I have made some observations:

In the garage with the engine idling and the transmission in neutral, it makes a noise. I can hear one half of the transmission spinning. Push the clutch in, the noise will stop.
It's not anything I should worry about, is it?

Car will not go into first gear unless you are at a standstill.

Car will not go into second gear above 30km/h when the transmission is cold, and will not go into second gear easily when above 40km/h (which is 3000rpm).

Are other people's transmissions picky as well?

Will a fluid flush help? - (it might nit have been done in as much as 45,000km)

Sounds like your syncros are toasted. A tranny flush MIGHT help but doubt it...fluid should still be pretty new.

Sounds like your syncros are toasted. A tranny flush MIGHT help but doubt it...fluid should still be pretty new.


Interesting.

Really, the syncro issues have absolutely no negative effect on normal use, but I was curious if anyone else had such problems. As I recall, the car has done this for many years (We bought brand new in 1993). Use second gear to take off if moving slowly and third when coming to a standstill, anyway.

If the transmission fluid should still seem new, then I won't bother.

I threw out a guess that it was the syncros because I know that after my mishaps...letting the clutch out only halfway into gear, shifting into first clutchless, going into reverse on the fly...the gears that I ground up are much harder to get into. Plus second gear syncros seem to have been a problem in a few Honda cars lately. So... :dunno:

I have made some observations:





[I]In the garage with the engine idling and the transmission in neutral, it makes a noise. I can hear one half of the transmission spinning. Push the clutch in, the noise will stop.
It's not anything I should worry about, is it?[I]


...throw-out bearing....

..ez..

Throw out bearing sounds right, it's a normal wear item. Wear on it is accelerated if you leave the clutch in at stoplights. A switch to a full synthetic lube will help tremendously if there are no other mechanical problems.

Throw out bearing sounds right, it's a normal wear item. Wear on it is accelerated if you leave the clutch in at stoplights. A switch to a full synthetic lube will help tremendously if there are no other mechanical problems.

Okay... Shall keep that in mind. Car needs the wheels balanced sometime soon, may see if this can be done around the same time.

Thanks for the help, guys.

Okay... Shall keep that in mind. Car needs the wheels balanced sometime soon, may see if this can be done around the same time.

Thanks for the help, guys.

It'll have to be flushed, right?

I'm not sure what type of oil it currently has.

Will two changes do? (Renew the oil, wait a few days, do it again.)
- Or, is this only for automatic transmissions? How many would a stick-shift need?

Or, should this be best left to a mechanic? I've some bad arthritis in my legs which can be pretty restricting. There's one just around the corner anyway.

the throwout bearing on hondas with hydraulic clutches are constant turn bearings. They are in constant contact with the fingers on the pressure plate.
Cable styles are adjusted to keep a very slight distance from the plate to bearing.

I'd be looking at the release system, i.e. cable or hydraulics.

If it's cable you should have NO more than 1 inch of free travel at the pedal. If more, it needs adjusting.

If it's hydraulic, at the pedal you should feel the same amount of free travel, however, if the action is spongy part way down, and then firms up, it may have had air in the system. On some hydraulic systems it is very difficult to get all trapped air out.

You should be able to get into 1st, usually at speeds under 20mph. The way you describe the reluctance to allow 2nd, doesn't sound like sychros, it sounds like the clutch isn't fully releasing. Normally when synchros go out the thing will GRIND as you go into gears with the clutch in.

The noise you mention sounds like bearing rattle/hiss, have you ever checked the level of the fluid and what was put in it? Should be either 10w30 or MTF, now preferring Honda's MTF. If it's been run low, strange things like you mention can happen. I've witnessed really odd noises and shifting and changing the fluid does help, for a while.

Do not use synthetic lube in the trans BTDT, it causes synchro grind on some units.

the throwout bearing on hondas with hydraulic clutches are constant turn bearings. They are in constant contact with the fingers on the pressure plate.
Cable styles are adjusted to keep a very slight distance from the plate to bearing.

I'd be looking at the release system, i.e. cable or hydraulics.

If it's cable you should have NO more than 1 inch of free travel at the pedal. If more, it needs adjusting.

If it's hydraulic, at the pedal you should feel the same amount of free travel, however, if the action is spongy part way down, and then firms up, it may have had air in the system. On some hydraulic systems it is very difficult to get all trapped air out.

You should be able to get into 1st, usually at speeds under 20mph. The way you describe the reluctance to allow 2nd, doesn't sound like sychros, it sounds like the clutch isn't fully releasing. Normally when synchros go out the thing will GRIND as you go into gears with the clutch in.

The noise you mention sounds like bearing rattle/hiss, have you ever checked the level of the fluid and what was put in it? Should be either 10w30 or MTF, now preferring Honda's MTF. If it's been run low, strange things like you mention can happen. I've witnessed really odd noises and shifting and changing the fluid does help, for a while.

Do not use synthetic lube in the trans BTDT, it causes synchro grind on some units.


Thanks for your help.

It's a hydraluic system, btw. I wouldn't say that there was air in the system, if the fluid in the clutch master and slave cylinders was ever altered, it would have been at the dealer (many years ago). I'm relatively sure that the clutch is fully releasing as there is a healthy amount of travel in the pedal (letting it out) before I am be able to hear the clutch half of the transmission spinning. There's also a healthy amount of travel before the car will actually react, too.

And, as the car has had this reluctance in first/second for a very long time, It might even have been a slighly defective model when produced. After a quick drive the seocnd gear issue may not have been bad as I'd thought, but first is still the same.

The gearbox has not been abused, either.

I'll be speaking to the local mechanic soon about renewing the transmission oil, to see if anything happens (it's die anyway). After that, it's just going to be left alone.

Just for giggles, check the shift cables at the transmission, I believe yours should have cables. Make sure they are free on their mounts and no hardware is missing.

If not it's a rod shifter on the bottom of the trans. not much to do there except to make sure the bushings are in good shape.

Your 1-2 is like my 6 speeds shift to 6th, when cold (below 40) it doesn't want to go in until its driven a couple of miles in 5th.

I'd try a fluid change to see if anything happens, look for debris in the old oil.