PRELUDE TO A DREAM

Could a hybrid sports coupe be the car that revitalises Honda in India?

- By Pablo Chaterji

Like most places in Japan, Honda's proving grounds in Tochigi are not the sort of place that encourages whimsy. There are long straights, clinical test loops and ultra-earnest engineers with clipboards shuffling about silently; it's a veritable temple of precision and order. Which is why the moment the new Honda Prelude rolled out in front of me, shining under a polite Japanese sun, it felt a bit out of place, almost like someone had smuggled a salsa band into the philharmonic. To be brutally honest, Honda hasn't had a true driver's car in India in forever, and here was a machine that asked 'Remember?' Whether the Prelude lands on Indian roads as a fully imported halo car remains to be seen, although there is every indication on the grapevine that we'll see it here next year. After a brief drive at Tochigi, one thing is abundantly clear: Honda needs this car more than the car needs Honda. The Prelude name carries considerable weight. For a couple of decades, it was the badge Honda used for its gentleman-athlete — it was a sporty coupé that didn't try to be a hooligan, instead focussing on impeccably well-mannered fun. In India, the Honda badge once basked in the halo of cars like the first-gen City VTEC, the CR-V in its prime, the Accord V6 and the Civic. Since then, Honda's lineup here has become almost painfully sensible, safe and predictable. A relentless focus on profitability and the mass market has stripped the brand of the all-important oomph factor it was once known for, much to the dismay of its legions of fans (me included, as a former 1st-generation City owner). The new Prelude enters this context as a well-timed shock to the system, however niche that shock may be.