Honda Prelude
What it costs to keep fuelled
$1,091a year, fuel only
The 2026 Honda Prelude is EPA-rated at 44 MPG combined (46 city / 41 highway). Over 15,000 miles a year that is about 341 gallons, $1091 a year in fuel, or $0.073 per mile at $3.20/gal.
Across its full 1984–2026 run it averages 23.1 MPG, improving by 20.2 MPG over 18 model years.
The band is how far one gallon carries it: 44 of the 60 MPG this scale runs to. The square tick is the subcompact cars average, 24.1.
- Fuel, per year
- $1,091 at 15,000 mi
- Per mile
- $0.073
- Per kilometre
- $0.045
- Gallons burned/yr
- 341
1 mile = 1.609344 km · fuel at $3.20/gal, fixed JUL 2026
Test figure — not a road resultSOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
How this is worked out
- Start from the EPA combined figure for the model year — a laboratory test cycle run to a fixed procedure, not a road result. Where a year sold several engines or drivetrains, the trims are averaged and the trim count is printed beside the row so you can see how much averaging is behind it.
- Fix a pump price. This site keeps one reference price, $3.20 a US gallon, fixed JUL 2026 and printed next to every dollar figure it produces. It is an assumption with a date on it, not a quote — put your own price in.
- Fix an annual distance. Every annual figure on this site uses 15,000 miles a year, roughly the US average. A cost per year with no stated distance is not a number, it is a mood.
- Divide distance by economy for gallons, multiply by price for the year's fuel, divide price by economy for one mile. The per-kilometre line is that last figure divided by 1.609344 — the same money, in the unit most of the world drives in.
- Stop there. No depreciation, no tyres, no insurance, no servicing. This is the fuel line of the ledger and it is labelled as one; depreciation usually dwarfs everything on it.
gallons/yr = miles/yr ÷ MPG fuel $/yr = gallons/yr × $/gal cost $/mi = $/gal ÷ MPG cost $/km = cost $/mi ÷ 1.609344
The full method, the licence note, and what a test figure cannot tell you →
Re-run the ledger at another pump price
Every line above rests on one pump price. Here is the same entry re-costed at six others, because the price is the part that changes while the test sheet stays put.
| Fuel price | Per mile | 10,000 mi/yr | 15,000 mi/yr | 20,000 mi/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2.50/gal | $0.057 | $568 | $852 | $1136 |
| $3.00/gal | $0.068 | $682 | $1023 | $1364 |
| $3.20/gal | $0.073 | $727 | $1091 | $1455 |
| $3.50/gal | $0.080 | $795 | $1193 | $1591 |
| $4.00/gal | $0.091 | $909 | $1364 | $1818 |
| $4.50/gal | $0.102 | $1023 | $1534 | $2045 |
| $5.00/gal | $0.114 | $1136 | $1705 | $2273 |
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
The whole service history, sheet by sheet
18 model years on file. Read down the combined column: a nameplate that got heavier shows it here long before any brochure admits it.
| Year | Combined | City | Highway | EPA fuel cost/yr | CO₂ g/mi | Trims |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 44 MPG | 46 | 41 | $1400 | 203 | 1 |
| 2001 | 21.5 MPG | 19.5 | 24.5 | $3575 | 414 | 2 |
| 2000 | 21.5 MPG | 19.5 | 24.5 | $3575 | 414 | 2 |
| 1999 | 21 MPG | 19.5 | 24 | $3650 | 423 | 2 |
| 1998 | 21.5 MPG | 19.5 | 24.5 | $3575 | 414 | 2 |
| 1996 | 21.4 MPG | 19.4 | 24.4 | $3320 | 416 | 5 |
| 1995 | 21.6 MPG | 19.6 | 25 | $3300 | 412 | 5 |
| 1994 | 21.6 MPG | 19.6 | 25 | $3300 | 412 | 5 |
| 1993 | 22.2 MPG | 19.7 | 25.8 | $3158 | 402 | 6 |
| 1992 | 22 MPG | 19.5 | 25.8 | $3188 | 405 | 4 |
| 1991 | 21 MPG | 18.8 | 24.3 | $2967 | 424 | 6 |
| 1990 | 21 MPG | 18.8 | 24.3 | $2967 | 424 | 6 |
| 1989 | 20.8 MPG | 19 | 24.5 | $3000 | 429 | 4 |
| 1988 | 21.3 MPG | 19.3 | 24.5 | $2938 | 419 | 4 |
| 1987 | 24 MPG | 21.5 | 28 | $2600 | 371 | 4 |
| 1986 | 23.5 MPG | 21.3 | 27.5 | $2650 | 378 | 4 |
| 1985 | 22.8 MPG | 20.8 | 26.6 | $2740 | 391 | 5 |
| 1984 | 23.8 MPG | 21.3 | 28 | $2625 | 375 | 4 |
Where a model year offered several engines or drivetrains, the figure is the average across all EPA-tested trims that year — the trim count is shown so you can see how much averaging is involved.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Marked against the rest of the subcompact cars bay
Among the 229 subcompact cars models tracked here, the Honda Prelude ranks 5 on current figures, against a class average of 24.1 MPG — the square tick on the gauge above.
Closest more-efficient alternatives in the same class: Geo Metro XFI (47), Toyota Mirai (72), MINI Cooper SE Hardtop 2 door (110), Mitsubishi i-MiEV (112).
Tailpipe CO₂ is rated at 203 grams per mile, which works out to roughly 3.0 tonnes a year at 15,000 miles.
Questions asked across the counter
What MPG does the Honda Prelude get?
The 2026 Honda Prelude is rated at 44 MPG combined by the EPA — 46 city and 41 highway. Across all 18 model years in the database it averages 23.1 MPG, ranging from 20 to 44 depending on year and trim.
How much does a Honda Prelude cost in fuel per year?
At 44 MPG and 15,000 miles a year, it burns about 341 gallons — roughly $1091 a year with fuel at $3.20 a gallon, or $0.073 per mile. The EPA's own published annual figure for the 2026 model is $1400.
Has the Honda Prelude become more efficient over time?
Yes. It has gone from 23.8 MPG in 1984 to 44 in 2026 — an improvement of 20.2 MPG, or 85% across 18 model years.
Is the Honda Prelude efficient for its class?
It ranks 5 of 229 in the Subcompact Cars class on current figures, against a class average of 24.1 MPG. That is 19.9 better than typical for the class.
Pull another logbook off the same shelf
Same class, nearest economy first — the ones a buyer is genuinely choosing between.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Cost per mile, per kilometre and per year are computed at a reference price of $3.20 a gallon over 15,000 miles, fixed JUL 2026 — set your own pump price. Estimates based on official test figures and average fuel prices. Real-world consumption varies with driving style, load, terrain and maintenance.
