1995 Honda Prelude VTEC review from North America

I am very picky when it comes to working on my car. Therefore all repairs are done personally, by a Honda dealership, or by another specialized professional.

Dealership jobs include:

-Transmission fluid flushed at 104,000 miles, correcting shifting problems in transmission, cost $70.

-Timing Belt and water pump replaced at same time as transmission fluid flush, cost about $950.

-Clutch master cylinder blew a seal at 108,000 miles, cost $250.

-Clutch replaced at 122,000 miles due to a problem with the clutch pressure plate not engaging clutch, cost about $1,100.

Jobs done by myself:

-Rear brake pads replaced at about 106,000 miles, cost about $60.

-Radiator replaced at about 115,000 miles, cost about $120.

-Front driver's axle half shaft replaced at about 124,000 miles, cost about $50.

-leaky exhaust manifold gasket replaced at about 125,000 miles, cost about $30.

Other:

-Front leather seats cracked out and reupholstered by a local upholsterer at about 118,000 miles, cost about $1,000.

One of my high-school cars was a Si Prelude with the 2.3L 160 horse engine. The Si was a good car with a lot of pep, but the VTEC Prelude blows it out of the water. The VTEC Prelude is very responsive over 3-5k rpm, and flies at about 5-7k rpm. It has fairly strong torque over 3k rpm, but hits most of its power when the VTEC kicks in at 5-7k rpm.

It is a great every day car as it is quite reliable around town, or out on the road. It also provides enough performance to keep up with or pass any Mustang, 240sx, Civic, or Integra.

It is a very comfortable car, if you ride with no more than 2 people. The back seats are useless, except to lower my insurance rates. The body is sleek, and is about as close as you can get to a fastback without actually having a 60's Mustang.

I have had several "upkeep" repairs, however, I don't have any payments that come with a new car, and accept some of the problems that come with any car that is built with performance in mind. Even with the maintenence, it is still a Honda, and performs excellently, and reliably.

I also enjoy the ability to upgrade the car with ease. There are a phenomenal amount of performance parts made for Preludes as with any Honda. Although I like the stock look of this car, I have installed a AEM ram air intake, Jet chip upgrade, and dynomax muffler.