mikeyg

I recently bought a 91 honda civic 1.5L with auto trannyand it has 162k miles on it. The shift to 1st isnt rough, the shift from 1st to 2nd is pretty rough, 2nd to 3rd is a bit rough too. Also I have drained the fluid out once and plan on doing it 2 more times to get a complete flush. How can you tell if the tranny is slipping or its starting to slip?

A_PHOBIA

it wont catch gears?.if you put it in revers and all you her is a winding noise its going bad.or vise versa for other gears.

mikeyg

Ok so I guess mine isnt slipping then, is hard shifting a characteristic of the honda automatics?

A_PHOBIA

ive heard that on older hondas.i had a 94 auto that did the same thing.i just got rid of it to save my self to problems.ive been old by 2 or 3 people that, that is how they shift in the older models.im not to experienced with auto's ive only had one.hope that helps

mikeyg

Im hoping the tranny fluid flush will help. I've only drained it once and honda says to do it 2-3 times to simulate a complete flush.

It also vibrates alot if you are sitting at a light or stop sign. Is that common too?

L3V3L

I just started having the same problem...except im drivin 5 spd...shift to first is clean...then from then on it becomes rough...same problem you have...would it be a clutch problem? or should i grab a new one? it seemed to happen after i was shifting really hard...thanks

L3V3L

I think i found a solution (at least for manual tranny)....there was some stupid clip on my clutch cable the was undone which i guess helps keep the cable straight...after fixing this clip i took it for a quick cruise and it seemed pretty fine...i dont know how this would help and automatic ...anyways im headin out for the nite and i will keep an update on the problem...

mikeyg

At what rpms should the tranny change gears?

jc836

The auto tranny full flush will either help or it won't. The mileage is fairly high as well. If it shifts cleanly overall it should be fine after the service. The clutches/bands inside are what wear usually.
As to the 5 speed-simple test according to my dealer for the clutch is to put the tranny in 3rd gear and slowly release the clutch. The engine should die immediately. If yes-good/if no-bad.
For engine vibration both under load and sitting there are several things to check. Are the motor mounts original? If so they are suspect in an older car. There are either 3 or 4 depending on the car and in some cases it is the rear one that is worn out. The others are easier to redo if they are worn. Our CRX runs very well but there is a little vibration that we cannot tune out (MPFI). The Prelude which is very low miles for its age has its moments as did the Civic-when we had it. Seems that the older generation of HOnda engines run "backwards" compared to the K series and that contributes to a bit of the vibration issue. I think you need not worry about it unless it is severe.

L3V3L

Thanks for the great help jc836! I will look into that.