Fall means something different to everyone. To me it has always been a time of anticipation, for it is then that I anxiously await the unveiling of next years's new car models. This Fall was no exception. I have always loved the feel of riding in a Honda Prelude, and so it was with much anticipation that I drove into my local Honda dealer.

I am a person who is attracted to good looks, and upon entering the showroom, my eyes were immediately drawn to the striking appearance of the 2001 Honda Prelude. The model I was attracted to was painted a gorgeous Satin Silver Metallic, which comes standard with a deep, dark, black interior. The styling was sleek and fashionable, and the body was low to the ground. The body was sculptured in such a way as to give the Prelude a powerful, aerodynamic, windswept look to it, which somehow gave this vehicle the appearance that it was moving, even though it was obviously standing still in the showroom. The old expression, "This baby is built for speed" came to mind, and I was quickly reminded that Honda's engineers have a long history of racing experience. Clearly, they used a lot of that experience in designing the 2001 Prelude.

After giving the Prelude a quick once over, I was even more impressed by the overall appearance. The front of the car was distinctive and sporty. I liked the way the headlights were positioned and slanted, and I was impressed by the sleek curves on the front of the car, and the way they wrapped around to the rest of the body. The rear was also quite impressive looking, and the model that I was looking at had an optional rear wing spoiler, which included a well positioned break light. The paint job was flawless, and very impressive, with a durable looking baked on gloss that bespoke strength and durability. The length of the Honda Prelude is 14 feet, 10 inches, making it relatively easy to fit into those tight city parking spaces. The Prelude also comes standard with alloy wheels and an anti-lock braking system.

No inspection is of course complete without a look under the hood. I was very impressed with what I found there. The Honda Prelude comes standard with a powerful 200 horsepower, 2.2 liter, 16-valve Aluminum-Alloy In-Line 4-cylinder engine. Dual overhead camshafts allow the valves to be optimally placed, which assures that each cylinder gets the air and fuel necessary for it to breath effortlessly and freely, which serves to afford the Prelude with high-revving maximum power, with minimal stress. Things under the hood are laid out with the car enthusiast in mind, and there is easy access to all of the vital parts for simple "do it yourself" home maintenance chores. The transmission comes standard with a 5-speed manual, but the model I was looking at had an optional Sequential Sport Shift automatic transmission that can actually be shifted like a manual (a 195 horsepower engine when choosing this option). This is a feature that can accommodate and please any member of the family who might be inclined to drive the Prelude.

It was now time to inspect the interior of the vehicle. The interior was a deep, dark, black, which greatly complimented the Satin Silver Metallic exterior color. The overall appearance of the interior was quite inviting, and beckoned for me to slip into the driver's seat, which I naturally did. With a few quick adjustments, the Prelude's height adjustable driver's seat made me feel as if this seat was specially molded just to suit my body. The seats in this vehicle are remarkably comfortable, and that includes the back seats, which I tried out later on.

The steering column easily adjusts to suit just about any driver, and the feel and appearance of the leather wrapped steering wheel made me feel that I was shortly to be having a very exciting test drive. The controls, such as the power windows, mirrors, and cruise controls, are all quite ergonomically positioned, and are both comfortable to touch and to manipulate, and are easy to grasp and reach. The gauges and controls on the dash are all large, well positioned, and easy to read as well. The climate control system comes complete with a micron air-filtration system, which filters out pollen and dust, and even more importantly for me, it put out a strong stream of air, with very little noise from the vents or fan.

The Prelude's sound system was also quite impressive, and the vehicle I was looking at came equipped with an AM/FM stereo 6-Disc in dash CD changer, with a six speaker Honda Acoustic Feedback Sound System that sports a 120 watts of pulsating power. The Acoustic Feedback System automatically monitors the sound quality of the sound source that you are listening to via two strategically placed transducers or microphones, which are located in the rear speaker compartment, and these automatically correct or compensate for any distortion that they detect.

It was now time for the ultimate part of any vehicles's inspection, the road test. The engine turned over very easily, and purred with a quite strength. It had been raining all day, and the road conditions were bad, which was good, because I wished to test how the Prelude could handle a sudden stop. I got the Prelude up to 30 mph, and jammed on the breaks. The Antilock Breaking System worked beautifully, and the four wheels gripped cleanly, smoothly, and evenly, and the vehicle remained straight with no evidence of fishtailing, pulling to one side, or loss of steering control.

I decided to see how the Prelude would handle on a winding section of the nearby Interstate Highway. The Prelude had very powerful and quick acceleration, and the transmission was seamless as it shifted gears. Honda engineers have applied what they have learned from their years of building race cars into the 2001 Prelude. The stiffer the platform, the more stable will be the performance of the parts that are attached to it, such as the 4-wheel double wishbone suspension, front and rear stabilizer bars, and the Antilock Breaking System. The Prelude's 4-wheel double wishbone suspension provided a feeling of optimum control and handling, which resulted in a very smooth ride, even as it negotiated the curves in the road like a jungle cat in pursuit of it's prey.

In my opinion, excessive road noise has always been a problem for the Honda line of cars in general, especially the Civic and Accord models. This can interfere with the enjoyment of the subtleties of the music you may be listening to, which can cause you to crank up the volume in order to compensate for the road noise. Plus on those long trips, the incessant drone of the road noise can get to be quite annoying and tiring. The Honda engineers must have heard the complaints of the public regarding this problem, because the 2001 Prelude has sound damping materials applied to the rigidly solid body, which helps to absorb the road noise, and permits the driver and any passengers to appreciate all the subtleties of the fine stereo system that comes with this vehicle.

I short, I would highly recommend the Honda Prelude to any one who loves to drive.