what to look out for when buyin a Prelude?

[ozmikeli]

hey guys
i dont know much about cars and the last car i bought died on me in 2 months with a head gasket problem. i'm looking into this 97 prelude vti-r with 130,000 with no log book, the guy was asking for $11.000 but i got it down to about $8500, what are the common things i should check in the car before buying it? also i heard tiptronic gear box is prone to break and costs a arm and a leg to fix?

[Luder88]

Hey champ.

So the car you're going to buy is tiptronic right? The 99+ models have a stronger gear box than the later year models.

Things to check out for:

-Sunroof (rust)
-Oil (if it has been serviced regularly because vtec engines tend to use up a bit more oil)

Before you drive off when you go to test drive the car:

-Change through the different selection of gears.
e.g From P, put it into D. Then put it into R.

Hopefully there won't be any clunking noises after each change.

For more info you should check out www.preludeaustralia.com
you'll find nearly everything you need to know :)

[ozmikeli]

yeah i took it for a test drive yesterday the car sounded pretty decent, going to go take a closer look today and if everything is ok i'm going to buy it :D
thx for the advise

[munkaii]

Pics if you get it!

[timizkool]

The best thing would probs be to get a NRMA check.. or you can bring it to any mechanics and they'll check it for you for abt 100 bucks!

[CivicSi]

$8.5k for a 5th Gen VTiR with 130xxxkms??? Either the guy selling it has not idea about the average market price, or your buying a real beater with heaps of problems.

[dwn_boi]

yes the gear box problem is true and when i was looking to buy on they were always so much cheaper than the manual FOR A REASON coz theyr about to break lol, definantly get it inspected by an nrma they'll go over the wole car, tho its hard to tell if the gear box is going to last or not ur better off going for a later model like a 99 if u want auto.

also another common probem that seem to arise with the lude is the harmonic balancer wuld mysteriously fall off!! happend to me and 3 other ludes i know of, now this will b expensive, if they catch it in time, only a few hundred to repair, if not try 3k for engine rebuild!!

jst make sure everything is tight and in place dwn there lol, i have a thread on it sumwher on here i'll get it for u.

[dwn_boi]

http://www.ozhonda.com/forum/showthread.php?t=81113

here u go, have a look around first hun there are soOoo many ludes out there and guarenteed you'll find the one best for u :)

[PeachExperiment]

People keep talking about the Tiptronic gearbox being an issue, but Ive yet to come across anybody who has ever had an issue with theirs. :D

[yourfather]

GUY i used to work with had his **** up.

maybe if you contributed a bit more, we'd listen to you. and you'd no longer have newcomer status.

[yourfather]

well, if you are going to make a comment, at least make it the 'right' kinda comment.

people who spread poor information deserve to be shunned.

[-=Andy=-]

FOR THE GuY who started the thread:
Dude buy it its probably one of the best investments you will do. 5th gens are soo comfortable to drive and have a nice look to them. the h22a4 is a really good engine and you shouldnt have problems with it. Looks better, feels better, nicer interiour than all those civics on here. hehe yer i said it.. and if the civic kids want to start things well let them :P my cd5 typeS (yes typeS ask members on PA to confirm) has no problems showing the back end of k20 swapped civics :D

[5thGen]

yourfather you are seriously a dick... I too have only heard of slight problems with the tiptronics on the 5th gens, but never any problems that warrant the need for a gearbox rebuild.. All the tiptronic owners I have met are happy with them.. what was the point in offloading a tonne of shit on Peach for what I think is a valid point?

Ive had my lude for over 3 years now, and have been an active member of many forums. I can only speak for the ludes here in Aus but I can tell you for a FACT that there is a lot of TALK of the tiptronics being faulty, but I have never known anyone that has had their gearbox shit itself.

For those looking at buying a tip 5th gen, take it for a test drive, if it feels good and doesn't hesitate gear shifts, chances are it will be a good purchase..

yourfather, shut your mouth and have a think before you try shut down other members that actually OWN the car in question..

[I heart the SSS]

Since this threads gone to shit;

- Make sure the compass still works
- The anchor deploys well
- There isnt too much damage from the salt water.

LOL jokes..

Check the usual things, gearbox is important in this car.

Get underneath, check for leaks, check the usual rubber boots.

