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Comments
It is my hope that I can help someone else with a similar problem... these transmissions are simple. Once it has been pulled from the vehicle, it comes apart easily. If you can follow a schematic and you have reasonable mechanical skills and tools, you can do this repair yourself.
HCHDoctorstransmissionpage.yolasite.com
HELP!!!
I'm starting to experience occasional problems where the power to the wheels isn't being delivered evenly. Especially at lower speeds -- often very low speeds... walking, jogging pace... when I give the engine some gas, the transmission "snatches" causing the car to jerk forward.
That's what I mean by uneven power delivery -- the application of power to the wheels isn't always smooth. Sometimes, this uneven start from a stop will cause what others have described as a "bucking" motion which stops when I slow or apply power.
That only seems to happen in the very low power range. In the UK, where I am originally from, my driving instructor would (kindly) say that he had put some "kangaroo petrol" in the tank that day when my clutch work in the manual vehicle wasn't so good.
I've seen references to this issue from another poster or two, and it's been mentioned that the "jerking sensation" is from the clutch plates in the CVT (transmission). The only correction, the person wrote, is to have new clutch plates installed-- a $600-800 job (probably more now).
I can probably stretch to having this work done if I'm reasonably sure that it would be a decent fix and that, otherwise, my transmission is fairly solid. But, of course, I'm frankly horrified by what I've read on this board about transmissions.
So my questions are: Is this developing issue a precursor to major transmission problems, and should I offload the car now, while I still probably can?
Thanks for any wisdom you can offer. I'm just a girl.
Trust me, you're at no greater disadvantage in dealing with Honda than anyone else. Their handling of the CVT transmission fiasco appears to have been pretty consistent regardless of owner gender or other demographic factors...TOTALLY IRRESPONSIBLE...unless you live in Japan, where you would have benefitted by a recall.
I had a 2003 HONDA Civic Hybrid in the traditional tan tone for 6+ years. I started having judder at about 70,000 miles. Dealerships at the time (2006-2009) kept changing my trans fluid and doing the legendary "burnish" treatment at around $150 a pop. After three years of frustration, down time and many $$$...despite having paid for the extended warrantee (which was useless since it doesn't cover transmission fluid)...I did the only thing I could do to resolve these frustrations: I traded it in on a 2009 Toyota Prius! Despite all of the bad press on Toyota recall issues, we remain VERY happy with this choice. The point is, Toyota actually DOES recalls, standing behind their products. HONDA seems to have another agenda that seriously fails to protect its customers, at least those who purchased the HONDA Civic Hybrid with the CVT from 2003 to now.
So Jerry, the only recommendation I can offer is to trade your HONDA Civic Hybrid in on the vehicle of choice, as the only definitive and cost effective solution to your HONDA problems. I can assure you I will NEVER purchase another HONDA automobile, nor will I recommend a HONDA to anyone else.
Good luck Jerry,
bobguynn
I was told by the dealer that this was normal and resulted from not placing the transmission in first gear before moving it to the reverse gear position. That sounded strange to me. Now at 160,000 miles the problem continues to plague this car. Sometimes the gear shift needs to be run through the 1st gear to reverse gear positions 2 or 3 times before it will engage. Occasionally it will start out alright and then pop out of reverse while rolling. This is particularly bad when parked front down on a hill and needing to back out of the position.
The dealer has not been able or willing to confirm this problem and continues to insist that there is no problem and that the issue is inherent in the design of the syncros and that the manipulation of the gear lever is a required part of running this transmission properly.
Is this a common problem with the honda manual transmission? Is it a design flaw? Is it worth the $600 that the dealer would charge me to tear it down to see if there is something wrong? Would I be better served to get an opinion from a transmission shop rather than the dealer?
Interested in your opinions,
BG_in_Olympia
Unfortunately, the only way to find out is to have a COMPETENT mechanic pull the transmission out and tear it down. I say competent because most places will just tell you that you need a new transmission. They don't rebuild transmissions themselves. It's quicker for them, and they usually mark up the transmission about 30% over what they paid for it.
A competent shop can fix the reverse slider (and sync if applicable) only, but at 160,000 miles, it's a good bet that the rest of the transmission should be rebuilt. Oh, and I don't believe this problem is a design flaw, or the way you have been shifting into reverse (as long as it doesn't grind).
Good luck!
