Total Complaints
18 filings
HONDA PRELUDE · model year
1991 HONDA PRELUDE
18 NHTSA complaints, 2 crash reports for this specific cohort.
NHTSA overall rating
Not crash-tested
New Car Assessment Program
The 1991HONDAPRELUDE carries 18 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 2 crashes, 4 fires, 4 injuries, and 1 fatality. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.
Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 1991 PRELUDE is seat belts:front:buckle assembly with 3 filings, followed by engine and engine cooling:engine:gasoline (3) and seat belts:front:retractor (2). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability.
NHTSA currently has 1 investigation file overlapping the 1991 PRELUDE. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.
18
Complaints
2
Crashes
4
Fires
4
Injuries
1
Deaths
Crashes Reported
2 reports
Source
NHTSA ODI
Federal complaints database
Complaints vs. fleet median (215)
At or below the fleet median complaint volume.
Complaints by Component
| Component | Count |
|---|---|
| SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY | 3 |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE | 3 |
| SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR | 2 |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE | 2 |
| SEAT BELTS | 1 |
| SEAT BELTS:FRONT:WARNING LIGHT/DEVICES | 1 |
| SEAT BELTS:FRONT:ANCHORAGE | 1 |
| LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:HOOD:LATCH | 1 |
| SEAT BELTS:FRONT | 1 |
| EQUIPMENT:APPLIANCE:AIR CONDITIONER | 1 |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | 1 |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE:BELTS AND ASSOCIATED PULLEYS | 1 |
Recent Complaints
20061212ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE:BELTS AND ASSOCIATED PULLEYS
DT*: THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING 45 MPH A LOUD NOISE WAS HEARD FROM THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE AND THE VEHICLE STALLED. IT WAS MANEUVERED OFF THE ROAD AND TOWED TO THE DEALER WHO DETERMINED THE TIMING BELT NEEDED TO BE REPLACED.
Mileage: 129,000
20030903EQUIPMENT:APPLIANCE:AIR CONDITIONER
AIR CONDITIONER SYSTEM FAILURE: EIGHT (8) DEALER ATTEMPTED REPAIRS; FOUR (4) NEW COMPRESSORS AND COMPLETE SYSTEMS INSTALLED; THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS SPENT (APPROX. $6,000.00); AND A/C REMAINS DEAD.*AK VEHICLE IS 1991 HONDA PRELUDE SI, VIN [XXX], PURCHASED NEW 7/22/91 FROM WOODLAND HILLS HONDA, 6111 TOPANGA CANYON BOULEVARD, WOODLAND HILLS, CA., 91365. A/C PROBLEM BEGAN MAY, 1996 AT 68,000 MILES, AND LAST ATTEMPTED REPAIR ENDED OCTOBER, 2001 AT 142,000 MILES. WE HAVE FOUR (4) HONDA ACCORDS (1991 AND 93 MODELS), ALL OVER 160,000 MILES, WITH NO A/C PROBLEMS. THE BAD A/C SEEMS LIMITED TO PRELUDE ONLY. IT IS VERY HOT IN SAN FERNANDO VALLEY OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA FOR 6 MONTHS OF THE YEAR. ON OCTOBER 10, 2001, WOODLAND HILLS HONDA RECOMMENDED ANOTHER COMPLETE A/C COMPRESSOR AND SYSTEM REPLACEMENT. THE SERVICE MANAGER THERE, [XXX] (NOW GONE), STATED THERE WAS A " COMPLETE SYSTEM PROBLEM" AND ASKED HONDA REGIONAL HQ FOR HONDA AUTHORIZATION TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE A/C SYSTEM WITHOUT CHAR
Mileage: 68,000
20030903ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
AIR CONDITIONER SYSTEM FAILURE: EIGHT (8) DEALER ATTEMPTED REPAIRS; FOUR (4) NEW COMPRESSORS AND COMPLETE SYSTEMS INSTALLED; THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS SPENT (APPROX. $6,000.00); AND A/C REMAINS DEAD.*AK VEHICLE IS 1991 HONDA PRELUDE SI, VIN [XXX], PURCHASED NEW 7/22/91 FROM WOODLAND HILLS HONDA, 6111 TOPANGA CANYON BOULEVARD, WOODLAND HILLS, CA., 91365. A/C PROBLEM BEGAN MAY, 1996 AT 68,000 MILES, AND LAST ATTEMPTED REPAIR ENDED OCTOBER, 2001 AT 142,000 MILES. WE HAVE FOUR (4) HONDA ACCORDS (1991 AND 93 MODELS), ALL OVER 160,000 MILES, WITH NO A/C PROBLEMS. THE BAD A/C SEEMS LIMITED TO PRELUDE ONLY. IT IS VERY HOT IN SAN FERNANDO VALLEY OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA FOR 6 MONTHS OF THE YEAR. ON OCTOBER 10, 2001, WOODLAND HILLS HONDA RECOMMENDED ANOTHER COMPLETE A/C COMPRESSOR AND SYSTEM REPLACEMENT. THE SERVICE MANAGER THERE, [XXX] (NOW GONE), STATED THERE WAS A " COMPLETE SYSTEM PROBLEM" AND ASKED HONDA REGIONAL HQ FOR HONDA AUTHORIZATION TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE A/C SYSTEM WITHOUT CHAR
Mileage: 68,000
20030801SEAT BELTS:FRONT
CONSUMER STATES THAT THE FRONT PASSENGER SEATBELT RELEASES ON ITS OWN AT ANY TIME. DEALER STATES THAT COIL CONNECTOR TERMINATOR NEEDS REPLACING. *AK