Tap the body, look for dead spots, check the insides of the boot for bog up and weld, same for the under the hood

[SHOGUNOVDDRK]

Since this threads gone to shit;

- Make sure the compass still works
- The anchor deploys well
- There isnt too much damage from the salt water.

Dont forget Barnacles.

Those little ****ers are terrible, they'll eat your boat like no tomorrow *Red coat*

p.s Pretty much everything has been covered (just remember, **** the triptronic=reason to get manual)

[PeachExperiment]

Well yeah, in my honest opinion, the manual rocks anyway....in a car like a Prelude, it add so much to the overall driving experience.

But yeah, if you take a car out for a test drive and the gear changes on the auto box are smooth and there are no noises to cause concern, chances are you are not going to have a problem unless you treat the car harshly.

I mean, $8500 for a VTIR with 130,000 on the clock, is not really a bad price. You are getting a good car for that money.

[G-Phresh]

As stated by everyone else here, yourfather your a douche bag ( <3 Peachy)

I own a prelude with a Tiptronic box and its great, i have had no issues in the 45k km's ive had it

Very smooth and good for around town where a manual would otherwise be a pain to go

Just check for smooth gear changes, no clunking noises and other weird stuff and you should be fine

Hell if it packs it in, just get a manual conversion :P

[Rollsta]

As stated by everyone else here, yourfather your a douche bag ( <3 Peachy)

I own a prelude with a Tiptronic box and its great, i have had no issues in the 45k km's ive had it

Very smooth and good for around town where a manual would otherwise be a pain to go

Just check for smooth gear changes, no clunking noises and other weird stuff and you should be fine

Hell if it packs it in, just get a manual conversion :P

OR... sell it for $8500 a few weeks later...;)
I find manual more fun...
either way, 5th gen lude's as mentioned, are very comfy for a coupe :D but then again...i'm never in the back
so either way, buy one!

[5thGen]

Yeh of course manaul is better. but when you find a lude with 130k on the clock, and if its in decent condition, and its $8500, that's $10k cheaper than I bought my manual lude for (three years ago), i'd be cheering. And yes IF the gearbox did shit itself, do a conversion, you'll still be ahead :)

[G-Phresh]

only reason i got mine with tiptronic is that it had 34,000 km's on it :P

[JSpec3]

lol yourfather your a douche. anyway I have only ever heard of an auto box in a lude dying about 2 times. everyone else seems to be happy with theirs.

[Brash22]

My tiptronic is fine, 130k and no issues whatsoever. Just keep fresh trans fluid in them and you're fine. And by the model revision in mid '99 they'd pretty much solved the problem. Even in the US, it's rare to hear of a 99+ auto failing.

Though having said all that, I've never heard of one actually failing in this country. Plenty of examples in the US, which makes absolutly no sense since they were all made in the same factory; but none from here. I think I have enough posts and reputation on here to be able to make a comment like that.

[hiru]

Me and many others who have commented in this thread are apart of another forum which has a very large population of prelude owners, as PeachExp mentioned. And of that population I am yet to hear about an auto gearbox failing and I have been around there for a while. However I have heard comments that pre 99 tiptronic gearboxes are weak. given the cheaper price, it might be worth getting it comprehensively checked out by NRMA as others have mentioned.

and yourfather, go back to the first page and have a read. of peachexp's post and then yours. you know if it was warrented or not, and so does everyone else reading this thread. if you need i can recommend a good doctor to pull that stick out of ur butt.

[bronson11]

jeez "yourfather" chill out, just bcoz someone has a different opinion to you... you dont need to attack them.

And i've heard that the auto gear box's are weak... but also don't know anyone who has had this issue.

No need to be an asshole and attack peachexperiment like you did....
Maby your the kind of hero that needs to be shunned.

To be perfectly honest, you dont drive a prelude are your only going by what youve heard... so who are you to quote things as facts?

[bronson11]

jeez "yourfather" chill out, just because someone has a different opinion to you... you don't need to attack them.

And I've heard that the auto gear box's are weak... but also don't know anyone who has had this issue.

No need to be an asshole and attack peachexperiment like you did....
Maybe your the kind of hero that needs to be shunned.

To be perfectly honest, you don't drive a prelude and your only going by what you've heard... so who are you to quote things as facts?

