2nd gear weirdness

08civicman · 03-01-2009, 03:24 PM

ALL my other gears are fine and shift perfect, but lately 2nd gear has gotten a little scratchy/notchy (its not as smooth as it was before). This has been progressing over the last 6 months id say.

I have not ever grinded a gear and my car now has 30,000 km on it, and Im already using the amsoil.

I dont get the 2nd gear though, 10 shifts from 1-2 will be smoother then a babys ass then the next 10 shift will be scratchy/75% less smooth then the first 10 shifts.

I dont understand how it can vary from 10 shifts to the next 10 shifts.

I just had the fluid amsoil fluid changed again for more amsoil and there was no synchro dust / metal in the fluid, it still looked brand new after 25,000km..

Does anyone have any insight into this? Its driving me mad!

Gillex572 · 03-01-2009, 03:36 PM

yeah mine does the same thing .. sometimes my 2nd gear is real smooth than sometimes its like you say .. dosent feel the same at all .. I think it's the syncronisers .. I dont know that's only what I think

08civicman · 03-01-2009, 03:41 PM

I dont get it though, the syncro should either work all the time or none of the time. It shouldnt work perfect for 15 mins then not right at all for 15 mins then back to normal and so forth.

Sometimes it works perfectly on a cold start for 10 mins then once its warm it acts up, or the opposite it does it when cold and not when warm. It does it at low RPMs does it at high RPM, there is no rhyme or reason to when it will work perfect or not.

I know im not the only person whos affected by this large annoyance.

SunRfr08 · 03-01-2009, 04:22 PM

I have that same problem too. Some times I really have to yank it into gear. It started out just once in a while and now its happens once or twice a week. My car has about 18000 miles but it seems toi have been doing it since 15k. In a few eeks I will be have a service done, I will ask the dealer. Howver, It seems odd that we are the only ones with this issue.

Anybody else?

jaxson · 03-01-2009, 05:03 PM

I have a 08 FA5 and I have the same issues that you guys describe. 2nd gear is the only gear that I have issues with since I bought my car about 10,000 miles ago. This is my 1st witner with the car and it's horrible when it's cold out. 2nd gear grinds and it doesn't let me in sometimes until the car has been warmed up for 10 minutes. It has even popped out on me a few times. Have you guys swapped your transmission fluid yet? Mine has gotten better ever since I got the dealer to swap out my fluid and I bought an Ingalls ETD.
The transmissions are usually overfilled from the factory, so you could unbolt the fill bolt and let the extra leak out. Then screw it back on and see if that helps.

08civicman · 03-01-2009, 05:33 PM

Its not a fluid problem with me, as I said before I have not even had a gear grind. I screened the old fluid (amsoil) when i changed it out again this past week at 30,000 km and there was no metal/synchro dust or any foreign things in the oil for that matter. The oil looked almost brand new for 25,000km of use.

This tells me that the transmission is operating properly and not grinding my synchros. Just odd how some shift are butter babys ass smooth, and others are less.

I think im just going to stop worrying about it and say **** it. I have warranty on the car until 120,000 km so i dont really care, Ill just make sure im harder on 2nd gear to expose a mechanical defect if there are any.

koolkat · 03-01-2009, 08:28 PM

I'm not sure if my situation is related to what you guys are experiencing, but I have noticed an increased difficulty at higher rpms. Originally all shifts were butter smooth (with the exception of the third gear issue which was only when cold in the morning) and recently as the car has reached 36k, the shifts have become erratic.

Under normal driving conditions (shifts @ around 3-3500rpms) all shifts are smooth, but let the revs climb to anything above 5k and it is a fight to engage gears. No grinding, just a notchy feeling like something is keeping the gear from engaging. I took my FA5 to the dealer and they tried to blame my short shifter. Give me a break.

So they "flushed" the fluid as they called it and put in new fluid. When I got the car back it was fine at first, but I am already noticing that it is going back to the way that it was. I was almost tempted to trade it in since they believe nothing is wrong with it.

There were no shavings in the fluid so there doesn't appear to be any extreme metal to metal contact, but my thoughts go to the slave cylinder, or throw out bearing.

