Difficult shifter

[TypeG]

. Could there be an internal leakage?

true. just like the brake master cylinder. later.

[cp[mike]]

Could there be an internal leakage? Any sort of piston/plunger mechnaism that could be allowing fluid by when it should be holding stiff? (OT: my brake master cylinder slowly loses pressure in hot weather... I assume it's a similar issue there)

bingo. u push the pedal and the plunger pushes fluid... if its worn out, it doesnt hold pressure and the fluid leaks back past the seal. hot weather will make it way more noticable.

mike, this spring youre replacing your clutch!! me and mauri should come down and help while doing the clutch, the m/c isnt much harder to replace.

new m/c, slave cyl, fluid and clutch and youll be fine...

[owequitit]

It is still possible that you could have an MC issue. If the seals internally have deteriorated, then it would basically allow fluid to bypass the piston, effectively causing a pressure drop, making it hard to engage/disengage proplerly. There wouldn't necessarily be an external leak with a bad MC. That is most likely the same cause with the brake MC as well. It is just a function of age, and it appears first when it is hot outside. Make sure you use brake fluid in the clutch system. I really don't suspect that as the issue though.

I would also purge the tranny of the Chrysler goo ASAP. It is most likely 10W-30 or 10W-40 motor oil, as those are the suitable replacements listed by Honda. Just speaking from experience, I can say that this will make a HUGE difference between smooth shifting and rough shifting or grinding and not grinding. Especially when cold.

It is like Dexron II in the autos. It WILL work, but it jacks up the shift quality of the tranny, and once it's gone, it's gone.

[deevergote]

I need to price out a new CMS and CSS... Then I'll see if I can use a bay at the Chrysler shop on a Saturday or something to get things done! Mikey, if you and Mauri come down and help, it'll be simple! I've never done it, and I'm REALLY slow when doing things the first time... I'm afraid I won't finish before I have to get out of the shop (my stepfather owns it, but I've never been able to do anything there)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Clutc...spagenameZWDVW
Eh? Should I go through Honda? $77 shipped for the pair doesn't seem too unreasonable... and Clutch City Online is a reputable dealer (I almost bought my clutch from them... would've if I could afford the Exedy/ACT combo I wanted!)

[owequitit]

I am going to get flamed for this, I know it. Sorry Deev.

I personally recommend OEM Honda stuff, unless it is a really good high performance aftermarket part. I am a firm believer in "you get what you pay for."

Most of the autoparts that aren't OEM are made/remaned on the cheap. It is a quick fix and people feel they got a better deal because they got the "same" part and saved a few bucks.

My family currently owns 6 Honda's that I am directly responsible for the maintenance of. Only my Mom's 02 Accord and my sister's 99 Civic have less than 100,000 miles. The rest have at least 130,000 with one at 178,000, one at 190,000 and mine at just under 210,000.

I used to use Autozone parts or Checker, or whoever had the cheapest price.

1) Half of the time, some or all of the included parts were wrong.

2) I never had a CV boot make it farther than 1 year or 12-15K whichever came first. I never had a water pump, radiator, alternator etc. make it more than 2 years or 30-40K before it failed. I haven't had a Honda boot fail in less than 75,000 miles.

3) Usually, with Majestic Honda, Manchester Honda, Pacific Honda, Showcase Honda or any of the other online shops, I get to within a couple bucks of the Autozone prices. Sometimes I can even get lower. The CV boots are a good example.

4) I have had exactly one Reman Honda part fail a second time. It was a rebuilt caliper on my Dad's 88 Accord. I did not install it because it was put on at the same time they did his front rotors. I used a caliper rebuild kit to fix it and it has been fine for 3 years now. Autozones rebuild kits never made it passed 1 year. Price difference? Maybe $3

I have never had a new part fail a second time.

5) By far the most reliable car we have had among the older ones is my 1990. It has never had anything other than Honda parts put on. I haven't had any problems whatsoever. At least not that I didn't cause.

You have to value the amount of time you spend working on the car too, and I can usually justify spending the extra money on a part that will last several times as long just in additional labor charge. That does't count the hassle or the peace of mind.

I also can't justify working on them all the time when one of the cars is in Denver, and the rest are over 200 miles from my home.

If you keep your car on a schedule, you can order multiple parts at one time and offset the cost of shipping and handling as well. With my fleet of cars, it isn't uncommon to place a $400-600 dollar order to get all of the stuff that all of the cars are going to need.

I am not trying to brag, or anything like that. I am just trying to show that I speak based on experience. I will pay the extra couple of dollars for the Honda stuff everytime. Have you ever noticed how a typical Honda won't break for 100-200K, and then as it breaks and parts are replaced, it becomes less and less reliable? IMO it is because of the parts. My dad's 88 has gotten to be MORE reliable over the last 80-90K or so because most of the Autozone stuff has been replaced by OEM stuff.

Just my $.02.

[deevergote]

I actually expected to hear that from you... I expected to hear it from just about everyone! I have to look around, perhaps talk to some of the guys I know that work for Honda dealerships (hopefully a discount is possible!) I'd much rather have OEM, but money is tight. A temporary fix might be better than what I have now... at least for a little while!

As for non-Honda parts, I've been running a set of Napa reman axles for almost 3 years with the H22 swap, driven quite hard, and they haven't failed yet. Not that it proves anything, but it goes to show that not ALL remanufactured parts-store parts are bad!

