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3rd Gen Honda Prelude - Australia
Hiya chaps and chapettes
Melbourne based build thread here - Not much happening around the forum these days but i didn't wan't to setup my own website just to blog the progress.. These cars need way more attention than they get!
Now, let me start from the moment i picked it up.
November 2019
I was originally searching for an EF Civic hatch (or sedan) for a daily driver.. something really simple to do my own maintenance on, and cheap to run.. wasn't expecting much from it.
Then this 1991 Honda prelude popped up on carsales. I had no idea they made preludes before the 4th gen, so it was a total shock to me - i loved the styling, loved how unique it was compared to anything i've ever owned before (Fiesta XR4, VR6 Bora, '08 wrx STI, mini cooper S, etc) and i just had to have it.
So i jumped on a train and headed south of Melbourne on a 3 hour journey. Test drove it, and took it right then and there.
I was a little skeptical at first, buying it off a teenager whom after some internet stalking didn't care too much for it, but i stuck with my gut feeling and took it home anyway.
First stop? Petrol station. I was over 100km from home, and needed fuel.. The previous owner did mention the battery was a bit old before i left.. anywho, i went to start her up and the cranking slowed drastically. "f**k sakes" i thought to myself. 2% phone battery, car battery is dead.. what in the world do i do?
I scrambled to sent the previous owner a message to give me a jump - i sent the message out before my phone died. I patiently waited about 15 minutes in worry not exactly knowing whether he would show. Finally he rocked up, we had a little laugh at the matter and we then went our separate ways.
Driving it home was amazing. It gave me instant 90s JDM vibes, the leather seats, the known honda exhaust tone (doesn't sound as terrible inside the car as it does, so i understand why people enjoy it). It was perfect for what i was looking for. My whole plan for a cheap, easily daily was straight out the window.. but do these plans ever work for us car enthusiasts? I genuinely don't think so.
Here are some photos of when i picked it up.
Factory leather interior
Engine Bay
For the first 2 months i wanted to see how the car went as is and to do some required/compulsory servicing before i go deep in to the realm of modifications.
Overall, it ran great. General servicing including sparks, oils, filters and tyres were replaced. It had some initial starting issues (old distributor, cap, and battery fixed this quick smart). Other than that.. not a single issue!
DECEMBER 2019
Half way through December, it began to develop a grinding noise. It wasn't an easy problem to isolate so i began the process of elimination - Driveshafts were original and leaking. Replaced these, problem persisted. Saw a broken engine mount, replaced all of them.. still there. Zero signs of wheel bearing issues. And the grind only happened on a certain angle, and while the engine was over 1.5k revs.. i was puzzled! "Could it be the carrier bearing?" i thought to myself.. so i went ahead and ordered a new one.
Then summer hit.. oh man, was she a blistering summer! The car could not take the heat - old coolant or was topped up with water at some point, and caused it to overheat.
Thankfully i caught it really early, and only lost 500ml of coolant. Wasn't happy!
Left it there to "cool down" (ended up coming back for it 8 hours later when it wasn't over 45'c) and took it home to prop her up and take a look at what, if any damage has been caused.
"ahh.. shit." I go.. Oil and coolant leaks! Who know's where they were coming from, but it was clear the water pump and head gasket were 2 of the major leaks (no coolant in the oil though.. i was happy!)
So i began to collect what servicing parts i needed for the strip down. Hard parts to find.. even harder for companies to differentiate the 2 models of the same generation! What a headache.
This took many weeks, but i eventually got enough to begin the rebuild.
MARCH 2020
Then COVID-19 came along, which was a blessing and a curse for me. I lost both of my jobs but now i have 24 hours of the day to get the bay up to scratch!
I got home from my last day at work, and went shopping. I had the "while i'm there" thought process and went ham on replacing what i could, or what was needed to be done.. "within budget" LOL that went out the window real quick.
I took the first week off, to order whatever i could source.. and then i got started on the tear down!
I pulled apart the entire front end - if i was going to fix the head gasket and do a wire tuck, not only is it easier to have all of the panel off, it's a perfect time to do a deep clean - 30 years of dirt has been built up!
It's smart to label whatever you can, even if you know what it's for.
How i dispose of my old coolant and oils.. 20L vinegar drums from work!
