Soon to be 3rd-gen owner

[alanoneil]

[posted simultaneously at preludepower while this site gets members]

I started attending university (U of Washington) this fall in Seattle, and thus let my old car (really my Mom's), a 2001 Ford Focus sedan, go to my brother as he is still in high school and I have no use for a car during the week (plus parking here is hell and expensive). One of my friends has an 88 Prelude 2.0Si 5spd that she drives up to pick me up every weekend from Tacoma (I keep close to two of my best friends from high school), but recently it's been showing signs that it's on its last leg. However, it still runs and drives amazingly well for having 200+k miles on it (coming from a family of all domestic cars, it's a surprise ), and during the weekend she 'lets' me drive it (really she is just tired of dealing with traffic and needs a two-day break from life). In a couple months I have become extremely infatuated with the way the car performs (and the sexy body styling too).

Current stats:
White 1988 US 2.0Si model, no 4ws or alb; 202k miles
Oil hasn't been replaced for MANY thousand miles-- it just leaks/burns constantly and she adds a quart every 3k or so. Probably the stuff in there is thicker than cold fudge
Blew timing belt some time ago, replaced with junkyard head of unknown age
Quirks: Some electrical problems (lights for climate control sometimes go out when a button is pressed, the radio [stock] has a mind of its own, seatbelt lights have never lit except once or twice, 'alarm' system only goes off when the battery is dying and someone [ME] has their head in the hood), power antenna only goes down halfway, spot rust in various places, etc
Yet and still, she runs without complaint when warmed up and will go 300 miles on a tank (btw, all the literature I've read says the 'lude has a 15.9USgal tank, which is 100% not true. Is her car just retarded when we can only fit 13.2 in it after pushing it to the pump? )
Three of four wheels have issues: front right makes intermittent brake squeal at high speeds, rear right thumps noticeably and ~25mph, and rear left [shock/spring?] makes LOUD creak/squeak over some bumps.

This poor car has been in two accidents.
The first, about a year ago, was due to slick freeway onramp and improper entry speed/steering input. She overcorrected the understeer and ended up slamming the entire right side of the car into the guardrail, temporarily disabling the right headlamp, taking off lots of trim, and also breaking the right brakelamp housing. Currently the headlamp is OK but there's yellow tape on the brakelamp. Trim is sitting inside the car.
Just about a month ago, she was driving me back up to Seattle on Sunday evening (another rainy night) when she had to get into the left-turn lane. As she approached the lane, a truck or SUV turned right onto the oncoming lane of traffic on our side of the intersection. Somehow he didn't get into his own lane but headed for us (completely in our own left-turn lane at the time) and sideswiped our driver's side door and quarterpanel (is that the right terminology for the part of the car behind the door?). He didn't even slow down, and we were so stunned from the event that we just sat there for a minute or two wondering what the hell happened. Her insurance will cover the car because it was a hit-and-run and not her fault. The car still runs like it did before, but now the driver's door won't open from the outside so it's a pain to drive alone as she has to crawl through to unlatch it.

Due to its age and relative condition, insurance appraisers will only give her $1000-1500 for the car to total it. If she keeps the car, she'd have to bring it back up to spec and get it certified by state patrol as road-legal. But she's gotten very attached to the car (and its "character"), and I was trying to think of some way to got my Prelude fix while solving her situation. As it is, her parents pay the insurance on it, and I pay the bulk of the gas because I drive it high-miles on the weekend. However, it is still technically her car and whatnot.

I was thinking that she could get rid of the car, keep the money and put it toward a replacement 3rd gen 'lude, and I could front the rest of the cash necessary. We could continue sharing the car on the weekends like we do now, and because she'd have it for most of the time, it would only make sense for her side to be paying [most of] the insurance on it. I've been looking around for local sellers of 3rd-gens, and apart from the ones that are almost as bad as what we already have, I've got a couple potentials lined up. Whaddaya say, has this Prelude performed its duty well and is it ready to have a nice long rest? (and maybe an oil change for once!)

Current prospective buys:
Choice 1 (personal fave)
89 Prelude 2.0Si 4WS 5spd
123k miles, Champagne body color
new brakes, tires, water pump & timing belt
extra set snow/stud tires incl.
us$3600

Choice 2 (sounds a little sketchy, haven't talked to seller about owner history etc)
90 Prelude (2.1L?)Si 5spd
136k miles (86k on "new engine") (?), Red body color
"lowered"
us$3600

Choice 3 (the one that got away)
89 Prelude 2.0Si 4WS 5spd
161k miles (60k on brand-new engine), White body color
well-maintained, all service done at Honda specialist, garaged, kept in family, selling because just bought SUV etc
he sold it today for us$3750

Thoughts? I won't even consider a 2nd or 4th gen 'lude-- the body stylings are horrid compared to the 3g and our overall budget is around $3500. I know about the differences between 88-89 and 90-91 bodies, but that's a minor detail that doesn't bother me much. I definitely don't want an automatic or S model-- can't ever go back! Also, I don't want a high (200k) mileage car-- though Hondas are known for running til 300k I'd much rather have a car in better condition now and have it last us several years of good service (hopefully longer if I take good care of it, we've all heard the legend of the 700k Prelude...)

