Hey guys im new to this forum and to be honest know very little about cars. I'm hoping to learn more as i go but right now im not financially secure enough that I can mess around with my daily driver. Anyways this afternoon as i was driving i began to hear a really loud rasping noise coming from the front of the car. At first i thought it might be the brakes but when i stopped to check and popped the hood i realized it was coming from the engine. I hear it when i start the car and when i accelerate through first and second gear and then it goes away once i reach 3rd gear then it reoccurs once i stop at a light a need to accelerate again. Do any of you guys know what it might be? I did some light searching and found some guy with a similar problem that said it could be the cambelt??How much should it cost to get it fixed? i really hope my engine haan't gone to shat! :[ that car's all i got lol

 

Firstly try to buy/get a hold of a 2-3 foot hollow pipe around an inch or more diameter. What you do is put your ear to one end, and point the other end (KEEP away from moving parts, ie. watch the other end and where its going) at the motor. The pipe will channel the sound into your ear. So than just follow your ear. As the sound gets louder, that will direct you to where its comming from.

A stethoscope will work aswell. Autotool stores sell them. They are like the doctor's version but has a long metal pin that you physically poke the item to be listened to.

When you narrow down where the sound is comming from, come tell us.
The stethoscope I got was only 12 dollers. A 3 foot long, plastic hallow 1" diameter PVC (plastic) pipe is what I used as my listening device.

 

well i just got off the phone with honda and i am completely shocked by what they told me....they said that the transmission had an internal failure and that i needed a new catalytic converter. When i asked them how much it would cost to just fix the tranny, they told me it would come out to almost $4000 after labor and taxes!!!!!!!!! thats f***ing ridiculous isn't it?? honestly i don't know what i should do, i'm thinking of finding another place where they fix trannys around where i live and just taking it there. How should these jobs cost? and what trannys can i use? which one do u guys recommend? Also, would i be better off just doing an automatic to manual conversion?? thank u guys in advance!

 

join http://www.sfpoa.net theres plenty of prelude owners that would be happy to help you diagnose your problem before you go and spend $4000. does your transmission feel weird? ie. misshifts, popping in and out of gear?

 

Don't buy the parts from them nor use them as labour.
If you go to a transmission specialist you'd be better off. Buy your own tranny, and buy a universal cat from magnaflow or similar. Its a good idea if your current cat is garbage, is to remove the flanges. Than you re-weld them onto your universal fit ones, and it becomes bolt on for your system. An exhaust shop would do that for you for less than 80 bucks. So to recap, buying a tranny off the net even or someone from H-T even would be less than 500$ probably + shipping. Your cat could be universal magnaflow for 150 bucks than have it welded on for about an hours labour at an exhaust shop. So grand total with tranny install (which is only 5-6 hours labour isn't it????; would only be probably around 1500 or less.

Just fyi, honda technicians are not special by anymeans. I know way more about my 4th gen than any honda technician. They don't even know what an IACV is. They never even knew my car has an IAT sensor. Also, they though I had a going oil pump because of some noise they said they heard. They left my spark plug loose where it was lifting in and out of its port making a clattering sound lol. I tightend it back up, listenend with stethoscope and it sounds ....well it sounds like nothing.

No offence to all Honda dealerships, but they suck *** in my opion for the sole reason they charge an arm and a leg, but arn't even that much more skilled to justify the costs and mark up's they charge us.

Don't just do whats easy either. You could fork out 4 grand at honda just because its there now and no bs, but you CAN save about 2500 here. Thats enough to almost turbo the damn thing. Be smart, just look around. Towing Fee isn't that much. Half of the shops will let it slide if you are giving them lots of work. Doing a tranny job they will still probably charge you 100-150 for towing but your cost is still under 1700 probably as opposed to 4000.

Good luck