I have a 1987 Honda Prelude. As far as I can tell, it has two fuel filters: one behind the left rear wheel and one in the engine compartment on the passenger side. Of the auto service people I've spoken to (Pep Boys, Jiffy Lube, AutoZone), all of them check their little computer and say "It's only got one fuel filter," referring to the one in the engine compartment. The Haynes repair manual says the same thing. And yet I see that little can by the left rear wheel that looks exactly like the service manual's photos for the 1987 1.8L carburetor prelude. Is it a dummy? A fake?
Also, I have been having this problem where the car will start easily and run fine for about 4 or 5 miles and then suddenly there's a dramatic power loss as I wind it up to about 2500 RPM in any gear. The car seems like it's going to die despite me flooring the accelerator. The car never stalls, however. As soon as I let the gas off, it idles just fine. The problem gets progressively worse until I turn the car off and let it sit for awhile. I can baby the car along at about 1800 rpm and continue driving it for some time. If the car has been setting for a week, it might go 5 or 6 miles. What is this?
I had work done on the car about a year ago - new filters all around, replaced some cracked injectors. The engine seems fine when it's running well and doesn't leak or anything. I seem to recall that the guy who worked on it said the tank had some rust or sediment in it or something. I suspect the stalling is likely due to a heavily clogged filter. I'm hoping it's not mechanical or electrical. Any tips would be *much* appreciated. In the meantime, I want to change the filters so any advice is much appreciated.