I originally stored everything down the side, it has changed since.. too many spiders. lol
Melbourne based build thread here - Not much happening around the forum these days but i didn't wan't to setup my own website just to blog the progress.. These cars need way more attention than they get!
Now, let me start from the moment i picked it up.
November 2019
I was originally searching for an EF Civic hatch (or sedan) for a daily driver.. something really simple to do my own maintenance on, and cheap to run.. wasn't expecting much from it.
Then this 1991 Honda prelude popped up on carsales. I had no idea they made preludes before the 4th gen, so it was a total shock to me - i loved the styling, loved how unique it was compared to anything i've ever owned before (Fiesta XR4, VR6 Bora, '08 wrx STI, mini cooper S, etc) and i just had to have it.
So i jumped on a train and headed south of Melbourne on a 3 hour journey. Test drove it, and took it right then and there.
I was a little skeptical at first, buying it off a teenager whom after some internet stalking didn't care too much for it, but i stuck with my gut feeling and took it home anyway.
First stop? Petrol station. I was over 100km from home, and needed fuel.. The previous owner did mention the battery was a bit old before i left.. anywho, i went to start her up and the cranking slowed drastically. "f**k sakes" i thought to myself. 2% phone battery, car battery is dead.. what in the world do i do?
I scrambled to sent the previous owner a message to give me a jump - i sent the message out before my phone died. I patiently waited about 15 minutes in worry not exactly knowing whether he would show. Finally he rocked up, we had a little laugh at the matter and we then went our separate ways.
Driving it home was amazing. It gave me instant 90s JDM vibes, the leather seats, the known honda exhaust tone (doesn't sound as terrible inside the car as it does, so i understand why people enjoy it). It was perfect for what i was looking for. My whole plan for a cheap, easily daily was straight out the window.. but do these plans ever work for us car enthusiasts? I genuinely don't think so.
Here are some photos of when i picked it up.
Factory leather interior
Engine Bay
For the first 2 months i wanted to see how the car went as is and to do some required/compulsory servicing before i go deep in to the realm of modifications.
Overall, it ran great. General servicing including sparks, oils, filters and tyres were replaced. It had some initial starting issues (old distributor, cap, and battery fixed this quick smart). Other than that.. not a single issue!
DECEMBER 2019
Half way through December, it began to develop a grinding noise. It wasn't an easy problem to isolate so i began the process of elimination - Driveshafts were original and leaking. Replaced these, problem persisted. Saw a broken engine mount, replaced all of them.. still there. Zero signs of wheel bearing issues. And the grind only happened on a certain angle, and while the engine was over 1.5k revs.. i was puzzled! "Could it be the carrier bearing?" i thought to myself.. so i went ahead and ordered a new one.
Then summer hit.. oh man, was she a blistering summer! The car could not take the heat - old coolant or was topped up with water at some point, and caused it to overheat.
Thankfully i caught it really early, and only lost 500ml of coolant. Wasn't happy!
Left it there to "cool down" (ended up coming back for it 8 hours later when it wasn't over 45'c) and took it home to prop her up and take a look at what, if any damage has been caused.
"ahh.. shit." I go.. Oil and coolant leaks! Who know's where they were coming from, but it was clear the water pump and head gasket were 2 of the major leaks (no coolant in the oil though.. i was happy!)
So i began to collect what servicing parts i needed for the strip down. Hard parts to find.. even harder for companies to differentiate the 2 models of the same generation! What a headache.
This took many weeks, but i eventually got enough to begin the rebuild.
MARCH 2020
Then COVID-19 came along, which was a blessing and a curse for me. I lost both of my jobs but now i have 24 hours of the day to get the bay up to scratch!
I got home from my last day at work, and went shopping. I had the "while i'm there" thought process and went ham on replacing what i could, or what was needed to be done.. "within budget" LOL that went out the window real quick.
I took the first week off, to order whatever i could source.. and then i got started on the tear down!
I pulled apart the entire front end - if i was going to fix the head gasket and do a wire tuck, not only is it easier to have all of the panel off, it's a perfect time to do a deep clean - 30 years of dirt has been built up!
It's smart to label whatever you can, even if you know what it's for.
How i dispose of my old coolant and oils.. 20L vinegar drums from work!
I originally stored everything down the side, it has changed since.. too many spiders. lol
It's soooo time consuming, something that is super under-estimated until you're in there doing it!
No idea.
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