Owner-reported complaints naming the transmission system, filed with NHTSA
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Reports naming the automatic or manual transmission, including shifting behaviour, shudder, slipping and transmission control modules. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2001 Honda Prelude submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 10 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
JUST LIKE MANY OTHER 97-01 HONDA PRELUDES MY CAR HAS BEGIN TO HAVE PROBLEMS SHIFTING. IF I DO NOT ALLOW MY CAR TO WARM UP IT WILL REV REALLY HIGH AND JERK INTO GEAR. THE FIRST TIME IT HAPPENED I PULLED OUT OF MY DRIVEWAY AND IT REVVED REALLY HIGH. HAD THE DRIVER BEHIND ME NOT SWERVED OVER THEY WOULD HAVE REAR ENDED ME. *TR
WHEN STARTING MY 2001 HONDA PRELUDE, PUTTING INTO D4 (AUTO TRANSMISSION) AND BEGINNING TO DRIVE, IT WOULD HIT 3 RPM AND NOT AUTOMATICALLY SHIFT. AFTER HITTING 3 RPM, IT WOULD REV UP TO 5 RPM BEFORE JERKING INTO GEAR. THIS HAPPENS EACH TIME I FIRST DRIVE MY CAR AFTER IT HAD BEEN SITTING, UNLESS ALLOWING IT 10-15 MINUTES TO COMPLETELY WARM UP. IF 2ND GEAR DID HAPPEN TO ENGAGE, IT WOULD HAVE TO REV AND JERK INTO 3RD GEAR. I HAVE TAKEN IT A FEW TIMES TO THE AUTO SHOP ALTHOUGH THE TRANSMISSION FLUID LEVELS REMAINED FINE AND NO OTHER INDICATION OF A BLOWN TRANSMISSION WAS FOUND. *TR
2001 HONDA PRELUDE SH, HAD A PREVIOUS MANUAL TRANSMISSION OVERHAUL AFTER DRIVING IT FOR 3 DAYS THE MANUAL TRANSMISSION GAVE OUT ON THE VEHICLE 3 DAYS LATER, MAKING LOUD ANNOYING NOISES. *TR
MY 5-SPEED TRANMISSION, IS ALWAYS GRINDING, AND THIS LEADS TO TRANSMISSION FAILURE. I HAVE LOST THE REVERSE GEAR 2 TIMES NOW, AND THE TRANSMISSION ALWAYS GRINDS ON UPSHIFT INTO 5TH GEAR. THERE IS A SERVICE BULLETIN ON THIS PROBLEM, HOWEVER HONDA WILL NOT REMEDY THE PROBLEM. MANY HONDA TECHNICIANS HAVE TOLD ME THAT THESE TRANSMISSIONS NEED TO BE RECALLED AS THIS IS SUCH A BIG PROBLEM. THE PROBLEMS WITH THIS TRANSMISSION HAS COST ME SUBSTANTIAL DOWNTIME, AND MONEY.*AK
TRANSMISSION BROKE. SOMETHING FLEW OUT OF TRANSMISSION, AND SHOT OUT BELOW CAUSE: CLUTCH AND FLYWHEEL CAME APART. THIS WAS ALL STOCK, IF IT HAD SHOT UP I MIGHT HAVE BEEN INJURED. *AK
CAR DID NOT GO INTO ANY OF THE GEARS FREELY. THE CULPRIT WAS A POORLY DESIGNED CLUTCH DISC. THE SPRINGS ON THE DISC POPPED OUT OF THE DISC RESULTING IN CLUTCH FAILURE. *LA
MY HONDA PRELUDE 2001 VIBRATES SEVERELY AFTER DRIVING 2 HOURS AT A STEADY SPEED. HAVE BROUGHT IT BACK FOR SERVICE 4 TIMES; NO PROBLEMS FOUND. THIS IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS FAULT; I AM PLANNING TO SELL IT BUT DON'T WANT TO ENDANGER SOMEONE ELSE.CAN'T UNDERSTAND WHY NO OTHER PRELUDE OWNERS HAVE REPORTED SIMILAR MALFUNCTIONS.
SPRING CAGES ON STOCK CLUTCH FAILED, CAUSING CLUTCH TO FAIL TO DISENGAGE RELIABLY. THIS PREVENTED SHIFTING OUT OF, AND INTO GEAR. THERE WAS NO PRIOR INDICATION OF ONCOMING FAILURE. THE OTHER 3 OF 4 SPRING PERCHES AROUND THE CLUTCH HUB SHOWED SIGNS OF EMINENENT FAILURE AS WELL.
AT APPROXIMATELY 70 MPH ON THE HIGHWAY, THE TRANSMISSION SUDDENLY DOWNSHIFTED FROM 4TH (4 SPEED AUTOMATIC SEQUENTIAL SPORT SHIFT) TO 2ND. CAR LURCHED SUDDENLY FORWARD WITH NO INDICATION TO TRAFFIC BEHIND ME THAT I WAS SLOWING DOWN. IF THE PERSON BEHIND ME HAD BEEN ANY CLOSER, I WOULD HAVE BEEN REARENDED -- IN THIS CASE IT WAS A LARGE TRACTOR TRAILER TRUCK.
BRAKE SYSTEM IS MALFUNCTIONING AND ENGAGING INVOLUNTARILY. FRONT END VIBRATES. ALSO, LEFT WHEEL GETS HOT AND LOCKS UP. VEHICLE HAS A MANUAL TRANSMISSION AND SHOULD ROLL BACK WHEN THE FOOT IS TAKEN OFF OF BRAKE PEDAL ON AN INCLINE. INSTEAD, THE VEHICLE DOES NOT MOVE. DEALER WAS NOTIFIED AND COULD NOT DUPLICATE PROBLEM. *AK THE VEHICLE WOULD VIBRATE TO THE POINT WHERE THE CONSUMER WOULD HAVE TO PULL OFF OF THE ROAD, FOR A THIRD TIME THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. THE LEFT FRONT BRAKE CALIPER AND HOSE HAVE BEEN REPLACED. CONSUMER DOES NOT KNOW IF THE PROBLEM HAS BEEN CORRECTED. *SCC
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
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