Just sucks that this ruins any "Spirited" driving since it is too difficult to shift and I don't want to risk damaging anything in the transmission.

If anyone has any advice, suggestions or input please chime in.

immiketran · 03-01-2009, 09:01 PM

I've had the problem since I bought my car, although I don't have an Si, and it drives me nuts. Changing the fluid (to OEM honda) did not help. Second gear isn't bad randomly, it's bad all the time in cold temperatures. It's back to random when the tranny fluid warms up.

Im worried that honda will never warranty it but I never thought of being hard on it on purpose..

gkit19986 · 03-01-2009, 09:03 PM

DOES ANY1 ELSE HAVE THE 4TH GEAR ISSUE OTHER THAN ME? i cant shift into 4th sometimes im pushing it in3rd, id have to doublecutch

BlackHammer · 03-02-2009, 09:29 AM

Bingo, I have a second gear issue too. When I had the 3rd gear replaced, I asked them to look at 2nd as well. Guess what? They didn't. My problem is that it is hard to get into 2nd gear. It feels like there is something you have to push through to get into gear, or a single knotch to get past. Quickly shifting into 2nd at high rpms sometimes grind because of this. Second gear should be extremely easy to shift into and has been for ever other car I have owned (never owned auto). Who knows.

jaxson · 03-03-2009, 12:01 AM

I agree with you all. 2nd gear sucks to put it simply.
It is one of the most, if not the most used gear. I wish my issues where in a higher gear instead because the lower gears are used off the light or in stopped situations, and this is when I need to shift the fastest. If it was 5th gear, I would have more time to get in it because I'm usually up to speed by then and the annoyance wouldn't be as great.

humboldt1498 · 03-03-2009, 04:58 PM

Do any of you having issues have a short shifter?

Notoriously_rob · 03-03-2009, 05:56 PM

upgrade to a twm short shift..it helped me....Seriously!

koolkat · 03-03-2009, 11:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Notoriously_rob

upgrade to a twm short shift..it helped me....Seriously!

I've had the TWM short shift kit. Doesn't make a difference in my case.

Sucks cause this never used to be a problem, but ever since my car hit 30k its been acting up more and more. Today I noticed that it happens only when the rpms reach redline. Under normal driving it is relatively fine.

Gillex572 · 03-04-2009, 10:51 AM

I have the full TWM Short Shifter kit and It still does it, my 2nd gear feels like there are 2 notches to go thru to get into the gear.. like one notch feels like its in the gear but I still have to push it a little more till I can feel the 2nd notch .. it dosent always do this but it happens like one every twenty times..

08civicman · 03-04-2009, 05:15 PM

My car is going in tomorrow evening. I spoke with the service manager tonight and he was very friendly and helpful.

+1 for honda so far. Hopefully the fixing process goes just as smooth.

Gillex572 · 04-06-2009, 02:54 PM

any new news?? nobody found the problem?

vantech · 04-06-2009, 03:43 PM

I'm having the same problem guys, but theres more to it. if i shift into second while at full throttle, it will always miss 2nd after 7k rpms. even if i slowly shift into it. it will not grab.

bigerno_08 · 04-06-2009, 04:25 PM

yup I got the same problem u guys have...for some reason 1 and 2nd gear is always tricky on the si's...

***civicsisedan*** · 04-06-2009, 04:43 PM

thats how it is from 1-2 and 2-3 and 3-4... and it only happens at redline or very close to redline.. like something is blocking the gate..

i dunno .. but i want to know.. i change tranny fluid and everything..

maybe get new base bushing and cables

03-01-2009, 03:24 PM	#1 (permalink)
08civicman Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 231 iTrader: 0 / 0%	2nd gear weirdness ALL my other gears are fine and shift perfect, but lately 2nd gear has gotten a little scratchy/notchy (its not as smooth as it was before). This has been progressing over the last 6 months id say. I have not ever grinded a gear and my car now has 30,000 km on it, and Im already using the amsoil. I dont get the 2nd gear though, 10 shifts from 1-2 will be smoother then a babys ass then the next 10 shift will be scratchy/75% less smooth then the first 10 shifts. I dont understand how it can vary from 10 shifts to the next 10 shifts. I just had the fluid amsoil fluid changed again for more amsoil and there was no synchro dust / metal in the fluid, it still looked brand new after 25,000km.. Does anyone have any insight into this? Its driving me mad! Last edited by 08civicman; 03-01-2009 at 03:25 PM.