[-=Andy=-]

hehe i think ur father has left the country :P

i hope the comments from actual Prelude owners has helped your decision on the Auto 5th gen. Hearing from owners is alot better than hearing from some one that has heard from a friend of a friend of a friend who made crap up because he forgot to put oil in the box. :P

[CivicSi]

Your Father, there's a bunch of Prelude owners on here and all of us are saying the same thing... The problems with the auto box in the pre 99 5th Gens are no more common than on any other automatic model car....


Don't be a ****ing tool about it.. Do you seriously think that because your a member on a ****ing car forum that your better than someone, or have more knowledge on a certain topic... ****ing douche

[hiru]

No need to be an asshole and attack peachexperiment like you did....
Maby your the kind of hero that needs to be shunned.

shun the hero. shunn shunnn. :D

sorry for the unreleavant post.

[PeachExperiment]

Thanks for the back up guys, its this kind of situation that causes me to seldom visit OzHonda. Sadly yourfarther is not alone, there are others here, and Im buggered if I know why the moderators and admins of this otherwise great forum tolerate such rubbish from people.

[damienPOWER]

http://www.threadbombing.com/data/media/22/Tom_Cruise_is_stoked.jpg

[Angrylarry]

http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s133/Angrylarry/Tom_Cruise_is_stoked.jpg

yourfather has plunged this thread into stupidity, and we have no choice but to follow.

[Manabir]

yourfather......*italian accent* ahhh, yourmother.


just look at all the prelude owners coming out of the woodwork. lol.

as some of you know, i have been a moderator on preludeaustralia for quite a while, and i have only ever heard of 1 member on there blowing up a tiptronic gearbox.
and thats cause the tool bolted a turbo on without thinking about strengthening it and flogged the buggery out of it.


unless your going to be flogging the crap out of the car, i wouldnt worry about the tiptronic dying on you.
and if it does...with the HUGE amount your saving on the purchase price of the car, you can afford to get a manual conversion done then and still end up on top.

[xlr8r_boy]

ROFLOL !!!

this thred is a classic ... as a old memeber of this site there have been soem idiots surf this forum ... and the yourfather is one.
man this thred even made me come out from the wood work :)

[Angrylarry]

http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s133/Angrylarry/Tom_Cruise_is_stoked2.jpg

[watties]

personally i would listen to the advise of 'yourfather' (who's own father shouldve worn a condom imo), i mean it must be better to trust the hear say from some guy and his friends-mates-sisters bf-friend over a senior moderator of a prelude specific forum with hundreds of users many of whom drive the car in question?

seriously mate, listen to all the actual prelude owners who replyed with some educated advise and enjoy yourself a nice car

[CivicSi]

PA for Lyfe!!!!!!!! I love that you can't pick on one of us without copping the whole site coming down on you!

[migoreng]

interesting...

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff47/migoreng1/omg.jpg

[5tH SiN]

I had a 98 tiptronic lude who i passed onto my brother, bought it with 86k on the clock, now has 120k, hasnt missed a beat yet! Going strong as ever.

[SHOGUNOVDDRK]

Has anyone noticed the Prelude section is baron and Moderator (specific) less?

YF HTFU get on your plane GO!

[Petronas]

Your Father, there's a bunch of Prelude owners on here and all of us are saying the same thing... The problems with the auto box in the pre 99 5th Gens are no more common than on any other automatic model car....


I agree, I have read thorugh many sources (PA, PP, PO) that the auto boxes do tend to f*ck up more often than the +99 ones...

(I have a 5th gen vti-R manual... i love her...)



Don't be a ****ing tool about it.. Do you seriously think that because your a member on a ****ing car forum that your better than someone, or have more knowledge on a certain topic... ****ing douche

I have respect for yourfather and I think everyone should just forget about what he said...

[Brash22]

I agree, I have read thorugh many sources (PA, PP, PO) that the auto boxes do tend to f*ck up more often than the +99 ones...


BUt like I said, have you heard of one failing locally? The only one I've heard of was in an early H22 Accord, and when I spoke to the owner about it, I asked about the service records. His responce was "service...records?" Apparantly nobody told him that his obligations were more than filling the tank with petrol.