Mileage: 193,000
20020515LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:HOOD:LATCH
THE HOOD HAD OPENED UP WHILE MY SON WAS USING THE CAR. THIS RESULTED IN DAMAGE TO THE FRON GLASS, ROOF, LEFT SIDE MIRROR, LEFT SIDE DOOR AND LEFT SIDE FRONT FENDER, AND HOOD.*AK
20010212ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE
CONSUMER PURCHASED A USED VEHICLE WHICH WAS IN NEED OF A NEW ENGINE, AFTER SOME TIME THE CONSUMER WAS ABLE TO HAVE A USED ENGINE INSTALLED AFTER INSTALLATION IT WAS NOTED THAT THE ENGINE WAS BAD BECAUSE THE VEHICLE STILL WOULD NOT RUN (HEAD GASKET, SHORT BLOCK, HEAD ASSEMBLY, TIMING BELT AND OIL PAN). NLM
20000918FireENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE
THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH HONDA PRELUDES...EVERYONE I KNOW WITH A PRELUDE HAS ENGINE PROBLEMS
20000914FireENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE
THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH HONDA PRELUDES...EVERYONE I KNOW WITH A PRELUDE HAS ENGINE PROBLEMS
20000427FireENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
BOUGHT THE CAR AND THE ENGINE BLEW UP AND CAUGHT ON FIRE. FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS CALLED TO PUT OUT THE FIRE THE WAS NO REASON WHY THE ENGINE BLEW OUT AND CAUGHT ON FIRE.... IT THREW A ROD. *AK
20000427FireENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
BOUGHT THE CAR AND THE ENGINE BLEW UP AND CAUGHT ON FIRE. FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS CALLED TO PUT OUT THE FIRE THE WAS NO REASON WHY THE ENGINE BLEW OUT AND CAUGHT ON FIRE.... IT THREW A ROD. *AK
19990325CrashFatalSEAT BELTS:FRONT:ANCHORAGE
THIS HEAD-ON COLLISION WAS INVESTIGATED BY THE CHP. CENTRAL DIVISION CHP M.A.I.T. WAS REQUESTED TO EXAMINE THE FAILURE OF THE DRIVER'S SIDE RESTRAINT. UPON EXAMINATION SGT. ESMAY DETERMINED THAT THE RESTRAINT WAS BEING WORN DUE TO THE SIGNS OF LOADING ON THE WEBBING AND LOOP GUIDE. THE WEBBING OF THE BELT SEPARATED NEAR THE LOOP GUIDE. THE DRIVER OF THIS VEHICLE, DOUGLAS GUY VETCH, DOB 10/06/68, WAS SERIOUSLY INJURED. THE FATAL VICTIM WAS IN THE OTHER VEHICLE. THE SPEED QUOTED(50MPH)IS A ROUGH ESTIMATE BASED ON THE OBSERVED DAMAGE AND APPARENT COLLISION DYNAMICS. THIS COLLISION IS BEING REPORTED PER CHP POLICY. IT IS BEING REPORTED BY SGT. ESMAY AND NOT THE OWNER. REPORTS ARE AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST. SGT. ESMAY
19990111SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY
WHILE DRIVING THE FRONT DRIVER SIDE SEAT BELT BUCKLE WON'T LOCK AND WILL COME APART WHENEVER THE CONSUMER MOVES WHICH MAK'S THE BUCKLE TO OPERATE IMPROPERLY. *AK
19990101SEAT BELTS:FRONT:WARNING LIGHT/DEVICES
SEAT BELT WARNING LIGHT AND BUZZER NEVER STOPS, EVEN IF VEHICLE IS OFF.
19980424SEAT BELTS
POWER SEAT BELT DOES NOT RETRACT.
19960601SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR
DRIVERS SEAT BELT FAILS TO RETRACT. *DSH
19960222SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY
SEAT BELT APPEARS TO CLASP WHEN ENGAGED, HOWEVER SAFETY LIGHT GOES ON, NECESSITATING REENGAGEMENT UNTIL LIGHT GOES OUT. *AK
19950612CrashSEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR
VEHICLE INVOLVED IMPACT 1:00 POSITION SPEED 5 MPH LAP/SHOULDER FAILED TO RETRACT. TT
19950505SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY
NEITHER FRONT SEAT BELTS WILL LATCH. TT
Compare 1991HONDAPRELUDE to Similar Vehicles
NHTSA Investigations
Frequently Asked Questions
How many complaints does the 1991 HONDA PRELUDE have?▼
The 1991 HONDA PRELUDE has 18 NHTSA complaints, 2 crashes, 4 fires, 4 injuries, and 1 deaths reported.
What are the most common problems with the 1991 HONDA PRELUDE?▼
The most-complained component for the 1991 HONDA PRELUDE is SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY with 3 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE and SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR.
Is the 1991 HONDA PRELUDE safe to buy?▼
Review the complaint history, crash and fire reports, safety ratings, and recall status on this page to make an informed decision. No NHTSA crash test rating is available for this model year. Compare with other model years using the links above.
Where does this data come from?▼
All complaint, recall, and safety rating data is sourced from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Complaints are filed by vehicle owners through NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation.
Vehicle Safety Guides
Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.