The Prelude has been missing from the Honda lineup since 2001, but with the introduction of a Prelude concept at last year's Japan Mobility Show, change is afoot. Honda has already confirmed that the Prelude will enter production as a hybrid, and new spy shots captured by CarBuzz show that this will happen soon.

The Prelude nameplate launched in Japan in 1978 and there have been five generations so far. Historically the cars have been sporty front-wheel-drive coupes with sleek bodywork covering mechanicals from mainstream models, and that appears to be the case with the upcoming sixth generation.

Honda has announced that the new Prelude, which was previewed as a concept sometime back, will go into production for a global debut by 2026. The Prelude is the second moniker being resurrected by Honda in recent times;