[Petronas]

BUt like I said, have you heard of one failing locally? The only one I've heard of was in an early H22 Accord, and when I spoke to the owner about it, I asked about the service records. His responce was "service...records?" Apparantly nobody told him that his obligations were more than filling the tank with petrol.

I have herd of a couple failing in the US... And they are the same tranny and made in the same plant I think so I imagine it effects AUDM cars as much as JDM, EDM and USDM derived Preludes...?

[dwn_boi]

prelude aus is gay jst like its mod hahaha :P

ozhonda > pa


waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay better info and help here, it only turned to shit when the pa mod stepped in lOl :D






so in the end did you purcahse teh car ozmikeli??

[yourfather]

BUt like I said, have you heard of one failing locally? The only one I've heard of was in an early H22 Accord, and when I spoke to the owner about it, I asked about the service records. His responce was "service...records?" Apparantly nobody told him that his obligations were more than filling the tank with petrol.


I have herd of a couple failing in the US... And they are the same tranny and made in the same plant I think so I imagine it effects AUDM cars as much as JDM, EDM and USDM derived Preludes...?

My old boss had one fail on him, and it was just after he bought the car (im in Melbourne). 2k down the hole, was a 1997 VTi-R and then a friend of a friend with a 99 VTi-R in Sydney had the same problem.

[panda[cRx]]

i've seen 4-5 auto prelude vtir trans fail in south east melbourne in the last 3 years, which is certainly worse than the average honda auto but is certainly not as bad as 98 accords, hrvs, 1st gen jazz etc

another thing when buying a h22a prelude is to confirm the cambelt+balance belt replacement history. if you are unsure CHANGE it as i've seen a 3 overdue belts snap in the last few years

[yourfather]

;1990896']i've seen 4-5 auto prelude vtir trans fail in south east melbourne in the last 3 years, which is certainly worse than the average honda auto but is certainly not as bad as 98 accords, hrvs, 1st gen jazz etc

another thing when buying a h22a prelude is to confirm the cambelt+balance belt replacement history. if you are unsure CHANGE it as i've seen a 3 overdue belts snap in the last few years

Thanks panda,

proof from someone who works at a Honda dealer that the prelude VTi-R trannies fail.

As opposed to a bus driver from adelaide who thinks he knows everything because he owns one.

[Gazz95Lude]

^You thought you knew everything because you have a high post count and heard some stuff from your aunts brothers sisters uncle:p
Back on topic, i frequent the Prelude specific Prelude Australia website regularly and despite talk of the supposed "failing" of V-TIR boxes i am yet to hear of one happening to a Prelude owner. I am just recounting my opinion and and what i have heard (much like yourfather) but i wont go abusing people who disagree with what i say. Everyone has a right to their own opinion. But abusin people for their opinion is just not on.

[MWAKU]

My mates one just ****ed up on him.

[Bob]

Sounds to me that you are all arguing about hypothetical hearsay.

While Im not a fan of autos. Ive heard the rumours but very little facts on failures.

In any case the cost of replacing a clutch a couple of times in a cars life is probably on par with fixing an auto. Give or take a few hundred.

Get it checked out properly, a dealer may be able to offer an extended warantee on a dealer sale. Things to consider.

And treat it right.

[Brash22]

proof from someone who works at a Honda dealer that the prelude VTi-R trannies fail.

As opposed to a bus driver from adelaide who thinks he knows everything because he owns one.

Where did anybody say they didn't fail. I challenge you to go back through all of the posts of this thread and find just one person who stated that they do not fail.

What I, PeachExperiment, and everybody else said is that while they're known to fail, the number that actually do is very low. As Panda said, the failure rate is higher than most, but still not incredibly high.

[Manabir]

prelude aus is gay jst like its mod hahaha :P

ozhonda > pa


waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay better info and help here, it only turned to shit when the pa mod stepped in lOl :D






so in the end did you purcahse teh car ozmikeli??


you're just bitter cause you got banned there for being a stuck up arrogant bitch who thinks the world revolves around her.
get over yourself!

oh...and ease up on the fake tan...you look like a bright orange oompa-loompa.

[CivicSi]

prelude aus is gay jst like its mod hahaha :P

ozhonda > pa


waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay better info and help here, it only turned to shit when the pa mod stepped in lOl :D






so in the end did you purcahse teh car ozmikeli??

