* great motor. typical Honda smoothness all the way up to the redline
* EXCELLENT fuel economy, even when using the a/c or driving 'spiritedly' :)
* very nicely designed interior, especially for its age!
* 4-wheel steering extremely useful in carparks/low speed maneuvering
* engine seems to be bulletproof (mine has 199,500km on the clock and compression tests are still in the 'new engine' range)
* seats are nice and comfortable and give good lateral support.

* Hondas of this age typically have fairly expensive replacement parts.
* Insurance is expensive when compared to the market value of the car.
* back seats are more of a 'low box/parcel shelf' than actual seats, unless the front seats are moved a fair bit forward. But if you need to carry more than 2 people regularly, what are you doing looking at sports coupes :)
* the length and throw of the manual gear lever are a bit too long.

I paid $9500 australian for mine. one thing i neglected to check was the air conditioner, which just happened to be the only thing wrong with the damn car!! oh well, got the compressor replaced and now the aircon is unbelievably cold, and is so very quickly too. no more sticky Australian summer days in the car... :)

The car is bucketloads of fun to drive, and you'll find yourself taking imaginary trips to nowhere in particular, just as an excuse to drive it.

The creature comforts (nice interior/dash design, 4-wheel steering) are very nice, but remember that if anything breaks, the repair bill will be a little more expensive than your average car. The operative word being "IF" anything breaks :)

If you can find one with a good service history and a reasonable price, I don't think you would regret it. But if money is tight, I would recommend you also take the ST162-model type Toyota Celica SX into consideration. (the one with the 3S-GE motor)

That would be the only other car I can think of in the under-10,000-aussie-dollar range that is even comparable.

Similar Products Used:

1988 Toyota Celica SX (3S-GE): this felt to be a very similar car performance-wise, though it didn't have 4-wheel steering and the interior was nowhere near as luxurious.

1990 Honda Prelude Si4WS: same car but with an automatic transmission. the auto box is very nice, but the manual (my car) is even better!

Unlock the door, sit down, insert the key and turn to the on position, gauges light up with beautiful electrolumiscent display for tachometer and speedometer, push the clutch in, turn the key to start and you hear the VTEC equipped H22A1 engine come to life quietly without valve clack and readiness to enjoy your drive becomes evident (you'll find yourself creating many extra trips to nowhere special just to drive it some more), all in all these cars are VERY reliable, I bought mine about 5 months ago with the original H23A1 motor but at 120,051 miles (bought with 104,000) the 3rd main bearing spun, fault of the ignorant low matience previous owner, since I've made it the VTEC model with the ECU, wiring harness, engine and transmissions from a wrecked VTEC Prelude, added an ACT street clutch and it's absolutely amazing, handling is never comprimised, maybe a bit of understeer but keep in mind this car is FWD and you've got 190hp / 160 pounds of torque coming off the flywheel being directed to the front wheels with only a curb weight of 2850lbs so "torque steer" is evident at times, but hey I like that! These cars respond VERY well to any type of performance mods, classy elegant interior precisely matched to the vehicle's beautiful sporty exterior, great gas mileage even when you drive it like it's stolen like I do :) Replacement parts aren't too expensive, view is pretty good from all angles with the exception of having the windows tinted and backing up at night viewing through the rear windshield, ABS keeps it under control when you need to stop quick, even with a peak HP point of 6800 rpms cruising RPMS of 2000-3000 are still torquey and powerful enough to climb hills and save that ever so expensive premium gasoline, can't really say enough good things about this car!

Back seat? OH! You mean rear shelf ;) Serves no purpose as a seat for anyone but hey it's not a sedan, who wants to drive a taxi anyway. The resonance of the exhaust is pretty evident inside the cabin of the car while driving with the windows/moonroof closed but I have aftermarket exhaust now anyway, profile is quite low to the ground so you find yourself going very slow on uneven surfaces or you bottom out, but it helps the handling and center of gravity is good, ALL models 92-96 have a problem with surface rust on the top of the rear wheel wells due to honda's idea of putting black trim at the bottom, it traps the moisture in and POOF rust, stock tires are a little too narrow for the amount of power it puts down, they spin and squawk, temperature gauge is pretty useless, it's one of four positions and not a thermal reading just a ut oh way too high or low or normal, i'd like it to be a little more specific other than that it's a perfect car, oh the worst weakness, having to go do somethin and not be inside driving it! Oh yeah I almost forgot, the glove box (or should i call it the place where a glove box would be) only fits your registration/proof of insurance/a few napkins and girl's phone numbers written on those napkins or small tears of paper! heh

