AI Damage1998 Honda Prelude: common problems
Owners of the 1998 Honda Prelude filed 69 complaints with NHTSA, most often about powertrain and electrical system. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 69
- involving a crash
- 5
What fails most often
- 1 Powertrain 45% of all complaints
- 2 Electrical system 17% of all complaints
- 3 Suspension 13% of all complaints
- 4 Air bags 6% of all complaints
- 5 Engine and cooling 6% of all complaints
- 6 Visibility 6% of all complaints
- 7 Steering 4% of all complaints
- 8 Vehicle speed control 4% of all complaints
- Powertrain: 31 complaints (45% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Electrical system: 12 complaints (17% of all).
- Suspension: 9 complaints (13% of all).
- Air bags: 4 complaints (6% of all), 4 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Engine and cooling: 4 complaints (6% of all).
Engines and transmissions
US-market versions per EPA. On the right: how many NHTSA complaints name this engine or transmission type.
- 2.2 L · petrol · 4 cyl
- automatic, 4-speed
- manual, 5-speednamed in 2 complaints
Drive: FWD
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 69 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Powertrain | 31 | 1 | 0 |
| Electrical system | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| Air bags | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Engine and cooling | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Vehicle speed control | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Latches, locks, linkages | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Service brakes | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Wheels | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Electronic stability control | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Exterior lighting | 1 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
Both frontal air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was totaled and was towed away. The driver sustained injuries even though seat belts were in use. A police report was filed. The dealer has not been alerted. Updated 5/23/2006 -
While traveling 15-20 mph on a neighborhood street with windows up consumer and passenger began to smell something like gas. A few moments later, driver's side and passenger's side airbags deployed without prior warning from airbag light. Consumer depressed brake pedal, causing a frontal collision with a parked car.
Driver traveling on a two lane road, two vehicles where in front, there was an abrupt stop, and the driver crashed into the vehicle in front and the seat belt did not lock, nor did the airbags deploy, the failure forced the driver into the windshield and cracked it. Driver sustained injuries.
While driving or at stop light, car stalls without warning. Must have a jump to restart and can only drive 5-10 miles before car stalls saying battery not charging. Battery and alternator both test as good. Car may start and run normally for several days then problem reappears.
When the contact attempted to start the vehicle, the interior lighting illuminated; however, the vehicle would not start. The vehicle was taken to norm reeves honda superstore west covina ([address], west covina, [ZIP], [phone]) where it was diagnosed that there was electrical failure.
While the car is in motion driving on the free way the car will shut off due to ignition switch or tumbler any key movement will cause the car to shut off making the steering wheel to lock up vary dangerous to travel with children.
My 1998 v-tec honda prelude recently hit 157000 miles and shortly after has been experiencing loss of power, stalling, and loss of steering. Within 5 weeks I have experienced it stall and instantly restart while going through an intersection, lose all power and steering while turning through an intersection, and lose…
The automatic window will not go up, it is stuck inside the door.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 4,461 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 12% most complained about).
On average one model year of the Prelude has 17 complaints (22 years in the data). This year has 69, above average.
What to check before buying
- Powertrain. Shift quality under load, harsh shifts, transmission codes, CV joints.
- Electrical system. Scan all modules, test the battery and alternator, inspect connectors near the impact zone.
- Suspension. Wheel alignment, control arms, subframe, even tire wear.
- Air bags. Check the SRS light, stored codes and airbag/curtain status after any impact.
Other years of this model
- Prelude 19845 sources
- Prelude 19857 sources
- Prelude 198612 sources
- Prelude 198714 sources
- Prelude 198835 sources
- Prelude 198921 sources
- Prelude 19904 sources
- Prelude 199115 sources
- Prelude 199222 sources
- Prelude 199311 sources
- Prelude 19949 sources
- Prelude 19956 sources
- Prelude 19964 sources
- Prelude 199766 sources
- Prelude 199931 sources
- Prelude 200013 sources
- Prelude 200121 sources
- Prelude 202617 sources
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 1998 Honda Prelude?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: powertrain, electrical system, suspension. Total complaints: 69. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: transmission slipping (13%), stalls while driving (7%), knocking, grinding or other noise (6%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 1998 Honda Prelude?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 1998 Honda Prelude from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 1998 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.