Once I get my grubby little mitts on it I plan to baby the car for all it's worth-- including perhaps mild mods later on to tweak its appearance (Champagne is NOT my color) and if I have the time and money, to improve performance (I love driving, and have already gotten a ticket for speeding 10 over in her car...)

[spiffyguido]

Without actually seeing the cars, I can't make a solid decision, but from what you've indicated it seems like "choice 1" is your best option.

What condidtion is the body of choice 1 in? Is there any rust? It's tre, Preludes are great cars, and they will last a long time if they are well cared for. When you're picking a lude to buy, here are some things to watch for.

Oil Burning: Some (if not all) of the 3rd gen engines have a reputation of being oil burners once they get old. There are little things you can do throughout the cars life to help prevent this, but sooner or later, it seems to happen to many of them. If you do find a lude without an oil burning problem, performing regular oil changes will help maintain the integrity of your engine internals and prolong the engines life.

Unfortunately, if a Prelude engine is already burning oil it will likely require some faily substantial work to fix the problem. Changing piston rings and gaskets can take some time.

Rust: 3rd gens will most often rust at the crimp points under the car, in the crimp points in the fenders, around the gas cap and along the bottom edge of the trunk lid in my experience. If at all possible, try to find a vehicle that doesn't have a rust problem. Rust is like cancer to cars; once it starts, it's very difficult to stop without major surgery. It's always easy to prevent a car from rusting in the first place than it is to fix a rusty spot.

Suspension/Steering: You'll also want to be sure that the suspension and steering components of any Prelude that you buy are in good shape. During a test drive, listen for knocking, grinding or groaning sounds coming from the wheels and chassis. Ball joints, CV joints, struts, springs, and all the parts in between are very important to enable the car to function properly and be sage to drive. A Prelude in good shape will not rattle or groan as it takes jiggles and turns on a standard road. Preludes are solid cars, and the ride quality will be very high when all the parts are in good shape.

I hope this helps a little. It's not a complete list, but I could go on for hours. We're very glad that you chose to come to this site to learn more about Preludes. If you have some very particular questions, feel free to ask. We'll help you out and you should be able to get yourself into a solid Prelude within your budget.

Thanks for visiting.

[RedRacer]

While I don't have much knowledge of the 3rd gen and its traits/characteristics, Harley knows his 3G's.

One thing about the gas tanks. While they are 15.9 gallon tanks, they will rarely fill to capacity because of the two gallon reserve. Unless you run with the fuel light on for a few days, or actually run out of gas, you're very unlikely to ever see even close to 15 gallons register on a gas pump. The most I ever squeezed in was 14.5 gallons and that was because we were lost on the interstate at 2 in the morning and passed up the last gas station thinking there would be another one just a few miles down the road. We hadn't gone more than 30 miles between exits the whole time......but NO, this last one we had well over a hundred miles before we found a gas station that was open. I almost ran out. Just a little story to share.

And hey, what's with the "horrid" remark on the 4g body style? ! I resent that! (jus kiddin)

I remember the first time I saw the 4th gen....I HATED IT! Thought it was the ugliest thing in the world. I was very much in love with the pointy, wedge shape of the 3rd gen and the pop-up headlights. But, as time went on, it grew on me. One day you might be able to see it for it's beauty.

-- Josh

[spiffyguido]

I just thought of something else.

If you're going to try to find a 3rd gen with a really good body, here is something you can do that has worked well for me.

When you go to look at a car that you're pretty interested in, offer to wash the car for the owner at a self-serve car wash. Most often, the people will agree, because it's a free car wash and it will give you time to talk to them and take the car for a short spin to the nearest wash.

Once at the wash, start washing the car as you normally would. I've found that wetting a car down in the shady light of a wash bay reveals EVERY little imperfection in the body. The dents, the scratches, any rust spots all become very visible because the water really brings out the contrasts of the paint. The flow of water will also flow around any problem areas allowing your eye to really zero in. This works very well, and you'll catch things that you would never see in normal light.

Just a thought.

[RedRacer]

I just thought of something else.

If you're going to try to find a 3rd gen with a really good body, here is something you can do that has worked well for me.
I've found that wetting a car down in the shady light of a wash bay reveals EVERY little imperfection in the body. This works very well, and you'll catch things that you would never see in normal light.

Just a thought.

That method works and will help show possible imperfections or repairs. One other thing you can do is get it washed and then get it inside a garage under flourescent lighting. Flourescents will bring out every single blemish, discoloration, pit and imperfection in a paint job/body.