I'm a 20 year old male with too much testosterone and a hatred for the streetwise norm of goofy large domestics with oversized gas guzzling engines that don't perform as well cause the car weighs 3500/4000lbs so someone with a 300lb body can fit in it, so if you are looking for a sporty coupe that's going to turn some heads, win you some races and impress yourself as well as anyone who looks/drives/rides in it, this one is for you, never before was I a fan of "sport compact cars" but this one made me a finatic, I paid 7,000$ for my milano red 1994 Si 5 months ago with 104,000 miles and have spent about 6,000$ making it v-tec with only 55,000 and it's worth every penny, this is a car you think about when you get out of the shower in the morning and can't wait to drive, this car has made me look at other cars and find many weaknesses within. Never thought of Honda as a sports car manufacturer prior to this car either, they've been around since 1979 and I believe the 92-96 preludes are the best in terms of weight to power ratio looks and overall conveinence of interior design, if you don't have kids and you are looking for somethin that you pull onto a expressway onramp, bring up the rpms to 7400 in every gear on your way to the merge (as you hear the highly tuned VTEC cam profiles kick in around 5300 in each geaR) lane going 110mph when you get there, this is what you want, high fuel economy matched with high performance and reliability, when was the last time you drove a car like that? GO HONDA/ACURA!

Similar Products Used:

-1991 Chevrolet Lumina Euro 3.1
-1996 Monte Carlo Z34
-1992 Honda Prelude Type S (TOO SLOW!)
-1996 Pontiac Trans Am
-1997 Pontiac Grand Prix GT
-1999 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP
-2001 Ford Focus

Beautiful (hybrid) engine/gearbox (triptronic). Well built. Drivability. excellent air-con system. Quick. Good handling. Eye-catcher!

Without being pedantic, how about MPG, unusually misty windows, (but hey, this is England!)restricted to (the quickly attainable)120 MPH. Could do with some info about it..can't read Japanese!

Japanese import, meant for home market only. Type R hybrid. (F22B DOHC non-VTEC). 150 BHP (UK) at wheels in standard trim.
Interior nicely finished half-leather red/black trim. Excellent all-round drivers car. I'd have to be rich to want to change it!

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Firenza 2.3 Droopsnoot 1975 - real enthusiasts car (200 built), un-refined, loved it!
Opel Manta 1983 - (looked ok at the time) pretty tame.
Merc 190 2.6 1988 - Quickish, good finish, kudos, easy maintenance, let down by handling.
Prelude 2.3 auto 1992 - excellent car, under-powered, over-priced servicing.

-the incredible look (more later)
-the power at low torques...not to speak of the power at high torques
-the great enhancements you can buy for it

-the backseats (but i don´t mind, i´m the driver)
-the glovebox (´cause gloves are the only things you can store in it)

4 everybody who doesn´t know, Stuttgart is the town where (almost) every Mercedes Benz is built. You´ll have a hard time here, to make the girls look around with all these AMG, Brabus and Carlsson cars here in town...but with the Prelude you can do it...EASY! It´s an eyecatcher.
The digital fuel and engineheat display looks very cool.
The handling is very good for its size.
The valueloss is very low for a japanese car (in germany).
I can recommend it to everyone who likes sporty cars and drives most of the time alone or with (max.) one pal.

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Mercedes CLK 230k (too heavy,toooo expensive)
Mercedes SLK 200k (a good car, but also too expensive)
´00 Toyota Celica GT (one hell of a car, would be my second choice)

Pretty fast for being a 4 clyinder. Kinda good gas mileage.

Eats some gas up in the city. Not responsive engough. My 1996 Camaro spanks my 1992 prelude.

8100, mines when i bought it had 116,000 miles, custom rims, lowered 2 inches, ground effects, tinted windows, arospeed exhaust. I would recommed this car. Its an import what else can i say.

