Which year of the Prelude should I buy -- or which should I avoid?

Asked by jeffbaron Feb 14, 2012 at 09:51 PM about the Honda Prelude

Question type: General

Our ancient minivan is dying, and the children for whom we bought it are both drivers. What we want now is a sporty used car, and I'm thinking a Prelude or maybe a Celica. (My 17-year-old daughter's choice is a '69 Camaro or :67 Mustang, but I'm thinking good sense, not pure muscle.) We like a stick shift, and our budget is pretty limited. So: Which years for the Prelude had the most problems, and which are particularly good? Any engine to avoid? We'll answer the big question on looks -- fourth generation or fifth -- as a family.

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Kevin answered 12 years ago

I had a 2000 Prelude. I had the auto-stick trans. It gave me small issues till i sold it a year later. I hear the manuals for these cars are terrible. My friends who had them agreed. It is a unique car for Honda, not using parts from others cars, leading to the unknown. I had sensor problems here and there. Support for the car, even at the dealership was hard to get and expensive when they tried. I loved this car dearly. It was very fun to drive and is beautiful to look at. If you are looking for some thing as financial stable adult, great car. If your buying for your kids, I would go for the ever reliable Toyota. The Celica is a very common car with abundant resources backing it.

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Vazir answered 12 years ago

If it's not too late already ..... I have a 2000 manual - absolutely no problems whatsoever - the car is bulletproof and running on the stock clutch at 142000 miles with heavy track-day usage. Apart from the normal spark plug replacement at 120k miles (routine not breakdown maintenance), and ofcourse the timing belts and hoses (all part of the 120k mile/10 year service), the engine hasn't required ANY work whatsoever. All folks that have manual Preludes that I know have no problems either, so I'm not sure where the above poster gets his facts from. Avoid the Type SH only bcoz it was a complicated sub-system that doesn't help on road much. The H22A is a fantastic, lovable thing, you will absolutely love it. And guess what - if you need real hauling capability, this car will deliver on days that make you want to sock SUV drivers ~ (1) http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/418023_10151295206020147_745025146_23099026_480476541_n.jpg (2) http://sphotos.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/418023_10151295206000147_745025146_23099025_528020045_n.jpg ALL of my bedroom furniture from Ikea - drove home with that and a happy wife in the passenger seat

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Kelly answered 6 years ago

aviod the 92, and 93 for sure they were doing some funky things to them those years.

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Which year of the Prelude should I buy -- or which should I avoid?

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