Well i posted here a few months back about getting a civic hatch. Well i didnt get it and made the dumb decision of buying a 94 VW jetta. Well to make a long story sort i hate it. I am lookin at a prelude for sale near my house here is the info i know.
1997
4cyl
auto
cloth seats
135k miles
$5000 o.b.o

do you guys think this price is too high? Also i dont know with hondas but do they need any major service like timing belt or waterpump around these miles?Also, how reliable are the auto trans on these? I know my auto on my jetta is going out at 97k! I really like this car and wanna know if its a good price or not asap. Thanks
JD

 

Honestly, I'd hold out for a manual transmission... Man, those Audi/VWs are a nightmare. I had an '02 A4 1.8T Quattro MT5 for 8 months, 7 of those months were spent TRYING to sell it.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by GO-FIGHT-KILL &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Honestly, I'd hold out for a manual transmission... Man, those Audi/VWs are a nightmare. I had an '02 A4 1.8T Quattro MT5 for 8 months, 7 of those months were spent TRYING to sell it.</TD></TR></TABLE>

i honestly want an auto for my only car. When i can afford to have a car that i just drive on weekends and **** i will have manual. So for my conditions do you think this price is good?

 

Then you should really look into another honda. Auto 1997+ honda preludes have a very high failure rate in terms of transmissions.

 

Ask the owner how often the ATF was changed. Then go check it. It should be a nice red color. Test drive it. Make sure the shifts are clean. When the auto tranny's on this car goes bad, it's very obvious.

Go to KBB.com for the resale value of the car.

But like the others, I would still pass on the car.

 

It sounds like a pretty fair deal. As far as the timing belt, I believe that the recommended interval is at 90k miles, so find out when that was done, as well as water pump and oil pump.

The good news with a Honda auto is that even if it does go out, you should be able to get a replacement very cheap. There are lots of companies that import Japanese motors, and no one wants an auto transmission, so they usually will sell them very cheap. I've seen 40k mile auto trannys here locally imported from Japan going for as little as $150-200.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by kacivic &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">It sounds like a pretty fair deal. As far as the timing belt, I believe that the recommended interval is at 90k miles, so find out when that was done, as well as water pump and oil pump.

The good news with a Honda auto is that even if it does go out, you should be able to get a replacement very cheap. There are lots of companies that import Japanese motors, and no one wants an auto transmission, so they usually will sell them very cheap. I've seen 40k mile auto trannys here locally imported from Japan going for as little as $150-200.</TD></TR></TABLE>

cool thanks for the info. What are some websites that import stuff like that? Im going to look at the car today at 530.

 

unless you have a shop locally that you know, hmotorsonline.com is a very reputable place, i haven't seen just the transmissions listed there though. there are tons of places you can find online, i'd just make sure you talk to a person over the phone and make sure you feel comfortable dealing with them

 

I'd buy another car if you want an auto, like a 240sx or something. The prelude trans is all but guaranteed to asplode

 

well i checked it out. first thing i saw was a huge spider crack in the windsheld and i didnt like that. Then when we started it the crank pulley seemed to be a little off balance and i know that cant be good. My dad took it for a drive since im only 16. We drove it pretty hard. The tranny seemed like it might be slipping a little between 1st and 2nd but i kno if thats just how the car shifts. As we got further into the drive the car started to stink real bad. We pulled back into the parking lot and parked and smoke was coming out of the brake area and there was also smoke in the cabin. The SRS light was also on. So that car pretty much got a big huge NO. But now after driving it i want a prelude realy bad...stick though. There all so much money though!

 

The automatic sucks
I'm currently converting mine and it is a pain in the *** but it'll be worth it down the road