Having trouble shifting from 1st to 2nd

[nickester]

Hi all,

I just recently bought an 07 honda civic si coupe. I am having trouble shifting from 1st to 2nd gear. Every time I do so, the car either jerks forward or backward. Can anyone offer me some useful advice as to how I can properly shift between these two gears?

[CHRIS]

use the clutch

nah, is this your first stick or no?

[CHRIS]

Originally Posted by nickester

Hi all,

I just recently bought an 07 honda civic si coupe. I am having trouble shifting from 1st to 2nd gear. Every time I do so, the car either jerks forward or backward. Can anyone offer me some useful advice as to how I can properly shift between these two gears?

it jerks backwards!?

[hondasi006]

honest to god ive had my si for over a year now, been driving sticks on many vehicles and for a long time, i have the same prob with my si. what i have noticed is that if you drive normal it doesnt like the 1 to 2nd change but if you bring it up to like 4 grand it shifts alot smoother.

[dextor]

release the clutch a bit slower and experiment with shifting at different rpms

[GeezerSi]

Maybe it's worth bringing it to the dealer? They can tell you if something is wrong, or explain how you are supposed to correct the issue yourself. Good luck.

[07blacksi]

I had the same problem when I got my si. What I noticed is that if you release the clutch slowly or shift ah high rpm it does not do it.

[jimmychoi]

This has been noted by many members...I don't think there has been a fix for this though...

[DetachmentBravo]

All you need to do is make sure to rev match on your up shift. What is happening is that the engine is either rotating too quickly or too slowly to match the speed of the vehicle in the selected gear. Trust me this drove me nuts on my EX for six months, but I learned to compensate for it.

To better explain what is going on, let me explain a different scenario where a lot of people (including myself) want to blame the gearbox instead of ourselves. Many times while down shifting, especially into second gear, it feels as though the transmission "sticks". In reality, what are feeling are the synchronizers in the gearbox attempting to match the speed of the gear to the speed of the engine. The synchronizer for second gear usually gets such a workout that Honda actually uses a double cone synchro for second gear in most, if not all, of their designs.

I'm not going to go too in depth about the finer points of rev match shifting, but on the upshift the technique is simpler than you might think. All you need to do is have a very "light touch". When you shift into the next gear, depress the clutch, take the car out of gear, but before putting it back into gear pause in neutral for just a moment. Put only a slight pressure on the shifter pushing it into the next gear. The resistance you feel is the synchronizers. As your engine's rpms drop to the perfect level so that it is spinning in unison with your gears, you will suddenly feel the shifter being "sucked" into gear as the resistance from the synchronizers goes away.

Once I mastered this light handed technique, my shifting has become smooth as silk, almost like I was driving an automatic. I'm getting pretty good at rev-match down shifting as well but I need more practice with getting just the right amount of throttle. Eventually I hope to master the heel-toe downshift, but my coordination isn't there yet.

[nickester]

yeah it is

[nickester]

I'm going to give your method a shot today. Hopefully it works. I don't seem to have any problems shifting from 2-3 or 3-4 or 4-5 or 5-6. It's just with 1-2. It's so frustrating and I keep cringing when this happens thinking i'm screwing up my new car. Ahhh, the agony. :)

[DetachmentBravo]

Yeah I had the exact same feeling. Just use a light hand and feather the clutch just a touch more when reapplying power and you'll be smooth as silk.

[bluesunit]

Second gear in this car does not like to be shifted into below 4k and above about 7.5k.

I've had so many grinds at the redline.

[Yodums]

Originally Posted by bluesunit

... above about 7.5k.

I've had so many grinds at the redline.

You'll have to shift a bit slower from 1 to 2. The synchros aren't moving as fast as you are shifting. Sucks, I know. I've grinded 1st to 2nd countless amounts of time and I've had this car for less than a month.

[DetachmentBravo]

Originally Posted by Yodums

You'll have to shift a bit slower from 1 to 2. The synchros aren't moving as fast as you are shifting. Sucks, I know. I've grinded 1st to 2nd countless amounts of time and I've had this car for less than a month.

This is due to the fact that Honda designs all of their manual transmissions with double-cone synchronizers. The synchros for second gear get the most beating out of any in the transmission, and are always the first to go. While double cone synchronizers provide unbeatable levels of durability, there is a trade off.

[Yodums]

That was very informative. Rep for you, my friend!

[DetachmentBravo]

Many thanks, even though I misspelled "double-cone" (fixed).

[myhondacivic]

I have this problem on my 06 EX Coupe too and this is my first stick shift and driving for almost a year. I learned to deal with it.

[nickester]

Originally Posted by DetachmentBravo

All you need to do is make sure to rev match on your up shift. What is happening is that the engine is either rotating too quickly or too slowly to match the speed of the vehicle in the selected gear. Trust me this drove me nuts on my EX for six months, but I learned to compensate for it.

To better explain what is going on, let me explain a different scenario where a lot of people (including myself) want to blame the gearbox instead of ourselves. Many times while down shifting, especially into second gear, it feels as though the transmission "sticks". In reality, what are feeling are the synchronizers in the gearbox attempting to match the speed of the gear to the speed of the engine. The synchronizer for second gear usually gets such a workout that Honda actually uses a double cone synchro for second gear in most, if not all, of their designs.

I'm not going to go too in depth about the finer points of rev match shifting, but on the upshift the technique is simpler than you might think. All you need to do is have a very "light touch". When you shift into the next gear, depress the clutch, take the car out of gear, but before putting it back into gear pause in neutral for just a moment. Put only a slight pressure on the shifter pushing it into the next gear. The resistance you feel is the synchronizers. As your engine's rpms drop to the perfect level so that it is spinning in unison with your gears, you will suddenly feel the shifter being "sucked" into gear as the resistance from the synchronizers goes away.

Once I mastered this light handed technique, my shifting has become smooth as silk, almost like I was driving an automatic. I'm getting pretty good at rev-match down shifting as well but I need more practice with getting just the right amount of throttle. Eventually I hope to master the heel-toe downshift, but my coordination isn't there yet.

I have a question about this technique. This is how I performed this: First I depressed the clutch, then put the gear in neutral and lightly pushed the shifter towards second but not fully into second. Then I slowly released the clutch but not fully. When i felt that the shifter was not going to get "sucked" in, I quickly depressed the clutch and put into second gear. During this entire process, I did not touch the accelerator. I'm having trouble with the technique and still cringe everytime the car jerks forward or backward during my shifting. I think I got worse at my shifting because now I'm have some trouble shifting perfectly to 3rd. :)

I have no idea what to do. I just keep worrying that I'm messing up the car. Can anyone help???

[nickester]

Originally Posted by bluesunit

Second gear in this car does not like to be shifted into below 4k and above about 7.5k.

I've had so many grinds at the redline.

So I should be shifting at about 4k or slightly more? Does this work for everyone else also? Also, is it about the same between the Si and the DX/LX/EX. I have an Si so I'm wondering if your suggestions would apply to me.

I guess I'll try it at 4k today. Man that seems like a really high rpm. Engine noise must be very noticeable at that point? Also isn't that a waste of gas???