 1/24 scale unpainted plastic model assembly kit
- Size when completed: Total length 7.4 inches (189 mm), Total width 3.4 inches (87 mm), Total height
- In addition to rooms with horizontal base panel and large LCD meter, the back of the chassis and around the feet are finished with a 3D feel
- Includes metal inlet markings such as emblems and window mask seals
How S+ Shift works
The hybrid system has no mechanical transmission. Instead, Honda’s S+ Shift system controls engine rpm and simulates the feel of stepped gear changes, including a virtual eight-speed sequence. It is a simulated shift experience, not an actual eight-speed gearbox.
Honda’s 2025 release says, “The all-new Prelude will become the ‘prelude’ for future Honda specialty sports models in the electrified era.” That is the company’s vision for the car’s role, not confirmation of specific future models.
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How are the Prelude, S2000 and NSX different?
They are useful points of comparison in Honda’s history, but they come from different production eras and are not direct new-car alternatives. Their basic distinctions are body and use concept, not verified performance or price comparisons.
| Model | Body and role | Powertrain detail established here |
|---|---|---|
| Sixth-generation Prelude | Hybrid specialty sports model and coupe lineage | e:HEV hybrid; S+ Shift simulates stepped shifts without a mechanical transmission |
| S2000 | Open sports model | Not stated in the cited corporate timeline |
| NSX | Mid-engine sports car | Historical release notes model evolution, but no single powertrain specification for the lineage |
The comparison is conceptual and historical. Exact dimensions, output, acceleration, prices and current used-market values are not established by the cited Honda material, so they should not be inferred from these category descriptions.
What do Honda’s 2026 sports-car announcements signal?
Honda’s January 2026 Tokyo Auto Salon announcement describes a planned Sport Line intended to advance driver-directed enjoyment using technologies and experience from on-road racing. It identifies a Prelude HRC concept and says HRC Performance Parts for the Prelude are in development. These announcements indicate enthusiast-focused work, but do not establish that the concept is a production model or that the parts are on sale.
The same announcement names a Honda Heritage Works NSX restoration prototype. A prototype announcement does not establish that a customer-facing restoration service is currently available or bookable.
What Honda’s history shows—and what it doesn’t
Honda’s sports-car story is not a straight progression from one model to its replacement. The Prelude links the personal-coupe idea to a modern hybrid sports model; the S2000 marks Honda’s open-sports-model milestone; the NSX represents the mid-engine branch; and Type R expresses the company’s performance-series ambitions. Honda’s own descriptions illuminate its intent and chronology, while the available facts do not support a definitive all-time “first sports car” label or a sourced S2000 end date.
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