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I was shifting into 1st gear and heard a noise. After that, the transmission was stuck into 1st gear. I had to force it in/out of other gears the same way, but was able to make it home. With my clutch pedal down to the floor, the car will stay in that gear, even if I do this when I start the car, it will move by the starter. When the car is off, it shifts without issue, and both clutch pedal switches are work and are in tolerance. With the car is up on jackstands, there are no leaks and I can see the fork moving normally, and the it does shift with the engine running, but there is requires a small bit of force, and shifts normally as I can tell by the speed of the wheels. There is no slipping when in gear, and I suspect that once I put the car back on the ground and the engine is under normal load, I will have the identical issue.
Any ideas???

 
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Your clutch is not releasing.

Did the clutch pedal suddenly feel different?

Low clutch fluid?

Broken clutch disc?

 
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ezone, thanks for your reply.

The clutch pedal didn't feel different, but I did heat a noise that is hard to explain. The clutch fluid was at the minimum mark, and I topped it off, but it only takes a few tablespoons.

This happened on the highway, and I was able to drive the car home, but it was very difficult to switch from gear to gear frm neutral.

The car slipping once in gear, and when it finally goes into gear, it is not grinding and seems to mesh OK.

The cable and switching fork move freely and easily when the engine is not running, so it seems that the linkage between the gear shifter and fork is intact, and the fork is not stuck. I was suspecting that the fork may have broken, but than why would I still be able to get it to change gears, albeit with a lot of force.

I was going to drain the fluid and replace it, but being an engineer, my gut tells me that isn't going to do squat.

I notice there is a mechanical interlock screwed into the MT- have any idea what locks? Maybe the main bearing near the fork seized up or the ball bearing race let the ball out???

I have been driving Honda Accords and Civics for 20 or 25 year, all with standard Xmissions and never had a clutch burn out on me. I got this Civic new, and have 210K miles on it, and I have always done my own repairs, including replacing an auto Xmission on my wife's car. Unfortunately, I had 4 of my cervical vertebrae (C4 thru C7) fused and have a titanium cage around them, so needless to say, it is much more difficult to do stuff like this, and I am now disabled.

Once again, I appreciate your helpful comments and welcome more from my fellow Civic fans.

 
Rep Power: 368

shifter cables would be my next guess? or shifter assembly itself? doesnt sound like the common clutch/slave/MC issues and you sound knowledgeable

 
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So the reservoir didn't go empty, that pretty much rules out the common hydraulic issue.

Move on to the mechanical side.

Because the input shaft is still engaged to the flywheel via the clutch that can't completely disengage/release. If you get one or both front wheels off the ground so they can spin as needed, it should be easier to get into gear. OR rock the car back and forth with your foot while trying to shift.

So, it seems you now established it can still engage all gears, correct?

I think you are down to the clutch that
A) slips while driving, and
B) stays partially engaged when the pedal is pushed down.
Don't bother changing fluid yet, because I think you will be removing the trans to replace the clutch set: disc, pressure plate, and bearings. I'm thinking it blew the disc apart or maybe broke one of the damper springs. Either way, that trans is coming out to see what happened to the clutch.

At 210k, it might have needed a clutch job soon anyway?


I have no idea what you are seeing. Got pics?

Don't remove any bolts unless you know what they are for. Some of those things will cause you tremendous grief if you remove them. The bolt that supports the reverse idler gear shaft is one, you may need a complete trans teardown to reassemble that if you pull its bolt out.

Ouch! I am sorry.
I have back problems too, and I'm scared to death I will suffer something like this.

HTH

 
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sdaidoji: I was sitting looking at the service manual, and it dawned on me that that the clutch and gear shift assy's are attached, but my issue is related to the gear shifting, and not the clutch. I attached the page I was looking at, and believe you are spot on. I was looking in the wrong place!

I am going to concentrate my efforts on the gear changer Assy. Do you know if I can access this Assy from the top of the engine by removing the air filter and related parts, and if so, can I remove the Assy w/O taking the entire MT out?

I am worried about removing the sub-frame without the special Honda tool designed for this task. Is there a safe way to remove the subframe W/O the special tool? It is my guess that the subframe keeps the frame it attaches to square so the car stays properly aligned. My oil-pan is rusted out to the point that it is leaking oil slowly, and although I have a new pan and gasket, I had no idea what a PIA it is to remove/replace the oil-pan. That definitely was not designed with repair in mind.

sdaidoj, thank you for taking the time to respond to me, it feels good to know I was thinking along the same lines as a pro like you.

Regards,

George

 
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actually ezone knows about that a whole lot more than me, i never had the opportunity to disassemble the trans on the civic (am doing it now but on a miata...) he can maybe give better directions if the issue is on the shifter/cabling system.

but could it be the issue? surely.

 
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Gravy!

I still have a pile of the special tools for those RWD Mazda manual gearboxes.
One of these days I will have to replace the trans bearings in my truck.

 
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hahaha! thanks! maybe i will borrow some, but i think shipping woulda be a killer!

 
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gszarka, i do believe some used some wood pieces to remove stuff, some used a jack under the car, some a wood piece over the car and ropes... (yes, it's true...)

 
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Believe it or not, I'm one of those users that had a similar idear. A few weeks ago, I went to HomeDepot and purchased a few pieces of high strength aircraft cable, cable clamps and a piece of heavy gauge 8Ft long square steel to suspend the engine. I don't feel like I'm a Lunatic now knowing that others used a similar method. I think the real challenge is keeping the frame of the car square when the sub-frame is removed.

