1988 Honda Prelude Honda 2.0 liter Si 4ws review from North America

Things that were not my fault:

Power steering hose (was odd, and expensive,) power steering pump at 222,000 miles, most recently was the rear upper control arm bushing wore out. I change ALL (and I stress the word all) fluids regularly, and have not had a lot of parts wear out without my help... replace your timing belts!! I can't stress that enough! I didn't, and it cost me a new top end. Replace it at every 70,000 or so, and you'll be fine. I had that repair, and minor repairs you'd expect. At 180,000, my car began burning oil due to cylinder wear, and I was losing 1/2 quart every 3 or four tanks of gas - not too bad, but then drive it at 110 mph for an hour without checking the oil...ya, so I had to put an engine in and it was all my fault. It still drove, though, on 3 cylinders for more than a month, and actually still had a lot of power... an amazingly technologically advanced in design, and modernized older car.

This is the best car I have ever owned, and is as fast as anything out there on a winding highway. My family has owned 4 Honda Preludes: I have inherited two of those. The first one, a 1981 Prelude, I inherited (and partially paid for) when a lady hit me in an intersection. It was a dependable car, but not really high performance engine. The two 1985s were higher performance engines, but not the precision handling machines I want in a prelude. The 1988 prelude si with fuel injection and 4 wheel steering is the best Honda Prelude that Honda ever made. It can outperform a corvette (I know this from experience) on the right roads. I'd put its handling characteristics in the same class as a Porsche, and maybe even better, because of the low center of gravity.

I drive the hell out of mine, on winding desert highways at speeds in excess of 120 mph for extended periods of time (in between towns - I slow down for you small town folks in your neighborhoods, of course) and you just can't do that in any other car I ahve driven... the low center of gravity, the engine is plenty fast and strong.. this is a fast car not because of its engine, but because of its handling characteristics, which makes it a dream car for people who like to feel the road, yet have total control. Watch out for deer! At 3 am in the middle of the desert, you can easily lose track of speed in this car and find yourself at speeds over 110 mph without really feeling it in a corner. The steering and transmission are tight, small movements, and you have control with this car. The engine is like a Honda motorcycle engine, and doesn't redline until about 7,000 rpms. This means you can rev it way up, and the higher rpms is where you get your horsepower with this engine/transmission combination. This car flies out of corners, and brakes responsively before them. The superior handling characteristics and high rpm power is the secret to this car's speed. People who like to drive will enjoy this car. I can't say enough good things about how much I love this car.