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My car *pops* out of 2nd gear about 2-3 times a week. This only happens if I shift to 2nd right before I get to an onramp/offramp that has a strong curve (the ones where your turning right for 3+ minutes).

Anyone have an idea as to what's going on? Does this mean my transmission is screwed up?

Other than this I don't have any issues - well, I get ugly grinding sounds (sounds like my car is going "EEAHHHHHH") when I pass 2.5k RPMs in 1st gear, and a little in 2nd gear, but this happened on my last Civic and I was told that I just needed to change my clutch. I was also told that I should wait until it gets worse because it wouldn't affect anything else and I might as well squeeze a bit of life out of my current clutch.

 
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trying to remember... auto or manual?

 
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Sorry, I forgot to include that I drive a manual. I hate autos.

Partly because they move forward at a stop if you don't press the brakes even if you are on level ground, and partly because I feel they are geared towards women (designed for, not actual "gears") (uhh, not that I'm sexist I just feel they like to, um, multi-task more?). There are a lot more partlies but I won't get into that right now LOL.

 
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Bwaaahahahaha! You are un-save-able!
Slip out of gear as in, it pops out of gear? Or just slips and revs go up without speed increase?

 
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What are the rpm's when your turning in 2nd?

 
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Ohh damn.. how do I edit the title?? LOL.. it *pops* out of gear not slips.


Err, sorry, good question. It happened this morning I should pay more attention - my guess is 3k or 3.5k when it pops.

This morning was especially.. weird.

If I'm turning onto an on-ramp I'm usually in third and have no issues. Sometimes, however, when the meter is on, at the beginning of the curve I need to stop at the light.

This morning - I take off, switch to 2nd, and as soon as I let the clutch out it popped out of 2nd (usually it pops out at 3-3.5k after driving in 2nd for a bit) so I put it back in 2nd and I'm going. Now here's what freaked me out. I look down at the shifter expecting it to pop out but instead it's shaking like crazy. It was bouncing around like a little kid on 3lbs of sugar. My shifter suffered a mild seizure this morning. I got worried and just shifted to 3rd.

As soon as I was out of the curve, I had to slow down again. Back in 2nd taking off but not turning - no problems at all. I had to dodge some chunks of wood on the freeway so I ended up in 2nd again - I noticed that when I clutch and then let go without actually changing the gear the shifter jerks a little while in 2nd. I took off after the wood pieces were out of the way and hit 5k RPMs in 2nd before shifting with no issues.

 
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Post #2: https://www.civicforums.com/forums/3...-civic-ex.html

I think it's the tranny but, you should check linkages first anyways.

 
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Thank you. I don't understand anything mechanical and $800 is a lot. Maybe I can get someone to look at it one day. I was hoping the fact that it only does it during turns meant it was an easy fix.

 
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I'm pretty confident something's wrong within the transmission, it's hard to say exactly what though, transmissions are tricky if your not very familiar with them. The 2nd gear might be damaged so when it's put under extra stress the teeth let go..

 
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I had a similar problem with second gear on my car. It would pop out of gear when turning right and often would have a difficult time going into third gear. It would pop out if I left it in second gear for too long, revving it up usually to 3k would cause "shifter seizures". Oddly enough it did it at the exact same locations every time on my commute home so I got used to skipping it after awhile. 1st and 3rd gear were problematic as well since it would take several tries to go into first and 3rd would grind or become non-existent at times.

On a cold day, I actually broke the shifter ball in the housing (snapped in half) so I replaced it with a revo SS unit, aluminum base bushings, and grey's kit (basically better clips/cotter pins/washers to use for the cables and the shifter). It firmed up the shifter and made the throw shorter but the problem was still there, more so with 1st and 3rd gear in particular. 5th gear now was an issue too, so 4th was the only one that worked properly always lol.

What made the biggest difference is changing the shifter bushings on top of the transmission. There are two located on top of the transmission and if you have a stock intake you'll have to remove the resonator at least. Two cotter pins, pop out the old bushings, and 10 minutes of my time made a huge difference. The transmission stays firmly in second gear and I have no problems shifting into 1st, 2nd or 3rd. I've tried my hardest at other times on my commute home and just driving around and haven't encounter the same annoying issue.

I won't guarantee it will fix the problem but it may make a difference for you. For the $25 I paid for the corsport bushings, I am very happy so far.

 
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props to you, 01cpe, just solved yours and already posting the solution for others

 
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I have the same problem, pops out of 2nd gear ONLY when turning right.
A 01 civic 5sp. with 210K miles on meter. No other problems, did replace
input bearing on tranny at about 160K.
I will replace the top shifter bushing, unless someone has a better solution.
Thanks for any input on pops out of 2nd on ONLY right hand turns. Tenn.

 
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If anyone is still paying attention to this thread can you please help me determine which part to replace? I am having this exact same problem, but I deliver pizza and I need to fix this fast so my car will last me another year!! I read all the replies and realize I need 'shifter bushing', but I know nothing about cars (except how to change the oil?). Please reference this diagram and tell me which part? Thanks

-A forlorn young woman with no car experience

PS The diagram is in the attachments. A honda dealership sent it to me when I asked if they had the part, they also don't know which one I need xD