----- Original Message -----
From: Rich Johnston <richj50@bit-net.com>
> > From: Jamie Sculerati <jamies@mrj.com>
> >
> > There are no particular reasons for or against the 4WS option <SNIP>
>
> It sounds like maybe there are reasons for?
Maybe -- but I can't prove it one way or another. I've never run into a 4WS
car at an autocross, and all the road racing and rally Preludes I know of
are/were 2WS cars.
> That's perfectly understandable that the general public wouldn't care.
I'm
> surprised that the ATTS system on the 5th gen. Preludes lives on because
it
> is even less noticeable and even more expensive. But just because it
> wasn't worth anything to the general public doesn' t necessarily mean that
> its worthless to enthusiasts or autoxr's specifically, right? On the car
> I'm looking at, I wouldn't be paying extra for the 4WS. I did pull out an
> old Motor Trend where a 92 4WS Prelude pulled .89g on the stock tires and
> ran faster than a Probe GT in the slalom.
A '92 Car and Driver test had a 2WS Prelude and a Probe GT equal on the
skidpad, with the Prelude a bit faster through the slalom. Of course, this
was the old-style Probe. A '94 test had the newer Probe still equal with
the Prelude (VTEC this time -- still 2WS) on the pad, but the Probe was
slightly faster through the slalom. Personally, I think they muffed the
slalom on the second test -- it was slower than the one two years before --
but.... :) Like I said, there are magazine test data out there -- I just
haven't seen anything turn up in competition.
> BTW, I found the Si engine to be nearly identical to the VTEC engine below
> 5500 or so. And I could feel the extra low-end torque over the VTEC
> engine. The only concern I have with the Si engine is running out of gear
> in 2nd. I read that 2nd runs out at 58mph which seems a little slow for
> many courses, or maybe I'm just used to having 300+ hp :)
Shift! You must run some really monster courses -- I rarely get out of
second. For those that demand it (like this afternoon's course at Ft
Meade), quick upshifts are easy at about 5500-6000 rpm -- that puts you
right back in the meat of the torque curve. And it's not hard (in my feet,
anyhow) to do heel-and-toe downshifts when you get to the end of the
straight.
> 87 Prelude (tired)
Too bad -- but yes, 100-110 hp just isn't enough for a 2500 lb car in E
Stock anymore. I have fond memories of my '84, but I wouldn't trade back.
Jamie
'92 Prelude Si
Speed Demon Racing
http://www.mindspring.com/~jsculerati/sdr
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