SamChapman

Hi!
First off, I'm new to the Honda scene.. Yesterday I bought a 1997 Civic DX Coupe for $600, New Engine, Rad, Distributer, little rust but it's not a bad little whip!
I'm completely unfamiliar with Civics (Grew up working on British cars, owned and '95 F350 and a Fusion ... both failed me terribly)
I'm new to Manual transmissions but this one makes a weird noise, Comparable to when your reversing, just a little whine through 1st&2nd.
When I park it, push the clutch down and let off staying in neutral it starts to make a faint grinding/rattling noise, never noticed while driving and if I give it a small rev it goes away.
From what I've read around here it sounds like the Pilot Shaft bearing and Throwout bearing.
Neither sound is really noticeable unless you really listen, and the whining sound seems to come and go.
My questions are, Does it seem like I'm heading in the right direction?
How Long can I let it go like this? It will take me a week or two to get a clutch in as well as I figure I may as well do it all.
It made a 2 hour drive home with no issues at all.
Finally, how bad do these Honda dealers get you for? I'm planning on supplying the parts,
Thanks in advance for any help guys! I've been all over the internet and this forum seems to have a few great minds.

Former User

Nothing out of the ordinary given the car's age.

Any MTF leaks?

If not, just drain the old MTF and refill with fresh Honda MTF.

SamChapman

Not that I've seen, I've been under the car several times in the last two days and only noticed a small crack in the coolant line coming off the top of the rad.
I'm going to run out and get a good flush done from the dealer in town here tomorrow morning, see if we have any metal.

oneheadlight

Couple of things.. yes on my 96 Civic coupe it was both the pilot bearing and the throwout bearing making those noises. Had both replaced and no more noises as you described pushing the clutch pedal down.

The radiator, flushing it won't do much good for you, except lighten your wallet. If it's leaking and you saw a thin amount of coolant at the top of the radiator chances are the welds/seams have begun to crack. It happens, on mine it was the original so I was lucky it made 20 years before it decided to go. You'll most likely need a new radiator like I did.

The dealers, some will let you bring your own parts but others will refuse. Even if they are honda parts. They refuse because they want their parts department to make a huge profit off of theirs. Most Honda dealers who pull this are high priced in every aspect. The Honda dealers who let you bring your own parts (regardless if they're honda or not) are good ones. But don't be surprised that some of the aftermarket parts die an early death. Lots of junk out there. Anything ignition (if it's still available) go with Honda. I learned my lesson on that one. For me I've gone through a couple of aftermarket distributors. Honda stopped making my distributor! ugh.. Any suspension, control arms, tie rods, etc.. I'd go with Honda. Brake rotors? Anything but honda, lol. If I think of more I'll post up.

Former User

Flush a manual transmission?

There will almost certainly be some fine metal particles in the drained MTF, but draining the old and replacing with new MTF is the best you can do aside from cracking open the transmission and cleaning the metal particles off the magnet.

SamChapman

Ah sorry, I should've clarified I meant flushing the Transmission.
The rad is brand new the crack is in the line and our Canadian Tire was closed today so I couldn't get a little strip to replace it.
The only thing I was thinking about going aftermarket on was a new clutch (still stock, 333,000 km, and my learning now on it) but the Honda one is cheap enough from what i've seen so I wouldn't be overly upset if they made me stay in-house.
Thanks for the tips! I'm new to the Honda world and it's definitely different from those Ford boys.

SamChapman

Thanks! I'm really hoping they dont find anything to concerning, I was hoping for a small drive tomorrow after it was flushed.

K20A3F00L

Do not flush the MT, as RonJ stated it will do you no good. Only way to clean out a MT is to literally crack it open and wipe it all down by hand, if there is any metal in there it will usually make it's way to the magnet that's on the drain plug.

I have a 97 DX Coupe with 336K miles on it, mine has been whining 1st and 2nd for years now and I am on the original flywheel and clutch. It reminds me of the old Jeep and or older cars, it does not whine in 3rd through 5th or in Reverse.

SamChapman

I didn't end up doing it. Sounds no different or worse after driving all day ... I did end up having my check engine light pop up but I'm 99% sure thats O2 Sensor related as the one in it looks horrible and a small hole in the manifold could help that...
After an oil top up she's purring like a kitten apart from the tranny issue.
I had a mechanic listen to it and he's not worried about the Throwout bearing, says to pull back the boot on the side of the transmission and give it a squirt of good quality grease and it will quieten down and gain SOME life.
He also stated because it's sat for a period of time that whirring noise could've been the bearings or the winters on it, that comes and goes.

SamChapman

Update: I was out & about tonight and everytime I took a corner I had a slight squeek, Makes me think the mechanic was correct about the whining being the front hubs/bearings.
Yet to hit the throwout with lube (My work schedule basically bans me from buying anything in town) as I only have WD40 on hand and want something of better quality.

SamChapman

Hey ladies and Gents!
I'm back again, you guys helped me out a while back when it came to some transmission issues so I'm back with a new issue that's really throwing me for a loop..
My 97 Civic DX Coupe makes a high pitched, metal on metal like chirping noise when making low speed (<30kmh) left turns, sorta similar to the sound wear indicators on brakepads make.. my immediate thought was bearing but I have no noise going straight..
I get a very faint vibration in the steering wheel.. not enough for any passenger to notice a vibration so I dont know if I'm being paranoid but if I let go of the wheel there's a slight rocking.
Took it out to some back roads the other evening to see if I could get more of a feel for it and the vibration fades the faster I drive, no rocking in the steering wheel after 50kmh.
Brake pedal has some slight feedback like I have a bad disc/drum.
I bought this car for $600 so I try to avoid mechanics when possible but the bearings seem to be a bit difficult to do behind my apartment.
Any advice/direction would be awesome, I'm pulling apart the brakes in a few days so I wanna figure this out while I'm in there.
Thanks!
Sam.

Former User

Update on original thread?

testify

My guses is your brake pads are worn and the brake pad backing plates are contacting the rotors when you turn.

chrysler kid

Could be bad brake pads and rotor, but most likely the cv axle is on its way out. My red hx has this problem and if you launch the clutch haRd you can also hear a slight pop

SamChapman

Pilot Shaft bearing, To match the new motor the last guy put in we've got a new clutch/tranny going in this week.

SamChapman

I gave up trying to figure out and she's at the shop now, new brakes going on all around.

SamChapman

So, got the car back from the shop today and I thought I'd update just in case somebody comes by with the same issues,
Pilot shaft and and clutch were toast, got a used transmission ($450) and clutch kit ($274).
​​​​The squeaking when turning ended up being all of my backing plates being bent, still squeak slightly but the mechanic said he sorta just bent them back in place so all is good with me.
Drives so much better now, the launch is noticeably better, new clutch is a bit of a pain though.