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03-01-2009, 03:36 PM	#2 (permalink)
Gillex572 Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: New-Brunswick, Canada Age: 21 Posts: 356 Gilles LeClair iTrader: 0 / 0%	yeah mine does the same thing .. sometimes my 2nd gear is real smooth than sometimes its like you say .. dosent feel the same at all .. I think it's the syncronisers .. I dont know that's only what I think

03-01-2009, 03:41 PM	#3 (permalink)
08civicman Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 231 iTrader: 0 / 0%	I dont get it though, the syncro should either work all the time or none of the time. It shouldnt work perfect for 15 mins then not right at all for 15 mins then back to normal and so forth. Sometimes it works perfectly on a cold start for 10 mins then once its warm it acts up, or the opposite it does it when cold and not when warm. It does it at low RPMs does it at high RPM, there is no rhyme or reason to when it will work perfect or not. I know im not the only person whos affected by this large annoyance.

03-01-2009, 04:22 PM	#4 (permalink)
SunRfr08 Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Columbus, OH Posts: 44 AJ iTrader: 0 / 0%	I have that same problem too. Some times I really have to yank it into gear. It started out just once in a while and now its happens once or twice a week. My car has about 18000 miles but it seems toi have been doing it since 15k. In a few eeks I will be have a service done, I will ask the dealer. Howver, It seems odd that we are the only ones with this issue. Anybody else?

03-01-2009, 05:03 PM	#5 (permalink)
jaxson Senior Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Philadelphia, PA Age: 23 Posts: 1,077 iTrader: 0 / 0%	I have a 08 FA5 and I have the same issues that you guys describe. 2nd gear is the only gear that I have issues with since I bought my car about 10,000 miles ago. This is my 1st witner with the car and it's horrible when it's cold out. 2nd gear grinds and it doesn't let me in sometimes until the car has been warmed up for 10 minutes. It has even popped out on me a few times. Have you guys swapped your transmission fluid yet? Mine has gotten better ever since I got the dealer to swap out my fluid and I bought an Ingalls ETD. The transmissions are usually overfilled from the factory, so you could unbolt the fill bolt and let the extra leak out. Then screw it back on and see if that helps.

03-01-2009, 05:33 PM	#6 (permalink)
08civicman Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 231 iTrader: 0 / 0%	Its not a fluid problem with me, as I said before I have not even had a gear grind. I screened the old fluid (amsoil) when i changed it out again this past week at 30,000 km and there was no metal/synchro dust or any foreign things in the oil for that matter. The oil looked almost brand new for 25,000km of use. This tells me that the transmission is operating properly and not grinding my synchros. Just odd how some shift are butter babys ass smooth, and others are less. I think im just going to stop worrying about it and say **** it. I have warranty on the car until 120,000 km so i dont really care, Ill just make sure im harder on 2nd gear to expose a mechanical defect if there are any.

03-01-2009, 08:28 PM	#7 (permalink)
koolkat Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Hobart, IN Posts: 260 El Unico Ese iTrader: 2 / 100%	I'm not sure if my situation is related to what you guys are experiencing, but I have noticed an increased difficulty at higher rpms. Originally all shifts were butter smooth (with the exception of the third gear issue which was only when cold in the morning) and recently as the car has reached 36k, the shifts have become erratic. Under normal driving conditions (shifts @ around 3-3500rpms) all shifts are smooth, but let the revs climb to anything above 5k and it is a fight to engage gears. No grinding, just a notchy feeling like something is keeping the gear from engaging. I took my FA5 to the dealer and they tried to blame my short shifter. Give me a break. So they "flushed" the fluid as they called it and put in new fluid. When I got the car back it was fine at first, but I am already noticing that it is going back to the way that it was. I was almost tempted to trade it in since they believe nothing is wrong with it. There were no shavings in the fluid so there doesn't appear to be any extreme metal to metal contact, but my thoughts go to the slave cylinder, or throw out bearing. Just sucks that this ruins any "Spirited" driving since it is too difficult to shift and I don't want to risk damaging anything in the transmission. If anyone has any advice, suggestions or input please chime in.

