2000 HONDA PRELUDE lock

Storin
g You r Ca r

If you need to park your car for an
extended period (more than one
month), there are several things you should do to prepare it for storage.
Proper preparation helps prevent deterioration and makes it easier to
get your car back on the road. If possible, store your car indoors. Fill the fuel tank.
Change the engine oil and filter
(see page 183 ). Wash and dry the exterior
completely. Clean the interior. Make sure the
carpeting, floor mats, etc. are
completely dry. Leave the parking brake off. Put
the transmission in Reverse (5- speed manual) or Park (automatic). Block the rear wheels.
If the car is to be stored for a
longer period, it should be
supported on jackstands so the
tires are off the ground. Leave one window open slightly (if
the car is being stored indoors). Disconnect the battery.
Support the front wiper blade
arms with a folded towel or rag so
they do not touch the windshield. To minimize sticking, apply a
silicone spray lubricant to all door
and trunk seals. Also, apply a
vehicle body wax to the painted surfaces that mate with the door
and trunk seals. Cover the car with a "breathable"
cover, one made from a porous
material such as cotton.
Nonporous materials, such as
plastic sheeting, trap moisture,
which can damage the paint. If possible, run the engine for a
while periodically (preferably once a month).
If you store your car for 12 months or longer, have your Honda dealer
perform the inspections called for in
the 24 months/30,000 miles (48,000
km) maintenance schedule (Normal Conditions) as soon as you take it
out of storage (see page 172). The
replacements called for in the
maintenance schedule are not
needed unless the car has actually
reached that time or mileage.

Maintenance

Changin
g a Fla t Tir e

If you have a flat tire while driving, stop in a safe place to change it.
Stopping in traffic or on the shoulder
of a busy road is dangerous. Drive
slowly along the shoulder until you
get to an exit or an area to stop that is far away from the traffic lanes.
1. Park the car on firm, level andnon-slippery ground away from
traffic. Put the transmission in Park (automatic) or Reverse (manual). Apply the parking brake.
2. Turn on the hazard warning lights and turn the ignition switch to
LOCK (0). Have all the
passengers get out of the car while
you change the tire.
3. Open the trunk. Raise the trunk

floor by lifting up on the back edge.

4. Take the tool kit out of the trunk.

5. Unscrew the wing bolt and take
the spare tire out of its well.

CONTINUED

Takin g Car e o f th e Unexpecte d

JAC
K

TOO L KI T TRUN
K

FLOO R

SPAR E
TIR E

The car can easily roll off the

jack, seriously injuring anyone underneath.
Follow the directions for
changing a tire exactly, and never get under the car when it
is supported only by the jack.

Changing a Fla t Tir e
6. The jack is behind a cover in the
left fender. Remove the cover by
turning the handle clockwise, then
pulling on the cover. 7. Turn the jack's end bracket
counterclockwise to loosen it, then
remove the jack. 8. Loosen the five wheel nuts 1/2
turn with the wheel wrench.
Takin g Car e o f th e Unexpecte d
HANDLECOVERWHEE L WRENC H
JACK

Changin
g a Fla t Tir e

9. Locate the jacking point nearest the tire you need to change. It is pointed to by a mark molded
into the underside of the body.
Place the jack under the jacking
point. Turn the end bracket clockwise until the top of the jack
contacts the jacking point. Makesure the jacking point tab is
resting in the jack notch. 10. Use the extension and wheel
wrench as shown to raise the
vehicle until the flat tire is off the
ground.
11. Remove the wheel nuts and flat
tire. Temporarily place the flat tireon the ground with the outsidesurface of the wheel facing up.
You could scratch the wheel if you put it face down.
CONTINUED
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JACKIN
G
POIN T
WHEE
L

WRENC H

EXTENSION

Changing a Fla t Tire , I f You r Engin e Won' t Star t
19. Secure the flat tire by screwing
the wing bolt back into its hole.
20. Store the jack in its holder. Turn the jack's end bracket to lock it in
place. Replace the cover. Store the tool kit. 21. Store the center cap in the trunk.
Make sure it does not get scratch-ed or damaged.
22. Lower the trunk floor, then close the trunk lid.
Type SH only
If you mount the compact spare on
either front or rear tire, it may cause
the ATTS indicator light in the instrument panel to come on due to
the difference in tire diameter. The
light will go out when the proper tire
is installed.
I f You r Engin e Won' t Star t
Diagnosing why your engine won't start falls into two areas, depending
on what you hear when you turn the
key to START (III):
You hear nothing, or almost nothing. The engine's starter
motor does not operate at all, or operates very slowly.
You can hear the starter motor operating normally, or the starter
motor sounds like it is spinning
faster than normal, but the engine does not start up and run.
Takin g Car e o f th e Unexpecte d
Loose items can fly around the
interior in a crash and could
seriously injure the occupants.
Store the wheel, jack and tools
securely before driving.

