Innovative Mounts 97-01 Prelude J-Series Swap Mount Kit

Innovative Mounts 97-01 Prelude J-Series Swap Mount Kit

Putting a J-series V6 into a BB6 Prelude is one of the better ideas in the Honda world and one of the least documented. The engine bay takes the V6 without heroics, the transmission options are cheap and plentiful, and the H22A4 that came out of it was never going to make that kind of torque. What the swap does not have is a bolt-in mount solution, which is exactly what the Innovative Mounts 97-01 Prelude J-swap motor mount kit, part 80152, is for.

What It Is and Why It Works

This is a complete three point conversion mount kit for the 1997-2001 Honda Prelude BB chassis with a manual transmission. In the box are three steel mounts and three sub-brackets covering the driver side, passenger side and rear positions, plus hardware. It is built to locate a J-series V6 in a stock, uncut Prelude engine bay, which is the whole reason people buy it instead of fabricating.

Innovative Mounts lists compatible transmissions as the 04-08 Acura TL, the 03-06 Accord V6 six speed, and the 03 CL. Those are the manual gearboxes the swap community actually uses behind a J32A2 or a J35 based combination, and they are why the mount locations are where they are. There is no automatic version of this kit. If your Prelude is an automatic, this kit is not your answer.

Here is the part every competitor gets backwards, including the copy that used to sit on this page. These mounts do not reduce vibration. Innovative Mounts deletes the fluid filled damping chambers that the factory Honda mounts use and replaces them with solid polyurethane bushings. That is genuinely better for control: less engine movement under load, less wheel hop, sharper throttle response, and a V6 that stays where you put it instead of loading up the axles. The trade is more engine noise and more vibration into the chassis than stock, and it gets worse as durometer goes up, not better. Anyone telling you a 95A mount is smoother than a 75A is selling you something.

Innovative Mounts' durometer ladder is honest about power range. The 75A black bushing is rated 250 to 400 horsepower and is the street answer for the overwhelming majority of J-swapped Preludes. The 85A grey is rated 400 to 500 horsepower. The 95A red is rated 500 and up and is a race car part, full stop. Pick by the power you actually make, not the power you plan to make in two years.

Specs

Available Options

Fitment

Base and Type SH both fit, and unlike most Innovative Mounts Prelude parts there is no trim restriction on this kit. What there is, is a transmission restriction: manual only. This kit does not fit a 1992-1996 BB1 or BB4 Prelude, and it is not a replacement mount kit for a car keeping its H22A4. If your Prelude still has the H22, you want the 97-01 Prelude replacement mount kit instead.

What to Know Before You Buy

Mounts are one line item on a long list. A J-swap in a BB6 also needs the donor transmission, axles that mate the J-series output to the Prelude hubs, shift linkage, a wiring and engine management plan, and a cooling and fuel setup that suits a V6 rather than an H22A4. Innovative Mounts also sells the front conversion torque mount, part 80140, separately, and we would buy it with the kit rather than after. A three point setup on a torquey V6 without the front torque mount lets the engine rock more than you want under throttle transitions, and it is the single most common follow-up order on this part.

Budget for hood clearance. Innovative Mounts states plainly that some Prelude J-swaps need hood spacers or risers to close the hood properly. That depends on which J-series you run and how tall your intake setup ends up. Find out before paint, not after.

Take the non-returnable warning seriously. Once these mounts are bolted down and show bolt impressions, Innovative Mounts will not take them back or swap durometers. Confirm your transmission is one of the three listed and confirm your car is a manual before anything touches a torque wrench. That said, if you do end up wrong on hardness after the fact, Innovative Mounts will change bushing hardness by one level at no charge under their bushing replacement process, which is a genuinely useful safety net most brands do not offer.

On durometer, the mistake we see most is buying 95A for a street car. Owners consistently report that these mounts are harsh for the first week or two and then settle in, and most people find the idle vibration acceptable at 75A and worth the drivetrain control. At 95A on a street driven Prelude, you feel every combustion event through the shifter and the seat, and you will get tired of it. Unless you are actually over 500 horsepower or the car sees more track time than road time, buy the 75A and enjoy the car.

One more piece of the puzzle that trips people up. If you are J-swapping a Type SH, you likely also need the Innovative Mounts 97-01 Prelude Type SH conversion front crossmember bar, part 50113, and not the 50111 replacement crossmember. They look similar and they cost about the same. The 50113 is the J-series one. Also plan on the ATTS system on a Type SH not surviving the conversion, since the J-series drivetrain does not carry it over.