03-01-2009, 09:01 PM	#8 (permalink)
immiketran Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 290 iTrader: 0 / 0%	I've had the problem since I bought my car, although I don't have an Si, and it drives me nuts. Changing the fluid (to OEM honda) did not help. Second gear isn't bad randomly, it's bad all the time in cold temperatures. It's back to random when the tranny fluid warms up. Im worried that honda will never warranty it but I never thought of being hard on it on purpose..

03-01-2009, 09:03 PM	#9 (permalink)
gkit19986 Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Westchester NY Posts: 1,709 mike iTrader: 9 / 100%	DOES ANY1 ELSE HAVE THE 4TH GEAR ISSUE OTHER THAN ME? i cant shift into 4th sometimes im pushing it in3rd, id have to doublecutch

03-02-2009, 09:29 AM	#10 (permalink)
BlackHammer Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Long Island Posts: 92 iTrader: 0 / 0%	Bingo, I have a second gear issue too. When I had the 3rd gear replaced, I asked them to look at 2nd as well. Guess what? They didn't. My problem is that it is hard to get into 2nd gear. It feels like there is something you have to push through to get into gear, or a single knotch to get past. Quickly shifting into 2nd at high rpms sometimes grind because of this. Second gear should be extremely easy to shift into and has been for ever other car I have owned (never owned auto). Who knows.

03-03-2009, 12:01 AM	#11 (permalink)
jaxson Senior Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Philadelphia, PA Age: 23 Posts: 1,077 iTrader: 0 / 0%	I agree with you all. 2nd gear sucks to put it simply. It is one of the most, if not the most used gear. I wish my issues where in a higher gear instead because the lower gears are used off the light or in stopped situations, and this is when I need to shift the fastest. If it was 5th gear, I would have more time to get in it because I'm usually up to speed by then and the annoyance wouldn't be as great.

03-03-2009, 04:58 PM	#12 (permalink)
humboldt1498 Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Humboldt Posts: 2,415 iTrader: 5 / 100%	Do any of you having issues have a short shifter?

03-03-2009, 05:56 PM	#13 (permalink)
Notoriously_rob Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Grovetown, Ga Posts: 134 Rob B. iTrader: 0 / 0%	upgrade to a twm short shift..it helped me....Seriously!

03-04-2009, 10:51 AM	#15 (permalink)
Gillex572 Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: New-Brunswick, Canada Age: 21 Posts: 356 Gilles LeClair iTrader: 0 / 0%	I have the full TWM Short Shifter kit and It still does it, my 2nd gear feels like there are 2 notches to go thru to get into the gear.. like one notch feels like its in the gear but I still have to push it a little more till I can feel the 2nd notch .. it dosent always do this but it happens like one every twenty times..

03-04-2009, 05:15 PM	#16 (permalink)
08civicman Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 231 iTrader: 0 / 0%	My car is going in tomorrow evening. I spoke with the service manager tonight and he was very friendly and helpful. +1 for honda so far. Hopefully the fixing process goes just as smooth.

04-06-2009, 02:54 PM	#17 (permalink)
Gillex572 Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: New-Brunswick, Canada Age: 21 Posts: 356 Gilles LeClair iTrader: 0 / 0%	any new news?? nobody found the problem?

04-06-2009, 03:43 PM	#18 (permalink)
vantech Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Newport, TN Posts: 143 Van iTrader: 0 / 0%	I'm having the same problem guys, but theres more to it. if i shift into second while at full throttle, it will always miss 2nd after 7k rpms. even if i slowly shift into it. it will not grab.

04-06-2009, 04:25 PM	#19 (permalink)
bigerno_08 Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: West Covina, CA Age: 19 Posts: 609 ernest iTrader: 1 / 100%	yup I got the same problem u guys have...for some reason 1 and 2nd gear is always tricky on the si's...