Credit: Honda

At the end of last year, we learned that Honda was bringing back the Prelude. Although Honda has varied the ingredients over the years, the recipe for the Prelude remains the same: a sleek coupe body and some cutting-edge technology under the skin, like four-wheel steering, as rhapsodized by the verbose but usually insightful motoring writer LJK Setright. Today, the new car broke cover ahead of its arrival in showrooms later this fall.

It's a handsome shape, though I can't quite get over the resemblance to the Toyota Prius, at least as far as the nose of the car is concerned. Then again, I'm on record as adoring the shape of the current Prius—did you know its windshield is more steeply raked than a Lamborghini Huracan? But from other angles, the Prelude is more unique. The proportions are low and wide, with some details that signal its sportiness and others that suggest a focus on reducing drag and maximizing efficiency.

That makes sense when you know what's under the hood. It's the same 2.0 L Atkinson cycle engine and hybrid system from the Honda Civic, which in the right hands is capable of up to 50 mpg (4.7 L/100 km). We'll know the exact EPA fuel efficiency numbers closer to the car going on sale in late fall. Combined power is 200 hp (150 kW), with 232 lb-ft (315 Nm) of torque.

The chassis benefits from parts from a different Civic—the Type-R hot hatch. Ars has sadly yet to sample the current-generation Type-R, but everyone I know who's driven one has come away smiling. Type-R parts include the front suspension's dual-axis struts and the Brembo brakes, which are there for when regen braking via the hybrid system is no longer sufficient.

Adaptive dampers control the Prelude's ride, and there are four different drive modes. The powertrain simulates a manual transmission with something called S+ Shift, which "delivers quick simulated gearshift responses through seamless coordination between the engine and high-power motor, including downshift blips, rev matching, and gear holding."

If the end result is as good as Hyundai's N E-shift, it should be fun to play with. And if it isn't, you can just leave the car in automatic mode.

Beyond that, expect all the latest Honda advanced driver assistance systems (also known as Honda Sensing), and an Android Automotive-based infotainment system with Google built in and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

We'll have to wait until sooner to the car's arrival to get pricing, but expect the Prelude to start somewhere between $38,000 and $40,000.