How would you know..... AFAIK u gots banned for being a pain in the ass....

[Manabir]

bahahaha...simultanious post ftw!!!

great minds think alike!

[CivicSi]

Lol, yeh....

Hey dwnboi... go mow down some more cyclists! And yeh, ease up on the fake tan, your the same colour as the bottle of fanta i'm drinking!

[yourfather]

its funny how they all complain about how i 'attack' and insult other users, yet its fine that they call people fanta bottles and annoying.

gtfo preludeaustralia cun ts

[Manabir]

read the posts ****face.
you insult someone i consider a friend...we retaliate.
fake tan thing insults the same friend...we retaliate.

insult----retaliation.
note the pattern?

[gumus89]

its funny how they all complain about how i 'attack' and insult other users, yet its fine that they call people fanta bottles and annoying.

gtfo preludeaustralia cun ts

Yeah they retaliated.
You have got to expect what you give out.

EDIT: Great minds was the term you used Manabir wasnt it?

[SHOGUNOVDDRK]

mmm..

[CivicSi]

lol, notice how the whole OH site isn't jumping down our throats, but the whole PA site is defending our member....

Peach was right from the get go, we defended him because he was right... Your Father, i get the feeling that your an embarrassment to this forum...

At the end of the day, you take a dig at PA or any of it's members, we won't sit idly by and cop it on the chin.... this ridiculous back and forth of abuse will stop when you do

[yourfather]

No the point is, that you prelude australia f@ggots have no ability to argue your point of view and therefore think that getting your fu ckwad buddies to come and back you up constitutes some form of defence.

I think what you gotta remember here is that I am not a representative of OzHonda, I dont need to base my online identity on whether I am or am not a member of a forum.

If you cu nts want to come here and spread your disinformation and metaphorically jerk each other off about how smart you are, thats fine.

But I know for a fact that these tiptronic gearboxes do have issues from time to time. I have been in the carpark when the car wouldnt get into gear, and people who work for Honda australia confirm this fact.

Seriously, keep the group love and the ass fu cking to your own forums.

PreludesAustralia is a crap site, moderated by dimwitted prejudiced dickheads, whereas ozhonda (and it has flaws) has 10,000+ members and I have made friends on here...

I've probably done more work on my old DC2 than most of you fu cks have ever done on your Preludes. i know something about the basics but im not an expert in cars - i never claimed I was.


I dont really give a shit about how many posts I have or reputation blocks and nor do I need a pack of neanderthal fuc kwits to back me up.

The transmission is a weakness and dumb cu nts like you seem to think that spreading this disinformation is in the interest of the OP's question. I feel that if anything, you have disrespected the OP by only having your selfish interests at mind.

So to all those newcomers that have made no contribution to this forum - your words mean nothing, and to the rednecks that come from Boronia and out in Maroondah council, you've got nothing to be proud of.

Go fu ck yourselves, you stupid pieces of shit and go back to your own fa ggot pound each other in the ass stupid forum.

Love, yF

[Luder88]

Holy shit... I was the first one to reply and now i'm assuming i'll be the last as well. I feel sorry for the OP.

[MWAKU]

Nope. You guess wrong :) Dw, mods would just delete the spam. Thread should stay alive..

[PeachExperiment]

lol, notice how the whole OH site isn't jumping down our throats, but the whole PA site is defending our member....

Peach was right from the get go, we defended him because he was right... Your Father, i get the feeling that your an embarrassment to this forum...

At the end of the day, you take a dig at PA or any of it's members, we won't sit idly by and cop it on the chin.... this ridiculous back and forth of abuse will stop when you do

Can anybody fill me in as to what I actually said to cause all this?? All Ive done is mention my observation that I have never in all my experience with Preludes and people who own them, seen a real case example of a tiptronic gearbox shitting itself.

And somehow that results in me being called every name under the sun. Seriously, Im at a loss. Somebody help me out here.

[yourfather]

Prolly cuz bus drivers arent known for their intellect.

[aaronng]

If you guys can't play nice, you get no thread.

Closed.

BTW, I personally know only 1 person with an auto VTIR. And I only know 1 auto VTIR with a failed auto gearbox. ;)