PlayboyDee

I just bought a 2k1 Honda Prelude (Red) in Sept. 2003. I have always wanted a prelude but I really wanted the SH model, or at least a standard one. I didnt have a vehicle when I got it, so I didnt have enough time to do alot of research. I came upon the Prelude I have now and got a good deal on it and went ahead and got it. At the time, the automatic transmission didnt bother me too much, but now it seems like manual is the way to go. What I wanted to know is if there is any major difference between the auto and manual prelude? Im really considering getting a manual one, but need some opinions on the subject.

Thanks...

fastball

So you own a sportshift Prelude now, and you want to sell that and get a manual? Just wanted to clearify. That's a good idea, because there have been some reliability issues with the SS transmission to begin with. But you get so much better performance with a stick shift anyway. And this car shifts so smooth and easy, I love mine. I have about 97k on the odometer (bought it new in Dec. '99), and other than routine maintainance I've had no problems with it. The manual definitely gives you more control, and you get a full tach...... it looks so cool when you take it to red line in each gear and the needle points directly to the speedo!

monkey

not only is the manual much more reliable, but manual ludes also lose ALOT less hp than a auto. not only that, the gearing is much better on a 5spd.

5hift

So is there a way to change from an SS to a manual without getting a new car? I have an SS in my 97 Lude, I like it, but when I finally begin to modify it, I want as much hp out of it as possible.

hazmat

think of it like this tho there is no imperfection with the auto shifting but with the manual there is always human error and another thing to clear up hp stays the same if its an auto or a stick for the main reason the engin does not change the only dif between the to trannys would be gearing

fastball

:thinking:

4thgenlude

I say you should definetaly do it, manual is so much better

fastball

You could do it, but that would be very expensive. Very, very expensive. When you're all done buying the parts and have someone in line to do it, you're also going to have your car in a million pieces. IMO, not worth it.

monkey

what are you talking about? the auto makes one shift in the time that it would take me to make 3 shifts, and i'm not even good at speed shifting. where it shifts seems to be completely arbitrary and if you're in "SS" mode you're picking when it shifts anyway.

and yes there is a difference in driveline loss auto vs manual. in fact it's a huge difference. auto ludes dyno 12-15 hp less, STOCK, because they lose 25% of the power from the flywheel. manual ludes only lose 15%. 12-15 hp now, imagine when you've got a fully built NA motor making 320 hp, and your SS tranny is losing 25% of that. (80 hp lost, vs 48 hp)

yes people have done SS to manual swaps, especially those whose SS trannies have already failed and are no longer under warranty. it'll cost somewhere around 3500 bucks, i think. it depends on whether you can get all the parts cheaply and find someone to do the labor for you.

stickyshifter

Why not sell the prelude that you have now, and buy a 5speed? This way you won't do any serious mods in your car before you actually DO any mods, also, save you a lot of money for other goodies like performance parts. I would say sell what you have, with that money, go find a 5 speed, hopefully if you are lucky, one with Vtec!

Good luck

ps. oh yeah, 5 speed is so much sweeter than any auto, ss or otherwise.