engine, tranny, diff oils, which ones for 2001 prelude?

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Hi guys. I recently aquired a 2001 Honda prelude with low miles, around 25K and in perfect condition. I know you guys are the best on the net at anything to do with oils, so here goes. I need your advice on what type of engine, transmission, and differential oils I should be using. If possible I also need advice on antifreeze, since this is an aluminum block that likes to run hot. Brake fluid adivce and clutch fluid advice would also be welcomed. I live in Canada and during winters it gets cold and summers are fairly hot. You guys probably know that the engine is high reving, upto about 8000rpm. I like to DRIVE my car, so I am not easy on it by any means. I do take care of it and I do not trash the **** out of it. I am the type of driver that 70% of the time accelerates fairly fast and 30% very fast. That about summarizes my driving habbits, the conditions, and my car. Thanks for reading and I welcome any replies.
 
Read the owners manual and list the requirements by Honda so that correct recommendations can be made.
 
Congratulations on getting an awesome car. I have a 2001 SE and I love it.

Engine oil: Redline 5W-30
Transmission oil: 50% Redline MTF and 50% Redline MT-90
Brake fluid: Motul DOT 5.1
Coolant: Honda OEM

You have an open diff and tranny oil lubricates it. I assume you have a 5-speed manual and a base Prelude and not an American Type SH. Redline oils are awesome and the 5W30 is good enough for both summer and winter. If you track the car, use 10W30 in the summer. I prefer to have synthetic fluids, so I don't use Honda MTF or GM Synchromesh in my tranny, although those are very good oils. Redline MTF caused my gears to grind a bit, so a 50-50 mix of MTF and MT-90 made my gear engagement buttah smooth. Motul DOT5.1 is an awesome brake fluid which can stand up to occasional track use as well. You can use this fluid as clutch fluid as well. I've tracked my car a few times and never had any problem with the coolant, so I'd stick with Honda OEM.

I highly recommend using winter tires in winter as the stock RE92s are horrible.

[ July 05, 2004, 02:08 PM: Message edited by: Ferrari ]
 
I've heard that Prelude's engine like to burn some oil. If your car doesn't burn any oil I would use Mobil 1 5/10W-30. GC 0W-30 might be a good option. If engine burns oil significantly (more than 1 quart per 1000 miles) I would go with Mobil SUV 5W-40 or Redline 10W-40.

If I'm not mistaken transmission calls for Honda MTF. I would recommend staying with OEM fluid.

For differential I would use 75W-90 Mobil 1, Amsoil, or Redline. It doesn't make a real difference in this case. Any of the 3 above stated gear oils would work fine.

I agree with Ferrari on using Honda OEM coolant. This is a good move to avoid any compatibility issues.

Brake fluid like Motul 5.1, Motul 600, ATE Blue/Type 200, even Valvoline and Castrol LMA will work fine. Make sure that all your other brake and suspension components are in a good shape.

Hope this helps,

[ July 05, 2004, 03:06 PM: Message edited by: Titanium_Alloy ]
 
quote:

I assume you have a 5-speed manual and a base Prelude and not an American Type SH.

American? My buddy has an SH... they're all over the place around here.

I'd agree with Titanium's suggestions regarding the oil & tranny fluid. Just make sure the ATTS (if you have it) doesn't call for anything 'special'.

Never seen Motul anything around here. I'd probably go OEM Honda for the brake & clutch fluid; easier to find. (and power steering)

Differential?
 
quote:

Originally posted by mrhonda:

quote:

I assume you have a 5-speed manual and a base Prelude and not an American Type SH.

American? My buddy has an SH... they're all over the place around here.


We did not get any Type-SH in Canada in 2000 and 2001. So if he has a 2001 it's either a base Lude or an American SH.
 
Hi guys. I have a SE version. Thanks a lot for all the replies. I will probably stick with mobile 1, since some people on this board are not too happy with redline and it is the most expensive. What oil filter would you recommend to use? I was going to use K&N since I have read a fair bit about them and they seems like great filters. Let me know if you guys have any more suggestions. Thanks a lot.
 
