I know I'm gonna be asking a biased crowd, but....

I find myslef in a bit of a tough situation. I have the oportunity to get my hands on a 1997 Prelude for a VERY good price, but I have to decide whether it's worth selling my car or not to get it.....

I've had my '96EX for just over two years now and I've slowly been getting it the way I want it, but now I have a close family friend that is planning on selling her '97 Prelude. It's lady driven (mature woman), bone stock, and has had the majority of its service done at Honda. Here's a little list of things I need to consider:

1996 Civic EX Coupe
Black
~278,000 km on car (still in great shape)
~90,000 km on swapped motor (2000 d16y8)
Manual tranny
tinted
drilled rotors
face-off deck
mp3 cd changer
amp
a/m speakers
alarm
cai with K&N
dc sport header
2.5" stailness mandrel cat-back
short shifter
SiR rims
tires
winter rims and tires
less than 1 month old complete body work and paint job (exterior is flawless)
two brand new OEM headlight assemblies

Pros
All the improvements listed above
Cheap on parts and repair
Motor is cheap and easy swap (in case I blow it again...)
Very fuel efficient, can use regular fuel
Stick
Still has room for improvement (ie: boost)

Cons
Will lose all the above
Not as powerful as Prelude

1997 Prelude
Black
~180,000 km on car and motor
Auto with triptronic
lady driven (mature woman)
completely stock
winter tires
stock rims
no tint

Pros
H22 (lots of power)
Lot's of room for personal alterations
Lady driven (very carefully)
Service done at Honda
winter tires

Cons
not as fuel efficient, premium fuel required
auto
more expensive to repair and for parts
need to invest money into aftermarket items (ie: I/H/E)
will want to get a paint job (original paint may be faded)

I REALLY love my Civic, but I've always really liked the Prelude. In fact it was one of my first choices when car shopping, and now I have chance to get one... So that's my bind. Any suggestions? (even other pros/cons)

Thanks!

 

Id keep the civic. I dont like automatic preludes.

 

I'd definitely keep the Civic...

First of all, you know right where you're at with that car. You've been through the thing and you know it's a fine car with plenty of toys on it to get you into trouble and incidentally, good times.

Second of all, that Prelude is an auto. I personally hate automatics in general, much less an auto Prelude.

Third of all, weigh the balance here. Look at what you've got. You've got a car that's right about where you want it with some decent room for improvement yet and you know it's reliable.

...pm me if you want me to keep this up...I could go all day. Keep the civ.

 

Just get a turbo, and you would be so much faster than the prelude.

 

FORGET the auto lude. I also hate auto cars stick with the civic u kno where u are at with it and it is a work in progress.

 

keep the civic! I remember testing a prelude several years back w/ that auto tiptronic thing and remember it being a nice but boring ride...suffice to say I didnt buy it, didnt even think about it after the test drive.

 

I've driven three Preludes, two of which had the auto triptronic deal. The manual one I drove was a blast (I/H/E, short shifter, upper/lower strut bars, etc.) and the car looks good, but I'd still pick a Civic I've gone through and know well over it any day.

You could always look around for a Teggy if you're not entirely happy with the Civic. All they are is a heavy Civic (don't remember who put it like that on here, but it's well put indeed).

 

the civic cuz the prelude is auto...

 

i'd keep the civic. a h22 sounds good but the h22 with a auto tranny is like having a corndog with ranch [:'(]lol keep the civic

 

i hate automatic cars but thats just my bias advice. to me automatic cars arnt fun all u do is steer and hope u dont crash.