Before cars were fit with more computers than Microsoft, before emissions control made power and cleanliness go hand in hand, dinosaurs ruled the earth. The names of these beasts included monikers such as Hemi, Charger, Nova, and Mach 1. Without the engine advancements and technology now used in modern vehicles, these hot rods sported the same technology that drives the cutting edge NASCAR racing series. To this day, that engine technology is still known in simpler terms as "monstrous engine size." The very first Chevrolet small block V-8 weighed in at 4.3L and ballooned into a 6.6L unit in the '70s that pushed out a now-paltry 240hp.
Compare these efficiency numbers to the output of any modern high revving, high output Honda engine, and you'll be sacrificing virgins for the sake of proper engineering. Known for pushing the envelope of engines that produce more than 100hp/liter, Honda has created some of the lightest, most efficient naturally aspirated motors ever to spin a wheel in anger. Aside from a few scant V-6 offerings found in the Acura lineup, Honda has generally sunk their efforts into creating small displacement power plants, such as the ubiquitous B16. But what if you could find a motor that combines a larger engine size with modern Honda-developed engine technology?
There is one side of the camp that says there is no replacement for displacement. That is where the Honda Prelude comes in. Packing the large 2.2L H22 engine with the infamous high-output Honda VTEC technology, the Prelude is the heavyweight torque monster of the Honda family. Size wise, the H22 brings 400cc more displacement to the table than your average Integra. The big hot rod engine of the Honda world, if you will.
Now enter Syed Husain of team RONIN. Husain, a regular at Chicago, IL area car shows, picked up this previously owned 1998 fifth-generation prize after years of lusting and went straight to work. The plan was to create a "unique and one of a kind Prelude that has performance, looks, and sound." The only problem? The Prelude never received the same amount of love and attention as some of Honda's other front-drive platforms. "I started looking for parts but was having difficulty finding anything. It was easy finding parts for Civics and Integra's," says Husain.
Focusing first on the areas that he could easily modify, Husain attacked the car for the 2002 car show season.