Review Build: Tamiya 2026 Honda Prelude

Review Build: Tamiya Honda 2026 New Prelude

Vehicle History

The 2026 Honda Prelude marks the return of an icon — now reborn as a sleek, hybrid-powered sports coupe. It’s powered by a 2.0-liter four-cylinder hybrid system producing around 200 horsepower and 232 lb-ft of torque, using the same setup as the Civic Hybrid. Instead of a traditional transmission, Honda fitted a direct-drive hybrid system with paddle shifters and a new “S+ Shift” mode that simulates gear changes for a more engaging drive. Performance-wise, it’s tuned for balance and handling over brute force, with Honda promising the kind of precision and feel enthusiasts love.

On the outside, the Prelude has a long hood, short deck and fastback-style roofline, giving it a modern, low-slung stance. Slim LED headlights, a full-width rear light bar and clean body lines give it a refined yet sporty look. Inside, it’s a driver-focused 2+2 cockpit with digital gauges, quality materials and a familiar Civic-inspired layout. Expect wireless CarPlay and Android Auto, a premium sound system and a practical liftback cargo area.

Staying front-wheel drive, the Prelude trades the manual gearbox for hybrid efficiency, with pricing expected around $31,000–$38,000 when it launches in late 2025. It’s not built to dominate drag strips, but to offer a fun, balanced and efficient coupe experience that brings back the spirit of the classic Prelude for a new era.

Kit Overview

The new 2026 Honda Prelude was introduced shortly after Tamiya's announcement that the Prelude XX was going to be re-released. It came as a bit of a shock, mostly because people didn't even know Honda HAD a new Prelude. Since I received one of the XX kits to build, I thought I'd do a side-by-side build with the 2026 model as well (however I went all-in on this one and haven't even started the XX yet).

It's a good thing to note that this kit was extremely fun, albeit challenging, and Tamiya has added a few 'new' build options that required some different techniques to complete. I'll get to each of those in the sub-categories below.

:: Chassis, Suspension and Engine

First off, the chassis alone on the 2026 Honda Prelude is quite extensive. It consists of the frame, chassis panels, exhaust tunnel and rear suspension gap - all in one piece with call-outs for 6 different colors. To get it right, there's quite a bit of masking that has to be done (if you're airbrushing or rattle-canning it) and some of the details are tiny-tiny-tiny. Now, if you're like me, this will cause you stress right from Page 1, Step 1, however after moaning a bit, my wife suggested I try hitting the details with her Sharpie Paint Pens. Holy shit - BINGO! I started by spraying the entire chassis with Tamiya TS-17 Gloss Aluminum, then following it up with the wife's black, white, light grey and orange paint pens. SOOOOOO much easier. Sure, in some instances you can see a few 'pen strokes' (mostly the black), but for the most part it came out looking great. I'll have links to those pens (and other ones I used) down at the end of the article.

As far as the build, everything went together well. The only time I wish I had one more hand was assembling the front uprights - they come in two-halves and sandwich the steering arm/brake assembly so the wheels will turn when complete. Take you time and tack-weld it together, let the glue dry fully and then solidify the build with more glue. That seemed to work best for me.

Since this kit is a curbside, there is no engine - no trace of one at all. Well, except for the exhaust, which leads up into where the engine is.

Side note: In Step 11, Tamiya has you assembling and installing the wheel/tire package. BE CAREFUL! The pin/receptor is a tight fit and if you press too hard, you're likely to snap a suspension part loose. I did on the first tire install. So, to rectify that, I sanded the pin slightly all the way around and added a dab of grease before installing. The tire assembly pushed right in with no broken parts. The tires also seemed to spin a little easier as well. Bonus.

:: Interior
Tamiya did a great job at both re-creating the interior and laying it out for an easy build. The floor is black with the center console, seats and door arm rests all a complimentary light grey color. Blue accents on the seats pop and there's some additional decals strewn throughout for a bit more detail. Again, it's all quite easy. However, if you want to take advantage of a neat Tamiya feature, the rear seat can be installed via 'pins' in the side panels that allow it to fold down. This gives you room in the back of the Prelude for the included accessories - golf bag, suitcase and Boston Bag.

The interior side panels 'lock' into place with the main interior tub. This allows a perfect alignment and a square interior tub. A great feature!

Side note: After all of your interior parts are ready for assembly, install one side panel first and glue. Let that dry, then install the rear folding seat and the second side panel. Having the first one completely done gives you one less thing to worry about.

:: Exterior
Bodies often provide a higher level of stress since it's the first thing people see. Any mistakes and, well, there they are, right out front, right in the line of sight. However, Tamiya has made the final assembly steps of the Prelude amazingly easy! Paint the body the color you'd like (I really liked the Pearl White / Black roof option) and then 'bolt' on all of your pre-painted parts - valance, vent pieces, rear wing, etc - all sitting in grooved little gaps that make assembly and gluing a breeze.

But here comes the challenging parts - windows and lights. The windows have a full sheet of masks for both the inside AND outside (those that don't require you to use standard tape for the inside). After painting, this give the visual effect that the glass has been painted (or 'covered') from the inside, like the real car. It's not all that hard, but it is intimidating. Take your time, read the instructions carefully and you'll get it done correctly. This coming from someone with very little patience - and I got it right.

The lights are the same way - mask, paint, add another mask, paint, remove masks. Again, daunting, but it can be done with the minimum of patience.

The rest of the assembly goes together easily - install the glass and lights, mate the chassis to the body and put on your finishing touches. However, Tamiya has another trick up their sleeve! The rear decklid is a separate, multi-piece assembly bit with a sneaky secret - assembly has you sandwiching the upper glass to the deck lid while keeping the 'lift rods' dangle in place. This allows the rods to fold into the deck lid when closed but swing into the 'set' position when lifted, holding the deck lid open! It's actually quite ingenious and works really good, with the added benefit of displaying the rear interior. Now you've got room for your built up your golf bag, suitcase and Boston Bag!

After building this kit, I've come to like the design and look of the new Honda Prelude. The additional steps Tamiya adds to make the build easier also makes it a more pleasurable experience. In a nutshell, the Honda Prelude was a fun kit to build, one that I highly suggest you give a go!