Thans again, much appreciated.

 
Rep Power: 519

Got your email.

In my 2nd reply earlier (post #5) I was trying to ascertain what is or isn't actually still working based on what you had written, but you instead replied directly to sdaidoji.



First, have you established whether or not the trans can still be shifted into each of the gears, including reverse?
Wheels off the ground, engine off. (Might help if someone is out there wiggling a front wheel to help with gear engagement.)


If it can still be shifted (I assume it can), then I still think the clutch is the problem.
Maybe a damper spring broke, maybe a pressure plate problem. IDK what happened, but it needs to come apart to find out.


---------------------------------------------------------------

CSB time

I inherited a 76 Chevette when I got married, it was a $40 car (no lie!)
While sitting at a stoplight one morning, it went BANG and the car tried to pull forward into a busy intersection.
Tore it apart to find it had broken the head off of a flywheel bolt, that got wedged in the clutch. It actually did this twice during the time I owned the car.

Great car. It didn't JUST leak oil.....it threw oil all the way out to the fender.

 
Rep Power: 519

The only special tool for the subframe is simply a wide adapter that bolts to the pad of a transmission jack to hold it for removal and installation. There isn't any issue with " keeps the frame it attaches to square so the car stays properly aligned" when done my way.

Separate ball joints from steering knuckles, leave LCAs attached to subframe, no alignment will be necessary.


Subframe is aligned (as it may, sorta whatever) by the 2 small bolts nearest the axles. They are on slots. Loosen the bolt on each side---- but do not remove, these will be the guides for reassembly.





I have done a clutch job in this car without removing the subframe, and without getting the trans out of the car. Not a job for a rookie IMO, but possible.

 
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Dear ezone,

Sorry about not sending a reply to your last post #5. I wrote a reply, but was in my Drafts Box, so it didn't get sent.

1- Yes, I can shift it into all gears including reverse, with the front up on jack stands and with the car off or running. I had a friend outside the car that verified the the wheels were spinning when I shifted (I kept the rpm low since there was no load on the engine.

2- Does the MT consist of 2 sections (a section with the gears and synchro's and a section with a torque converter) with the clutch between them? Just trying to find out if I can access the clutch by taking the sections apart, or pull the whole transmission. Sorry if this is a stupid question.

Thanks ezone.

 
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Thanks for the reply, advise and photo. I'm probably somewhere between a rookie and pro (mid-way), so I'm going to give it a shot.

 
Rep Power: 519

So it should be safe to assume the trans is not suffering from an internal damage problem, since you CAN shift into all gears.

That leaves the clutch that can't disengage completely, and I really expect the problem to be found within that area. (Barring some really unusual problem far from an ordinary failure.)

(There is no torque converter in a manual transmission.)

The trans is removed from the engine as a complete assembly to expose the clutch, which is bolted to the engines' flywheel.

Transmission, complete:


Do not attempt to disassemble by the visible line of bolts where the trans case sections are mated (you will cause huge problems if you do), this complete transmission assembly is what must come out.










That pic is from http://www.justanswer.com/honda/1kkl...er-clutch.html

I urge you to read the link.
Do not use the specs in this pic, it is from an earlier car than yours.


I strongly recommend you get a proper service manual if you have never tackled a project like this.

 
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told you he knows better than me

 
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Thanks for everything ezone, sdaidoji was definitely pointed me to the right guy.

 
Rep Power: 519

Only if I'm right.

 
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You were spot on ezone. "JustAnswer - Honda sent the correct instructions and diagrams that Honda actually uses for my make and model Civic, and the job looks different and easier than the instructions from the green 2002-2004 Civic Service manual (and it is supposed to be the correct manual, but it is a piece of manure ). Going to give it a try.
George

 
Rep Power: 519

Please report back with your fix.

 
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To ezone and all that assisted me;

Although it took me quite some time due to my cervical spine fusion and freezing cold weather, I tacked the repair and fixed many other problems discovered along the way.

The issue was the clutch pressure plate (I attached some photos). One of the four concentric springs popped out and was jammed between the flywheel and plate disk, causing the clutch plate to spin even though it was disengaged. Both the large and small diameter springs were bent and worn down. A second concentric spring (opposite the first) was about to pop out as well.

There were so many rusted out nuts and bolts, I had to use a both internal and external nut/bolt extractors to remove about 15 of them, and an angle grinder to cut off the stabilizer dual ball joints on both sides. I replaced most of the other bolts and nuts as well. In addition, I found the following parts bad and them (got most parts from RockAuto):
CV Joints (replace entire axles since they were inexpensive)
LCA ball joints
Entire Clutch kit
Both rotors
All brake pads
Oil pan (old one was rusted out and leaking)
Fabricated many brackets to replace rusted out ones

I fabricated my own engine holder with angle-irons, aircraft cable and cable holders (if any attempts to fabricate one, ensure that least 1200 lbs to be on the safe side). Photos attached.

The toughest part of the job was extracting the rusted/snapped bolts.

Car feels like new (BTW, The old pressure plate disk actually had life left in it, which isn't bad for 220k miles).

Thanks to all, especially ezone.

George

 
Rep Power: 519

This impresses me!


Glad you got it going, thanks for the update.

 
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I take your reply as a highly regarded compliment. If it was not for your help, I probably would not have attempted it on my own, and essentially I would not longer have a means of transportation as I can not afford to have it serviced any other way and can't afford.

Thank You again and Best Regards.

George