I'm sure this has been addressed a million times, but I couldn't get the search to turn up results due to the words being too common and FAQ didn't yield results.

I'm looking at purchasing a 1992 Honda Prelude. It's from a used-car dealer, and before I go I want to know a way to tell if I'm getting a S or Si.

Also I think I remember someone telling me that Prelude runs high compression and has to run premium unleaded, is this true?

I'm excited about the car, and thanks for helping.

 

prelude S has an F22 SOHC engine. its stamped on the engine block.

prelude Si has an H23 DOHC engine, also stamped. compression higher than S, as well as roughly +25 on hp and tq.

 

the S also does not have a drivers side airbag and the Si does. and yes on the premium

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by xxmastermindxx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">prelude S has an F22 SOHC engine. its stamped on the engine block.

prelude Si has an H23 DOHC engine, also stamped. compression higher than S, as well as roughly +25 on hp and tq.</TD></TR></TABLE>

wrong, the H23's only have the honda symbol and "honda" stamped.
H22's have "DOHC VTEC" stamped tho

 

he said the block, not the valve cover.

 

^^ yep ^^

stamped into the block, right where the head meets the block, left-ish side

 

fack, my bad. i'll shutup now

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by esedulerp5tenin &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">fack, my bad. i'll shutup now </TD></TR></TABLE>

thank you...just look at the vin...I believe that the 3rd or 4th letter over, the chassis codde will read BA8 for the S, and I think BB1 or BB2 for the Si? not sure, someone wanna back me up?

 

S model is BA8

Si model is BB2

Vtec (93 and up) is BB1

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by xxmastermindxx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">S model is BA8

Si model is BB2

Vtec (93 and up) is BB1</TD></TR></TABLE>

thanks!

 

Every S I've seen has had a driver's side air bag. 94+ had driver and passenger. Anyway, the major differences between the two are:

SOHC vs DOHC engine
14" steel rims vs 15" alloys
no front lip vs lip
no power door locks vs power locks
no ABS vs ABS

 

my s has a drivers side airbag. And i think if you open the drivers door, on the door seal, either above or below the latch hook, is a white sticker that has the paint code and should say either s or si. Im not home now to look at mine but i believe that is correct.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by InvaderTrax &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Every S I've seen has had a driver's side air bag. 94+ had driver and passenger. Anyway, the major differences between the two are:

SOHC vs DOHC engine
14" steel rims vs 15" alloys
no front lip vs lip
no power door locks vs power locks
no ABS vs ABS</TD></TR></TABLE>

yeah,. they have drivers airbag, but not passenger I believe. at least mine doesnt.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Twilightepitaph &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">if you open the drivers door, on the door seal, either above or below the latch hook, is a white sticker that has the paint code and should say either s or si. </TD></TR></TABLE>

 

he said a 92 S.... the later preludes came with airbags standard

 

Well, I bought it. Manual 1992 Honda Prelude Si, $3011. I love it so far. It's got green side lights(the lights next to the headlights) that I need to get out of there, and I ripped off some cheesy tint. It's got headers, Intake(looks no-nameish, might take it off), and muffler(luckly not too farty). I know it's not VTEC, but it's my first car and I love it just the same.

It's missing the small lights that are behind the rear wheels, I'm not sure what they're called. They might even be refelctor-type deals, I 'm not sure. Me and my dad are going to make a run to the junkyard for a few things, and I'm going to see if I can get some.

The ABS isn't working, but all the equipment is there, so my Dad says it probably won't be that bad, and he's willing to help pay for it to get fixed because he swears by his ABS saving his life a few times.

The main problem is the suspension is shot. Every bump makes me worry I'm going to hear a thump and see my enigine on the road in my rearview. Looks like a cheap lowering kit. I'm only 16, so my dad's helping me out. He says that it looks like he just bought springs and some aftermarket shocks, but he didn't buy lowering/lowered shocks, so they never had enough room to absorb anything and now theyre cracking and even more useless..

If anyone has any advice for a good shocks/stuts, let me know. I'm wanting to buy fairly nice stuff. It doesn't have to be adjustable. I'm wanting 1-2 inch drop, preferrable 1.5 inch. My dad has Tokico blues and Eibachs on his civic, and that setup rides great. I willing to spend around $500, or a little more. So nothing too exotic.

Anyways, I'm excited to own a Prelude, and I'll hopefully be around for a while.

 

glad to have you around

 

I haven't heard anything bad about either Tokico or Eibach. I personally like Tein's stuff but you said your limit was 500 or a bit more so that is out of the picture unless you can find yourself some used ones for a good price( i think the basics run around 800 usually). Personally i like the stock ride height of my prelude. The only lowering that i might do is throwing on a pair of low profile tires when i get my rims. But its your car so enjoy it, and welcome to prelude ownership. Stay on here for a while, i guaranty you will learn good things and hopefully avoid the bad ones .

 

i know ur looking to spend like $500 or so on those things and i know when i got my Tanabe Coil-overs (which i swear by =P) this place has some pritty good prices and ive always had great buisness with them. If ur looking for any tanabe products i would suggest going to this site and u may want to check their other products for the same thing. They seem to be the cheapest on alot of stuff ive been looking for. http://www.hopupracing.com

 

Yeah, We were using a jack for me to get the general idea of stock ride height. I want at least an inch. I don't think I want 2 because that's probably where it's at right now, I have a steep driveway and things look pretty close right now at 2 inches. I want to make it nice, but not nice so that it affects it's life, you know what I'm saying?


(Bah gas! $40 to fill)

 

Just remember to keep it clean. I have seen alot of ricers as of late and it pisses me off to see nice cars turned to crap. My advice to you as you start out on this car is research research research. Its amazing how many times i hear myself saying "If only i knew then what i know now." But suspension is a good place to start especially if you need it. Good luck.

 

40 bucks on gas!!!LOL man thats not even half a tank out here. Gas is like 3.70 a gallon

 

Yeah. I'm not really into rice, so no worries.

Premium Gas is $3.03gal. Minimum wage doesn't cut it like it used to.

 

i have a 92 si and i run it off regular unleaded. seems to work fine. If thats a bad idea, someone let me know. just reply

 

Do you get any detonation?