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1994 GT Grand Am

Engine smooth and quiet as sewing machine.
Decent gas milage 20-24 mpg in the city.
sticks to pavement, fast driving on twisty road.
Fit and finish is tops.
all controls are within reach.
Easy to work on for routine maintenance.
Best looking 2 door sedan back in 1987.
No problem with car, reliable as my other Hondas.

Sits low to the ground so it's tough to get in/out of the car.
Relatively high insurance rate.
Easy to get into trouble if driven too fast.

I paid $12,500 used with 32,000 miles on it back in 1990.
I'd recommend it for anyone who can afford it.

The 5-sp Manual is easy to shift and the driving position is good. The controls are easy to reach and the instruments are easy to read.

Be careful not to get carried away with driving. I almost totaled mine when I was in a hurry and drove too fast off a freeway offramp.

It was nice while I owned it and I miss it.

Similar Products Used:

1985 Civic S, no camparison here as I'd like the Prelude better.
1992 Civic CX, I'd prefer my Prelude.

FAST*SHARP*AFTERMARKET SUPPORT*V22 ENGINE CAN BE TAPPED OUT FOR WIPLASH POWER FOR RACING * AWESOME HANDELING* OVER 20HP STOCK OVER ACURA GSR VERY LIGHT *TONS OF LEG ROOM IN FRONT IM 6FT 3IN WHO CARES ABOUT SMALL BACK SEATS ITS A SPORTS CAR NOT AN ACCORD.

THE FACT THAT I DIDNT BUY ONE SOONER

I BASICALLY STOLE THIS CAR FOR 12K GOOD LUCK FINDING A MINT AZURE BLUE VTEC VTEC HA HA. I RUN HIGH 14 QUARTER MILES CUSTOM INTAKE AND GREDDY POWER EXTREME EXHAUST WERE ALL IT TOOK ENGINE VERY RESPONSIVE TO UPGRADES.
AWESOME CAR FOR ANYONE LOOKING HONDA'S BEST WORK YET.

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NOTHING FOR THE OVERALL BANG FOR BUCK IS CLOSE GSR ISN'T BAD BUT IF YOU GET ONE I'LL SMOKE YOU IN 1/4 MILE.

Engine, Style, Handling, pretty much everything

Interior Room, Sound System

This car just rocks. Nothing compairs to its smoothness, speed and style. I love it... I paid $27,495 CAD for my 98 SH with 15,000 KM - $18,333 USD, 10,000 Miles, what a steal.

I am disappointed with the interior space, but it is a small price to pay to the rest of the car.

All I can say is GET ONE.

Similar Products Used:

Integra, New Cougar, Civic Si

Attractive, very fast it has 160hp, alot of torque I never haveto down shift to go up hills, the best car I ever had

small back seat only fits children
few performance parts for this model
couln't ask for anything more

I paid $8,600 for the car 2 years ago with 59,999 miles on it. The car has 76,000 miles on it now. It is the best handeling car in it's class for under $30,000. I enjoy the car's speed and racing similar cars that can't keep up. If you want a sporty car that has room for a passenger, a trunk, and gets 30 miles to the gallon then you want this car.

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acura integra, honda civic

Handles exceptionally well at excessive speeds, a lot of power.

Leaky, rusted sunroof, and I believe it leaks through the trunk as well. Poor interior construction. noisy ride. Many many many engine repairs have had to be done. Excessive fuel consumption. Interior locks no longer work.

I paid $3000 Canadian for this car, looked great when I bought it, but not a week into driving it, problems began. I have had many problems with the engine (dual carb has been a problem), and the fuel consumption is ridiculous. Many leaks found throughout engine, I have re-sealed all the windows,the sunroof, and the doors. It still leaks into the back! The car doors will not lock from the interior, which makes for quite the hassle. The ride is noisy. The only complaint I don't have about this car is the great handeling at high speeds (120-140km)you feel very comfortable, and the car feels stable, no shakes etc. Even at as low a price as $3000 Canadian, it isn't worth the constant repair hassles. I wouldn't recommend this particular year of Prelude to anyone.

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toyota celica