Well im grinding third gear if rev 2nd gear hi… like after 5k if i put it in gear it will grind unless i let engine wind down… i have searched around and some people say it may be the tranny fluied, soem say it may be the syncs and some say its the clutch… the clutch has about 20k miles on it… the fluid im not sure about and i udnno how to id the sync problem… I also notice a lil bit of a problem puttin it in 1st at a lite, what dose this mean? What you guys dignose? and what is the wisest solution?
TTT
my third gear does it sometimes too… and it sounds horrible, and my technique is no different than other times when i do it and it flows right into gear smoothly. i about cry when it happens. any ideas?
same here… third (only) grinds when i accelerate and shift quickly
help us out guys…thanks
most likey it is either your tranny fluid is low. to check this simply jack the car up, crawl under the car and look for the 17mm bolt on the passenger side of the tranny just above the axle. open that up, stick your finger inside the hole, and make sure you can feel fluid. the fluid level should be just about as high as the bottom of the hole. if your fluid checks out ok, then it is you blocking ring inbetween the 3rd gear hub and the 3rd speed gear. if that’s the case, then either the tranny has to be taken down and that part fixed, cheap part, 15 bucks from honda, but labor will be around 400 plus. or you can replace the tranny. or just forget about the grinds, and take it easy going into that gear.
HTH.
later.
secret
I recently had my oil changed at Honda and they put on the check up list that the tranny fluid is fine… dose that mean they checked it or propably slacked and jsut put that is fine? they were also claimig they cant service acuras…bs…so im thinkin they mite have skipped over actualy lookin at the car?
It wouldn’t hurt just to check and make sure. I used to work at a honda dealership, and trust me, they aren’t the greatest mechanics in the world by far.
later.
secret
thanks secretagent …i’ll give it a shot
if it is the blocking ring, how difficult would the labor be to do myself? what tools would i need? thanks again
I have the same problem with my third gear. I jsut replaced the tranny fluid with Redline MT90 as stated on a previous post. I’m half a quart low, so after I top it off I’ll know if it helped fa’ sho.
Can somone tell me the steps involved in changing the fuid not just testing?
Hey guys, it’s your syncros that are going bad. Check here
I found the cheapest solution of all!! I just hit second, stab that baby into Vtec land and skip 3rd altogether!! 1-2-4-5! 
yea i do that sometimes but not much for racing…and we dont all have this gold charm called VTEC
to change/check the fluid, simply jack the car up. support with jackstands of course. then look for the plug on the side of the transmission. it’s the round nut with the square hole in it. use a 3/8" ratchet to take it off. then once you have all the fluid drained, replace the fluid using the bolt about 5 inches above the drain plug. remember to reinstall the drain plug first though!! I always use castrol GTX 10w-30 in my tranny. but redline, royal purple, and honda mtf also work very well.
if this still doesn’t fix the problem, then your blocking rings will need to be replaced. if you look at the post linked above you will see a little brass ring with teeth on it. this is not the synchro. it is the blocking ring. the synchro is a gear assembly on the mainshaft with the groove cut into the outer part of it. It consists of a few parts.
- The hub (this is splined to the mainshaft, or pinion shaft depending on what gear you are fixing, this always spins with the shaft it is splined to)
- The synchronizer sleeve (this is splined to the outer gear teeth of the hub. the outside diameter of the sleeve has a groove on it where the shift fork rides. This is how you engage a gear.)
- The spring (not really a spring, but still called one. it’s really just a ring of wire that rests in between the hub and the blocking ring, keeping the sleeve in the desired position.)
- The blocking ring (this is the part that eliminates the gear grinding sound when you engage a gear. made out of brass, it is a high wear item. it spins freely in between the speed gear, in this case 3rd gear, and the sunchronizer hub. it’s not splined to anything, so it is able to rotate freely and independantly of the gear and synchro hub. when the shift forked is moved to engage a gear, the sleeve moves toward the blocking ring, which then aligns itself to the sleeve (thanks to nice pointed teeth on the edge facing the sleeve), which in turn makes it align to the gear teeth of the speed gear, therefore allowing for nice quiet smooth gear changes).
And that my friends is the whole “black magic” of the transaxle(well at least part of it). I hope this explains it for ya. Sorry if I lost you. Please feel free to Email me if you need any further help.
To answer the question of how much something like this would cost if you were to take it to a shop. A LOT! Tranny work is incredibly expensive. It’s very labor intensive to get it done correctly. I’d guess somewhere in the neighborhood of 500-1500 dollars. including parts. If you have good mechanical abilities and the trusty Helms manual, then you should be able to do it with little problems. The tools required are: metric sockets and wrenches (duh!), snap ring pliers, and a good set of hands. Other highly recommended tools are: a dial indicator(for checking shaft runout, endplay, etc.), gear marking paint (to make sure your wear pattern on the ring and pinion is right), a brass hammer(does wonders), a 10 ton press (to make removing bearings a breeze), and a digital camera to take pics before you disassemble the mainshaft, the pics in the helm’s manual aren’t always that great.
Anways, sorry for the novel. Hope this helps.
Later.
Secret
13.2@108mph
I don’t need no stinkin VTEC!!!
Hey Man Had the same thing in my 92 GSR…I changed the Tranny fluid and put a tranny additive…something like that you would put in your crankcase…but for trannys and it seems too be fine…but i’m sure the syncros are a bit warn too…only cost about $10 for the additive…Mine was grinding bad too…hope it helps you out!!!
Someone on the board told me to try Redline tranny fluid, and MAN I love it. No more grinding and rough shifts. It might not fix your problems, but it’s the cheapest solution to try first!
Who carries Redline?
It could possibly be your syncros