Here's a link with a diagram of your transmission mainshaft with sleeves and syncs:
http://www.hondapartsnow.com/Page_Product/PartDetail.aspx?catalogID=55&productID- =4&yearID=36&doorID=4&gradeID=309&areaID=2&transmissionID=3&originID=-1&colorLab- elIDs=-1&colorLabelID=-1§ionID=2&idAndImageID=9790%20463328&isBigPicture=Fal- se&pageName=MT%20Mainshaft
Good luck!
good luck. I will never buy anything made by Honda again. they do not treasure their customer like Toyota does. :lemon:
Be that as it may, I had the dealer change the transmission fluid and I proceeded to drive >2400 miles in the last 10 days and it still sounds about the same. They say they don't know if the transmission will last another 50,000 miles or 5 miles.
Honda America is offering to pay for 1/2 of the $3800 a new trans will cost.
Anyone have a similar experience and what has Honda offered to pay on their transmission? I did see where they offered $700 to one person so this is a better deal but if this is a known defect I think they should ante up more. What kind of estimates have any of you received on replacing a similar transmission?
As an aside, I really hate the software update that Honda installed last fall. Really reduces the assist from the batteries.
Thanks for any input.
The honda dealerships don't repair anything, they just change parts... to them, a 'part' is a WHOLE transmission, not a bearing or valve body or intermediate plate. Why throw away an entire transmission when the problem might only be a $10.95 bearing? The Honda dealerships don't want to mess with pulling apart a tranny... probably because of lack of knowledge or not wanting to spend the time on it. Good luck!
(I bought the car new, it's a 2003 HCH)
I am curious about what problem you are having with your 03 HCH. Is it a manual or automatic transmission? I have seen several different problems described here, most having to do with automatic transmissions... either the Flywheel splines stripping, or a bad bearing. I've done both repairs, so I can help if you want it.
Sorry to post such a popular and repeated problem, but I have been surfing these forums for the past 2 hours and am just looking for a specific answer to my case. So I am hoping that any forum veteran or knowledgeable person may inform me. I wanted to get some opinions before I went into a repair shop and have them rob me blind. From what I gathered on this forum, my wallet and I are thoroughly frightened.
I have a 2003 HCH with about 80,000 miles on it.
About a month ago I noticed slipping when I would accelerate every time. It would rev and vibrate in place for a couple of seconds before jerking, kind of like a boom/burst, into acceleration. In this last week the slipping has actually decreased to almost never. It only slips when accelerating from a complete stop up a hill or from coasting to up a hill. Even though there is less slipping, my car has begun to shake more than usual when stopped. After accelerating, the car seems normal, but tends to mildly shake and struggle while stopped. Does this mean the accelerator is perhaps starting to catch again or is it about to breakdown completely? What could be the cause for the mild, but noticeable shake my car does while stopped? Is this a repair that I should have checked immediately?
I, too, have also had the bucking/jerking problem when taking my foot off of the gas pedal to coast. After the recall, I was fixed for oh, 2 months, then started up again but with less intensity. I called the dealer and they said there was nothing I could do unless I wanted to pay to have it replace again. It has had this problem for years now, because I just do not have the money to pay for another service. Does this problem normally intensify as the years go on? Is the root of this bucking problem causing irreparable damage to my car or is it reasonable to leave it as is and let people think that I just like to stomp on the brakes intermittently? :P
Thank you!
Needs front strut and rear shocks. Best is I reported a problem before, but was told it is 'something in the trunk rolling around'.
Maybe Honda needs a wake-up like Toyota.
I have written to the President of Honda and have been ignored or given the corporate shuffle.
Honda does not treasure their customers. :lemon:
I have written to the President of Honda and have been ignored or given the corporate shuffle.
Honda does not treasure their customers. :lemon:
Also, the NHTSA has 62 complaints for the 03 civic hybrid CVT transmission @
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/complaints/complaintresults.cfm?start=1&SearchType=- DrillDown&type=1&year=2003&make=HONDA&model=CIVIC-HYBRID&component_id=180&summar- y=true&PrintVersion=YES
and
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/complaints/complaintresults.cfm?start=1&SearchType=- DrillDown&type=1&year=2003&make=HONDA&model=CIVIC-HYBRID&component_id=171&summar- y=true&PrintVersion=YES
and
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/complaints/complaintresults.cfm?start=1&SearchType=- DrillDown&type=1&year=2003&make=HONDA&model=CIVIC-HYBRID&component_id=172&summar- y=true&PrintVersion=YES