Hi all,

My wifes O1 Civic is having troubles shifting into gears.
At first it was 3rd & 4th but now its 1-4.

Its just really stiff. If you go to shift into the gear then shift back out and then in, it goes smooth.
It feels like something is holding it back or in the way of it moving into possition.

From what i have found search the net so far is that it could be:
1. Clutch Fluid
2. Clutch disk worn down and pressure plate
3. master or slave clutch cylinder


any suggestions would be help full.

thanks again guys

I am having this exact same problem with my 2002! I just had my tranny fluid changed because it was due for that anyway and that didn't help. I also checked to make sure my clutch fluid was full and it was. Anyway, back in the day when I had a supra I had similar problems and it ended up being the clutch master cylinder. I no longer have handy mechanic friends to help me out unfortunately so I may be bringing my car to the dealer soon to check this out. I just hate wondering if what they say needs to be replace really does. Anyway, I'd be interested to see what the rest of the group says about their experiences with this type of thing.

doubt this is your problem but it could be that your shift linkage is bad. something in my tranny was really fxcked up, it would always pop out of 5th gear and i always do highway driving. i had to exert all my strength while driving to prevent my 5th gear from popping out. i had to push the shifter into 5th gear and hold it there lol.. i fixed the tranny but shhortly after all that abuse, the shift linkage went bad and it wouldnt let me shift into any gear. i had to shift my car without the shifter and actually tie some ropes from my tranny into my cabin so i could shift it with the ropes instead of the shift linkage.

take off your center console and inspect the shift linkage for wear and bends. the shift linkage is basically a large metal wire, so if its bent it will make shifting much harder.

A friend of mine works for Honda and says there is a TSB for the 2002 about this. It says "shifting into gear is difficult" and the probable cause is lack of lubrication in the shift lever pivot ball. To fix this they would replace the lever housing assembly. She is going to talk to a tech there she knows Monday but that's what I know right now.

I have problems getting into first a lot. I have to let out on the clutch a bit and then it pops in.

im having the same problems!

only with 1st and reverse, and its driving me nuts

**** i was hoping it was that aha now i have no idea what it is, and yeah it randomly happens and it bugs me, like at a Green light! ugh

tranny fluid?
clutch?
shift linkages?
shifter?
LOSING MY MIND>?

My 02 does this too, but only when its cold outside.

Ok, so does anyone have any expert advise to fix this problem? I'm having the same issue too; particularly when it is cold outside.

I have an 01 and it seems to pop out of first when I push the clutch in. Its not a huge deal and I live with it... but lately the shifter has been sticky, I was thinking it was the ball of the shifter needing lube, but I've been meaning to install the short shifter. I ordered a revo G2, aluminum shifter bushings, and aluminum shifter cable bushings. My shifting should be amazing with these installed. Waiting for the package to arrive later in the week. =)

triz, take a photo of the parts you take out to give others a reference for worn or damage. It would be interesting to see.

Fa sho

Triz,

This thread has been in the grave for a bit. Any chance you have info on what the problem was after you switched out the shifters?

Winter is fast approaching and the problem persists!

I replaced all the same stuff Triz was planning to and it did nothing for the problem. What fixes it for me anyways was where the shifter linkag is under the hood, particularly the bigger round one facing up "because there are 2" where the cotter pin is that holds it down try to jiggle it. Thats whats causing the problem believe it or not. I found this out by putting some sylicone in where the cotter pin is to reduce the movement and until the sylicone broke apart the car shifted great!! So to perma fix the problem I got some liquid metal, ill see how this holds up.

Anyways hope it works for you guys. Was just a chance thing I found this out because I was cleaning the engine bay one day and thought hmmm I dont think this thing should move around so much.

so has this been resolved or nope? im having the exact same problem with shifting as the original post. one wierd thing tho. i bled the clutch and originally the problem was from second to third, after i bled the clutch the problem changed from 3-4. i bled them once again and the problem is now all over! this is so frustrating. any fixes for this??

Never had pictures, but it went away when I upgraded everything... since, I've sold all that stuff and went back to stock as far as my shifter, bushings, and all is concerned.

The issue with the sticky gears is cased by the lube wearing off of the shifter ball, or the shifter cables connected to the shifter.

Fix: Pull the center console and grease the shifter ball (shifting in all directions to work the grease in) and grease where the two shifter cables attach to the shifter assembly.