Honda Car Forum

Are these good cars? I've always wanted a Prelude but:

1. I have a 4 yr old child and he likes to make a mess plus getting a two
door can be tricky for a kid.
2. I live in a place with 6-8 months of harsh winters
3. It's a '99 with 110km so I'm wondering if it will start breaking down?
4. It's heavily modified in terms of body kits and extra stuff ...not sure
if this becomes a problem? (Damage, repairs, etc).

What are your opinions? I currently drive an '01 Corolla - nice boring
family car but it's quite reliable. This car is an extra $6000 at least with
selling my car but it'd be nice to drive a fun car for a bit.

Thanks in advance

On Thu, 17 May 2007 02:34:07 +0000, griffin wrote:

> Are these good cars? I've always wanted a Prelude but:
>
> 1. I have a 4 yr old child and he likes to make a mess plus getting a two
> door can be tricky for a kid.
> 2. I live in a place with 6-8 months of harsh winters 3. It's a '99 with
> 110km so I'm wondering if it will start breaking down? 4. It's heavily
> modified in terms of body kits and extra stuff ...not sure if this becomes
> a problem? (Damage, repairs, etc).
>
> What are your opinions? I currently drive an '01 Corolla - nice boring
> family car but it's quite reliable. This car is an extra $6000 at least
> with selling my car but it'd be nice to drive a fun car for a bit.
>
> Thanks in advance


I would shy away from it. And a hint: body kits aren't worth ANYTHING once
they're installed on the car. I used to sell used cars. Does it have 4
tires and a spare? I don't care if they're stock or Bridgestone Potenzas
2x over.

Has it got a radio? i don't care if it has a stock radio/cassette or an
Alpine Am/FM/CD/MP3/Satellite with 12 speakers.

Does it have an engine? I don't care if it's stock or turbocharged, camed,
etc. Actually, I *DO* care! I don't want to see all that crap! It probably
meant you abused the car.

Open your eyes and take a look without a "gotta have it" attitude, and
look for signs of abuse, racing, and esp at the body kit. Some of these
things are flimsy at worst and will crack if you look at them too hard, or
worse, were installed in a way that will cause water/road salt to
accumulate and rot the body a lot faster than it would without having it
installed.


Bring a magnet and a napkin; put the magnet in the napkin and check ares
of the body for Bondo; if the magnet doesn't stick, look out...

griffin wrote:
> Are these good cars? I've always wanted a Prelude but:
>
> 1. I have a 4 yr old child and he likes to make a mess plus getting a two
> door can be tricky for a kid.
> 2. I live in a place with 6-8 months of harsh winters
> 3. It's a '99 with 110km so I'm wondering if it will start breaking down?
> 4. It's heavily modified in terms of body kits and extra stuff ...not sure
> if this becomes a problem? (Damage, repairs, etc).
>
> What are your opinions? I currently drive an '01 Corolla - nice boring
> family car but it's quite reliable. This car is an extra $6000 at least with
> selling my car but it'd be nice to drive a fun car for a bit.
>
> Thanks in advance

------------------------------

Modified often = LOWERED which = bad clearance in snow. Get stuck in a
rutted road and you won't get out of the ruts without losing your body kit.

Stick to something STOCK and cared for. Not raced and modified.

'Curly'

griffin wrote:
> Are these good cars? I've always wanted a Prelude but:
>
> 1. I have a 4 yr old child and he likes to make a mess plus getting a two
> door can be tricky for a kid.
> 2. I live in a place with 6-8 months of harsh winters
> 3. It's a '99 with 110km so I'm wondering if it will start breaking down?
> 4. It's heavily modified in terms of body kits and extra stuff ...not sure
> if this becomes a problem? (Damage, repairs, etc).
>
> What are your opinions? I currently drive an '01 Corolla - nice boring
> family car but it's quite reliable. This car is an extra $6000 at least with
> selling my car but it'd be nice to drive a fun car for a bit.
>
> Thanks in advance

Yeah, what they said... plus if it IS lowered, and it hasn't been
lowered correctly (ie. with a proper camber kit and properly selected
springs and dampers), it'll actually blow the handling to shit and make
it terrible or even dangerous to drive in the snow. Not really
something you wanna be hauling your child around in.

If you like the Prelude but need something a little more
family-oriented, try an Accord; they're largely the same car. I've had
three '87s now and they've all been great.

Thanks for the advice guys ...think I'll keep the '01 Toy for a little while
longer and maybe buy another Jeep CJ as a for-fun vehicle. The total cost of
both vehicles equals the Prelude and the Jeep can come in handy once winter
hits plus they are easier to fix as opposed to a potentially poorly-modified
Prelude.

Cheers!

"griffin" <gryffy@WEEEEshaw.ca> wrote in message
news:zaP2i.190606$aG1.137675@pd7urf3no...
> Are these good cars? I've always wanted a Prelude but:
>
> 1. I have a 4 yr old child and he likes to make a mess plus getting a two
> door can be tricky for a kid.
> 2. I live in a place with 6-8 months of harsh winters
> 3. It's a '99 with 110km so I'm wondering if it will start breaking down?
> 4. It's heavily modified in terms of body kits and extra stuff ...not sure
> if this becomes a problem? (Damage, repairs, etc).
>
> What are your opinions? I currently drive an '01 Corolla - nice boring
> family car but it's quite reliable. This car is an extra $6000 at least
with
> selling my car but it'd be nice to drive a fun car for a bit.
>
> Thanks in advance
>
>
>

griffin wrote:
> Thanks for the advice guys ...think I'll keep the '01 Toy for a little while
> longer and maybe buy another Jeep CJ as a for-fun vehicle. The total cost of
> both vehicles equals the Prelude and the Jeep can come in handy once winter
> hits plus they are easier to fix as opposed to a potentially poorly-modified
> Prelude.

Just a thought: if you're concerned about winter driving (and granted
that this is a Honda newsgroup), you might look into something in a
Subaru Forester - they're somewhere between a wagon and stretched 5-door
hatchback design, so there's lots of space for the kid(s) and associated
junk, and with the full-time 4WD, they eat snow for breakfast. Even my
little FWD '82 Subaru GL went better in the snow than a couple of Jeeps
on our block.

"griffin" <gryffy@WEEEEshaw.ca> wrote in message
news:zaP2i.190606$aG1.137675@pd7urf3no...
> Are these good cars? I've always wanted a Prelude but:
>
> 1. I have a 4 yr old child and he likes to make a mess plus getting a two
> door can be tricky for a kid.
> 2. I live in a place with 6-8 months of harsh winters
> 3. It's a '99 with 110km so I'm wondering if it will start breaking down?
> 4. It's heavily modified in terms of body kits and extra stuff ...not sure
> if this becomes a problem? (Damage, repairs, etc).
>
> What are your opinions? I currently drive an '01 Corolla - nice boring
> family car but it's quite reliable. This car is an extra $6000 at least
> with
> selling my car but it'd be nice to drive a fun car for a bit.
>
> Thanks in advance
>
>
Until a year ago, I had an 01 (5th gen) Prelude. Great car, but not a good
option for anyone who needs to sit in the back seat. As a senior citizen, I
cared for the car and never abused it so when I sold it it went right away.
Most Preludes I have seen have been modified and abused, so a stock one is
rare. The automatic has been problematic, so a manual it better. Look at
the maintenance records as well. I now drive an I4 Accord coupe automatic
and like it. But, the Prelude is a lot more fun to drive, particularly when
the VTEC cuts in around 5300 rpm.