If you are going to go Mobile 1 go all the way ..get a Mobile 1 oil filter too...puralator (sp) and Wix also make good ones.
 
quote:

Originally posted by deepsquat:
If you are going to go Mobile 1 go all the way ..get a Mobile 1 oil filter too...puralator (sp) and Wix also make good ones.

They don't sell the M1 oil filter here in Canada, his best bet is to grab a K&N oil filter from Canadian Tire.
 
Repeat after me.. Mobil! Mobil! NOT Mobile!
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For brake fluid, I would suggest the Ford Dot3 high temp brake fluid that you can buy at CT. Many Prelude owners and other auto-x/lappers have used this fluid with great results.

Another option if you decide on Mobil 1 and would like to use only one viscosity all year round is the 0w40 grade. It cut the consumption in my Prelude in half and if you are in the GTA area, the Noco outlet in Etobicoke sells it for ~$7/L.

Another option for an oil filter is the higher line "premium" filter from Carquest. It's made by Wix, and it's a very good filter for filtration and construction.

Honda has also released a new filter for the S2000, designed for higher flow and pressure. I'm not sure if it would fit the Prelude and unfortunately it's rather expensive in Canada, heard prices of upwards of $30 each.
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I got mine from the US for $5.
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And last but not least, if you already haven't found us, here is the best Prelude related forum in Canada..
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http://hondaprelude.to/forums/index.php?
 
Hey quicklude why do you say to use 0w40. I dont really understand too much about engines, but the manual says to use 5w30. Can you explain why 0w40 would be better for me. Wouldnt 0w40 provide a bit less engine wear protection? Please let me know. Thanks a lot guys. Any more suggestions will be appreciated.
 
Preferably 5W-40, 0W-40 or 0W-30 synthetic or 10W-40 semi-synthetic oils certified for ACEA A3/B3 and approved by major European manufacturers. I don't know well 5W-40 or 10W-40 available on N.A. market, but M1 0W-40 and Castrol SLX (GC) 0W-30 would be fully OK. These grades are widely used by Honda Europe. Honda Japan recommends now its 5W-40 for all models, but for Type-R, NSX and S2000 it's the oil of the first choice:
http://www.honda.co.jp/parts/hop/oil/next02.html
 
quote:

Originally posted by Ferrari:
Congratulations on getting an awesome car. I have a 2001 SE and I love it.

Engine oil: Redline 5W-30
Transmission oil: 50% Redline MTF and 50% Redline MT-90
Brake fluid: Motul DOT 5.1
Coolant: Honda OEM

You have an open diff and tranny oil lubricates it. I assume you have a 5-speed manual and a base Prelude and not an American Type SH. Redline oils are awesome and the 5W30 is good enough for both summer and winter. If you track the car, use 10W30 in the summer. I prefer to have synthetic fluids, so I don't use Honda MTF or GM Synchromesh in my tranny, although those are very good oils. Redline MTF caused my gears to grind a bit, so a 50-50 mix of MTF and MT-90 made my gear engagement buttah smooth. Motul DOT5.1 is an awesome brake fluid which can stand up to occasional track use as well. You can use this fluid as clutch fluid as well. I've tracked my car a few times and never had any problem with the coolant, so I'd stick with Honda OEM.

I highly recommend using winter tires in winter as the stock RE92s are horrible.


Great advice!

Redline 5W-30, 5W-40, 10W-30, or 10W-40 are all great oils!

I'd use 5W-30 Redline, and think about 5W-40 for hard driving.

Redline MTL or 50% Redline MTL 50% Redline MT-90 is the best!

Motul 5.1 is a great brake fluid

And Honda coolant and distilled water is the best choice!
 
Hi guys, I need some more advice. For the life in me I can not find M1 5w40 anywhere in Edmonton, Alberta. I found a store that is selling royal purple and they were going to give it to me at a 10% discount. How is this stuff? Should I stick with M1 or would royal purple 5w40 do the job just fine. Please let me know.
 
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