I'll skip the formal introduction, as I don't have a prelude yet. There is an 06 accord parked up front, but it's the family car- so I'm not completely unfamiliar with Hondas. Moving on-

I just got back from a test drive, and it's a 98 Honda Prelude type SH. 130K miles, lowered, wheels, air intake, apexi exhaust. It's not clean by any means. It's got cracks in both bumpers, some dents, a patch of rust around the rear wheelwell, a faded spoiler, an okay interior. It had its head rebuilt 20k miles ago, and at the moment, the CEL and ATTS lights are on in the dash. Also, the right axle is most definitely bent, as the car violently shakes under acceleration. It's also missing the right rear window.

It's also rather low, to the point where a coke can got stuck underneath while driving it. My assumption is that the shocks and springs would have to be replaced too. The clutch doesn't seem the best either, as it grabs awfully high. Tires are close to bald too. The handbrake sorta holds, but everything else is in working condition. AC, lights, etc, no loose wiring in the engine bay. And did I mention it is red? It does drive fine, it doesnt smoke, it idles steady, and the engine is not overheating.

Furthermore, I'm stuck with my piece of **** Camry and this would be a temprorary solution for me out of it. It definitely needs work, but here's the biggest draw for me- Even with repairs of the afforementioned details, the car would cost less than the lowest priced 5th gen (97-01) Prelude on Autotrader within 500 miles. THey're freaking expensive cars.

This guy wants $2500 (negotiable too) for his. That's $3000 less than what KBB has it under 'fair condition', and approximately 4k less than the average priced car on Autotrader or Craigslist. I'm really attracted to this buy, it's just the initial purchase price is so much more appealing than even pondering the notion of getting one for about 6 grand. A 98 Prelude SH- for $2000 or so... even as a project car... a good buy? I do have the VIN, so should I pull a carfax? The owner has had it since 55k miles (but owners do lie, of course).

I don't mean to make it a show car, or anything awesome by any means. But even if I were to throw say- 2k into it, I think it could make a very respectable daily driver? Let me know what you guys think. THanks.


Pictures:

98PreludeSH - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

 

Looks like it just needs a major alignment. It isn't in that bad of a condition. Test drive it to autozone and get some codes pulled out so you know what your dealing with. I would talk him down a bit but not a bad project car.

 

Definitely pull a carfax on it. If it doesn't have a clear title, even if you fix it your resell value will suck when you get rid of it. Second, pull the codes for the CEL to see what is wrong, then you'll know how much more $$ your talking. Third, get a leakdown and compression test. That will tell you what the condition of the motor really is and if there's any major work needed in the near future. Otherwise, it really isn't in that horrible of a condition and if you can get it for $2k and put another $1500 into it, you'd definitely come out ahead. Good luck

 

Whether it's worth it or not depends on whether you do the work yourself or not. Is the engine in good condition, have you done a compression test? I'd pass on it, the body is in mediocre condition too.

 

The work will be done by me, but school starts in september- and then pretty much any work will have to cease. A compression test has not been done.

So would an okay prelude for 5k be a smarter buy than this for say.. 2even?

 

Not necessarily. I always prefer cars that need work because if you end up spending the same amount of money to get it back into shape as you would have paid for another car of the same miles in normal condition, your car that was originally in bad condition will now be in new condition. You just have to do the numbers and see if it's worth it or not. Make a list, and we can evaluate that.

 

This is a quick, and relatively rough list that I've compiled. Once again, I'm not looking to make the car brand new, but just have it run smoothly without spending copious amounts of money:

brake pads + rotors (all 4): ~150-200
Struts + springs (all 4): ~600
Right axle, cv joint, etc (everything needed to eliminate the shake) ~300
right rear window~ 60
tires: 300 balanced and mounted.

Of course, the main concern atm is the front right axle, since the car shakes badly at acceleration. With this fix the car would be very drivable, although everything at the top 'should' be replaced at best.

 

Regardless of what springs you replace what's there with, be sure to buy decent shocks like Koni Yellow's.

An entire new driveshaft is $200 from Honda. I get mine from autozone because they're cheaper and come with a lifetime warranty.

Get the rotors from autozone too. Rotor brand makes no difference, and lifetime warranty from autozone.

Kumho AST and ASX are excellent all season tires regardless of budget. The AST's are ~$50/ea from tirerack.com .

Do the compression test. Rebuilding the shortblock will be a good $1k including machining and oem parts.

What are you doing to do about the body? My last Prelude had some rust around the wheel wells. I used a product called Rust Bullet, and then applied touchup paint. Worked very well.

Looks like you have a winner, even if the engine needs work. It'd be a good precautionary measure to replace all the fluids and make sure the timing belt has been changed.

 

I'm looking for a reliable daily. I know it needs work, but it's infinitely nicer to have a prelude than the current 93 Camry i was 'forced' to own, really.

I dont need OEM parts, and autozone will do the job quite fine. The tires are exactly what I had in mind, and the rust isn't a deal breaker. Only the wheel well part would need cutting to be replaced, otherwise it can always be masked. In fact, the window is the only thing I'd replace immediately.

Also, the way I see it is that it's still a Honda, so I can expect at least another few thousand miles out of the normal wear and tear parts like the alternator. Plus I only drive about 4-5k per year (school), so having the car run infinite miles is not my concern.

 

doesnt seem too bad. expect to fix a few things anyway. i say go for it.

 

Just throwing it out there along with the list. Unless you're swapping the clutch yourself, a clutch job on an SH model runs higher than on a base. ATTS unit has to come out. Not uncommon for a shop to charge upwards of 600-800 dollars for parts and labor on SH models.