eBay 1991 Prelude Si Listed for $30K: Reasonably Priced or Insanity?

Prelude Si is in pristine condition with 13,000 miles, but it is listed for roughly double the original MSRP.

The Honda Prelude doesn’t get the attention or respect of the Civic or Accord in the Japanese performance world. This could be due to the fact that the other two Honda two-doors offered more performance or it could be due to the simple fact that both the Civic and Accord have lived longer lives, thus gathering more devout fans. The Prelude is clearly ranks third among the sporty Honda two-door models, having last been sold new in the early 2000s.

While the Prelude doesn’t have the reputation of the Civic or Accord, the model has become a popular collectable in the sport compact community. This is especially true of the Prelude Si, which can bring you the fun-to-drive factor of all Si-badged models without the higher cost of the Civic Si. Then again, as the folks from CarScoops found, a very clean 1991 Prelude Si can bring big money. In fact, one was recently posted on eBay for $30,000, making us wonder how many hardcore Honda fans would pay that kind of money for the lesser-known sporty two-door.

 Prelude Si on eBay

The 1991 Honda Prelude Si listed on eBay included the following description.

“This 1991 Honda Prelude is an original. This is offered for sale by the original owner. The vehicle runs great and is mainly used for weekend drives.

Seller’s Notes

1990 HONDA PRELUDE SI IN PERFECT,!LIKE NEW Condition Throughout. Straight body, Original Glossy White paint, Perfect Charcoal Gray Cloth interior. ALL 10 outta 10. Has 13,025 Original Miles. This car has been very meticulously maintained, Covered and climate controlled garaged. It’s NEVER been rained on!! Has EVERY Power option that was available. Power Windows, Locks, Mirrors, Aluminum Wheels, 90% Tires. Oil has been changed using synthetic every 3,000 miles religiously. This car is 10/10 Throughout and needs nothing. Wife and I are 80 years old and obviously never drive it. Great show car, cruiser, etc. You will NOT be disappointed. Car is in Redmond, Oregon and can be shipped or delivered for a fee. $30,000 Or Best Offer No financing or Trades. Sorry.”

The car is said to have every power option, but there is no mention of the optional four-wheel-steering system. Many people who are shopping for a collector’s quality third generation Prelude Si are likely to want that key performance feature. Since it is not mentioned, we can only guess that this car does not have four-wheel-steering. However, it has everything else that a buyer could want, from low mileage and spotless paint to all of the other premium features.

A $30k Price Tag?

According to a quick Google search, a 1991 Honda Prelude Si with a manual transmission had a starting price in the range of $15,000 when new. In most cases, any car from the early 1990s can be purchased today for a fraction of the original price. However, this Prelude Si isn’t your average early 1990s economy car. While the Prelude doesn’t get the respect of the performance-minded Civic and Accord models, this Si is a sought after collectable in the American sport compact world.

The Prelude Si is, in general, worth more than a non-Si model, but this particular car is sure to bring far more than normal market value. According to the NADA Guides website, a “high retail” price for a 1991 Prelude Si is just $3,450, but NADA doesn’t take collector’s value of a performance model into effect. Not only is this a rare performance model, but it is practically brand new. It is in flawless shape inside, outside and under the hood, with just over 13,000 miles on the odometer. There aren’t many Prelude Si models left in this condition, especially with such low mileage, making it hard to use pricing guides like NADA or KBB.

On the other hand, the Bring-A-Trailer website is a great resource for pricing collectable vehicles. “BAT” only accepts the nicest vehicles to be posted for sale on the auction-based site, so it serves as a great gauge of real market value. BAT lists 41 Prelude models that have been sold in the past five years and the vast majority of them are sold in the $5,000 to $15,000 range. There are a few below $5,000 and there are two about $15,000, one of which sold in 2018 for $30,251. That car had less than 10,000 miles on the odometer and it was in similar condition to the car shown here. The key difference is that the car that sold on BAT for over $30,000 had four-wheel-steering and the white car shown here doesn’t seem to include that premium feature.

Yay or Nay?

We know that one 1991 Honda Prelude Si sold for more than $30,000 on Bring-A-Trailer, but that was two years ago and that car had both fewer miles and an addition key feature. More recently, these cars have generally sold for closer to $15,000, making us wonder if anyone would really consider this white Prelude Si for $30,000.

The eBay listing has been closed, but we don’t know if it sold off of the website or if the seller changed his mind. Even though it is not currently available, we are curious how many people would seriously consider paying $30,000 for a 1991 Prelude Si, even in such immaculate condition.

Photos: eBay

Join the Honda-Tech forums now!

Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com