I found this thread and I'm thinking maybe this is the solution to my problem: rebuilt engine will not rev past 3000 rpm's - Honda Prelude Forum - Prelude Online.com
Apparently it's easy to mix up the TPS and MAP. Maybe the mechanics plugged them up wrong when they did my engine?

 

Yes, swapping the TPS & MAP wires is a semi-common problem. Make sure they're correct then let us know.

 

So i'm a huge beginner to this car stuff...I honestly don't know what the TPS/MAP sensors look like and where they are located. Can you help? All I know is that they are somewhere by the throttle body.

 

They each have 3 wires going to them, I believe the TPS is blue plug and MAP is grey. They interchange, hence the issue you may be having, so try to find two identical but different colored plugs around the TB and swap them. Otherwise, look up on google where they are located, that would be easiest.

 

I located both the TPS and MAP sensors. They both seem to be in the right place because the wires won't even reach in the reverse order. Most people that have had this problem had a check engine light, but I don't. Anything else simple I can try before I bring it back to the mechanic? He's the one that obviously goofed up when swapping my engine...

 

I brought the car back to the mechanic and kept telling me there's nothing wrong with the engine and that it's completely normal. He says there's nothing he messed with for it to do that. Although he said, my throttle body may need to be adjusted? Here's a pic:
He says you can tell where it is clean on the threads and where it's dirty.
http://i1225.photobucket.com/albums/...erk/IMG008.jpg

Or it may be whatever the hell this part is. My dad cracked it a while back by accident:
http://i1225.photobucket.com/albums/...erk/IMG009.jpg

 

I brought my car up to autozone, got them to scan my car for codes, only to find that my check engine light bulb is burnt out and I got the code P1361. So my check engine light has been on and I didn't even know it this is getting worse and worse I swear. On the other hand, I adjusted my throttle body and got no results at all. And they guy at autozone told me that cracked part I posted earlier shouldn't hurt anything because it's my cruise control. So can someone tell me what that engine code means?

 

P1361 is for an intermittent TDC (top-dead-center) sensor. In 97 that sensor is down by the crankshaft pulley. It helps control the spark and fuel timing.

 

Is this definitely why my car won't go past 3000 rpms? The guy at autozone said I have to buy the whole distributor assembly and rotor for $230!

 

I'm not sure if that's the ONLY thing wrong with your car, but that TDC sensor isn't in the distributor. It was in there earlier, like up until 1995 or 1996. It's #17 in this picture, around the crankshaft pulley. Still not a cheap sensor, and it's a PITA to get the crankshaft pulley off.