Honda Prelude
Owners filed 271 complaints across 17 model years of the Honda Prelude. The 1998 drew the most (69); the 2006 the fewest (0).
Model years17
Complaints271
Recalls53
Fires4
Deaths2
Every Honda Prelude model year compared
Complaints per year| Year | Complaints | Relative volume | Recalls | Fires | Crashes | Most reported | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | Routine | |
| 2005 | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | Routine | |
| 2004 | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | Routine | |
| 2003 | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | Routine | |
| 2002 | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | Routine | |
| 2001 | 21 | 3 | — | 3 | Power Train › Manual Transmission | Routine | |
| 2000 | 13 | 3 | — | 1 | Power Train › Automatic Transmission | Routine | |
| 1999 | 31 | 4 | — | 2 | Tires › Tread/Belt | Routine | |
| 1998 | 69 | 5 | — | 5 | Power Train › Automatic Transmission | Fatalities reported | |
| 1997 | 66 | 5 | — | 3 | Power Train › Automatic Transmission | Routine | |
| 1996 | 4 | 6 | 1 | — | Engine and Engine Cooling › Engine › Gasoline | Routine | |
| 1995 | 6 | 5 | — | 3 | Engine and Engine Cooling › Engine › Gasoline | Routine | |
| 1994 | 9 | 5 | 1 | 2 | Air Bags › Frontal | Routine | |
| 1993 | 11 | 5 | — | 1 | Tires | Routine | |
| 1992 | 22 | 5 | — | 7 | Air Bags › Frontal | Routine | |
| 1991 | 15 | 1 | 2 | 2 | Seat Belts › Front › Buckle Assembly | Fatalities reported | |
| 1990 | 4 | 1 | — | — | Seat Belts › Front › Buckle Assembly | Routine |
Which Honda Prelude years should you avoid?
On raw complaint volume the 1998 is the weakest year on record, with 69 complaints concentrated in the power train › automatic transmission. It carries 5 recalls.
Read these numbers with sales volume in mind. A model year that sold in huge numbers naturally accumulates more reports than a rare one, and older cars have had more years to fail. The stronger signal is the severity columns and whether the same component keeps coming up year after year.
Data: NHTSA complaint and recall files, September 2026. Complaints are unverified owner reports.