I fully agree though... OEM is the way to go. If I can get OEM for $85 or so, compared to the $77 for the ebay parts, I'd do that.

[cp[mike]]

ive run an autozone brake master cylinder since ive owned cb7's, and never had a problem... dont get me wrong you cant go wrong with OEM parts, but some things really dont matter... whats the difference if you use aftermarket exhaust gaskets, or valve cover gasket? even calipers ive never had a problem with... you know? i would feel pretty comfortable using an autozone slave cylinder, since how much different can a name brand rubber boot be compared to a no name rubber boot? both will keep water out, the rest of the cylinder is just cleaned up OEM metal with new seals... works just the same as oem and its cheaper...

i hope this post makes sense, im dead tired and babbling

[owequitit]

Like I said, it is based on my experience. Granted, I have had some Autozone parts that lasted just fine, but I have had more that haven't. I would rather not take the chance as I spend 20,000 - 30,000 miles a year in the deserts of AZ with temps above 120 degrees. You don't want to be stranded in that. Trust me. I also don't want to have to worry about my sister in Denver being stuck on the side of the highway in rush hour.

I hate to seem like an ass here, but if you put the Honda boot, rubber seal, etc etc etc next to the other BRAND X part there is usually a very discernable difference in rubber quality. All rubber is not created equally. Since rubber peices are usually the difference between success and failure, all parts are not created equally.

Deev, I am sure if you can get the OEM stuff for dealer cost, that would be better. If you want the addresses for those sites, let me know, I will post them. At least you can comparison shop. I have purchased from all of them multiple times, and I have no complaints about any.

Napa axles do seem to last quite well, and there parts do seem to be a little better than the average autostore garbage.

[deevergote]

I just wish I had a friend that worked at Napa, rather than Autozone!

I have a couple buddies that work at Honda dealerships (that's you, Rich!) Hopefully one of them can come through for me with Honda parts.


While I'm going to do that...are there any upgrades to the CMS or CSS? Are the Prelude parts the same, or are they valved a bit differently? I remember seeing something for Civics and Integras on a site called the "quick clutch". I believe it was a revalved CMS, made to handle a short shifter. I really don't have a firm grasp on those systems yet (I obviously haven't gotten my hands dirty down there yet!) so I'm not sure if that's even worthwhile. I also recall that the Prelude has a slightly shorter throw, so that makes me think the Prelude parts might be built to handle that.

[owequitit]

As far as I know, the Accord an Prelude have the same diameter CMS. I don't know of any replacements off the top of my head. That doesn't mean they aren't out there though. You could always buy one and see, although on a tight budget, that isn't easy.

I too am a college student, and understand your budget issues. I always looked at it this way though. I can spend a little extra now and not have to worry about it again for a very long time if ever, or I can spend a little less now, and then have to pay the same, a little more, later.

Like I said, just my .02 based on my experience.

I will look into the CMS stuff and see if I can find out whether or not there is a significant difference or a suitable high performance replacement.

I wonder if the Accord V6 6-speeds or the TL's have a bigger CMS...

[h22sparkle]

Well deev with my forbidden shortshifter its a noticeable thing asfar as shifting . But when its in neutral its a litle notchy I guess because the way i have it positioned. I had the plate sit upside down and then the shifter ontop of that. It has a noticeable shit too dont worry im going through it aswell. Does pwrusr1 have a shortshifter or is it stock? if its stock it should be as loose as a noodle bro

[Direthought]

Just wanna ask if you've changed the 1.8 quarts of oil in your tranny yet Deev. Cause when I got my car around 2 years ago, shifting into 1st after it was moving was impossible and the gears were ruff to get into. Notchy at times, then when I began auto shop I checked the fluid and had a redicuosly high oil in there (like 50wt). Dude before me was a dumbass.
So, I just replaced it with mobile one synthetic 10w30 and it became a dream to shift instead of the nightmare I was used to.

[Maple50175]

Just wanna ask if you've changed the 1.8 quarts of oil in your tranny yet Deev. Cause when I got my car around 2 years ago, shifting into 1st after it was moving was impossible and the gears were ruff to get into. Notchy at times, then when I began auto shop I checked the fluid and had a redicuosly high oil in there (like 50wt). Dude before me was a dumbass.
So, I just replaced it with mobile one synthetic 10w30 and it became a dream to shift instead of the nightmare I was used to.

Yeah I need to do this. I havnt changed the tranny fluid in over a year wel since I bought my car and i dont think the ppl before me did EVER.

ANother springtime job for the accord

[91hybridaccord]

Thanks Steve. That's good advice.

I didn't realize I had replies here! I forgot about this thread until I drove today...

Anyway, I used grease on the cables... no change.
Fluid is topped off.
It's easy to move side to side, but going into gear it's tough. There's resistance on every shift. I suppose "notchy" would be a good way to describe it. I've tested shifters in other people's cars, and I've noticed some are worse than mine, and others are like butter...

My clutch is total trash, and I've been told (when cp[mike] drove my car) that my clutch master cylinder isn't great... Could those be issues?

I think this car needs a whole transmission overhaul... I wish I had the money!

Your presure plate could be causing the issue, your slave cylinder could be bad, or your clutch master cylinder isn't producing anough pressure to the slave cylinder, it sounds to me like you're haing issues getting the clutch to fully disengage......I had this problem for a long time....you could try to adjust your pedal up and see if that helps....