I
f You r Engin e Won' t Star t

Nothin g Happen s o r th e Starte r
Moto r Operate s Ver y Slowl y
When you turn the ignition switch to START (III), you do not hear the
normal noise of the engine trying to start. You may hear a clicking sound
or series of clicks, or nothing at all.
Check these things: Your car has the Immobilizer
System. You should use a
properly-coded master or valet key
to start the engine (see page 71).
A key that is not properly coded will cause the immobilizer systemindicator in the dash panel to blink
rapidly. Check the transmission interlock.
If you have a manual transmission,
the clutch pedal must be pushed all the way to the floor or the
starter will not operate. With an
automatic transmission, it must be
in Park or Neutral. Turn the ignition switch to ON (II).
Turn on the headlights and check
their brightness. If the headlights
are very dim or don't light at all,
the battery is discharged. See

Jum p Startin g on page 244 .
Turn the ignition switch to START
(III). If the headlights do not dim,
check the condition of the fuses. If
the fuses are OK, there is proba-
bly something wrong with the electrical circuit for the ignitionswitch or starter motor. You will
need a qualified technician to
determine the problem. (See

Emergenc y Towin g on page 258.)
If the headlights dim noticeably or
go out when you try to start the engine, either the battery is dis-
charged or the connections are
corroded. Check the condition of the
battery and terminal connections (see page 198). You can then try
jump starting the car from a booster battery (see page 244).
Takin g Car e o f th e Unexpecte d

I
f You r Engin e Overheat s

6. Look for any obvious coolant leaks, such as a split radiator hose.
Everything is still extremely hot, so use caution. If you find a leak, it
must be repaired before you
continue driving (see Emergenc y
Towin g on page 258).
7. If you don't find an obvious leak, check the coolant level in the
radiator reserve tank (see page131). If the level is below the
MIN mark, add coolant to halfway
between the MIN and MAX marks.
8. If there was no coolant in the reserve tank, you may also have toadd coolant to the radiator. Let the
engine cool down until the pointer
reaches the middle of the tempera-
ture gauge, or lower, before check- ing the radiator. 9. Using gloves or a large heavy
cloth, turn the radiator cap
counterclockwise, without pushing
down, to the first stop. This
releases any remaining pressure in
the cooling system. After the
pressure releases, push down on
the cap and turn it until it comes off. 10. Start the engine and set the
temperature control lever tomaximum. Add coolant to the
radiator up to the base of the filler
neck. If you do not have the
proper coolant mixture available,
you can add plain water. Remember to have the coolingsystem drained and refilled with
the proper mixture as soon as you
can.

11. Put the radiator cap back on tightly. Run the engine and watchthe temperature gauge. If it goes
back to the red mark, the engine
needs repair. (See Emergenc y
Towin g on page 258.)
12. If the temperature stays normal, check the coolant level in the
radiator reserve tank. If it has
gone down, add coolant to the MAX mark. Put the cap back on

tightly.

Takin g Car e o f th e Unexpecte d

Removing the radiator cap
while the engine is hot can cause the coolant to spray out,
seriously scalding you.
Always let the engine and radiator cool down before
removing the radiator cap.

Fuse
s

Checkin g an d Replacin g Fuse s

If something electrical in your car stops working, the first thing you
should check for is a blown fuse.
Determine from the chart on pages 256 and 257 , or the diagram o n the
fuse box lid, which fus
e or fuses
control that component. Check those
fuses first, but check all the fuses before deciding that a blown fuse is
not the cause. Replace any blown
fuses and check the component's
operation.

1. Turn the ignition switch to LOCK (0). Make sure the headlights and
all other accessories are off.
2. Remove the cover from the fuse box.
FUS
E

3. Check each of the large fuses in the under-hood fuse box by
looking through the top at the wire
inside. Removing these fusesrequires a Phillips-head screw-
driver.
4. Check the smaller fuses in the
under-hood fuse box and all the
fuses in the interior fuse box by
pulling out each fuse with the fuse
puller provided in the interior fuse
box.
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BLOW
N
FUS
E PULLE R