I have a 95 Civic that has had transmission issues since the day that I bought it. It has always made a winding noise while gearing down between 4-2000 RPMs. Most recently it started jumping out of 3rd and 5th gear. (Cluster?) Along with this, a very BLACK oil like liquid is leaking from what looks to be a vent on the inside (drivers side) of the transmission housing. I flushed the transmission which the fluid in was the same black color and texture of what was on my garage floor. This was 2 days ago and I have driven 40-80 miles and it is still leaking this mysterious fluid but still black and very thick not red like the new oil. If anyone could shed some light on this I would greatly appreciate it. It is not coming from above the tranny, just directly from the "vent". Also, the coolant in the car is filled and has no leaks eliminating my thoughts that a low coolant may cause excessive pressure in the transmission and causing the vent to release oil. I know I need a new tranny but if fixable then I would rather do so. Ultimately, I just want to know the why, where, and how of this fluid leak.


Modified by 95LXDRIVER at 9:14 AM 11/29/2005

 

If you are still finding black oil on the ground towards the drivers side of the trans after changing the fluid, it may be the rear main seal. Normally, when the rear main seal leak, it goes into the bell housing, then leaks on the ground so that you would think it is coming out of the trans.
Not saying this is your only problem, as this would have nothing to do with the bearing noises you are hearing, or the fact of it popping out of gear on you.

 

drop the trans and check it out. try to keep everything clean so you can identify the leak spot. your poping out of gear problem is most likely related to a damaged case or internal components. D series transmissions are inexpensive and everyone has a spare

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jdmcars.com &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If you are still finding black oil on the ground towards the drivers side of the trans after changing the fluid, it may be the rear main seal. Normally, when the rear main seal leak, it goes into the bell housing, then leaks on the ground so that you would think it is coming out of the trans.
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I would guess this too for the leak. As far as the popping out of gear, that's often times a sign of a bent shift fork internal to the tranny. If you need a new tranny you can pick one up for $150-$200 and swap it right in.

 

Good advice...thanks. When you mention bell housing that kinda puts everything together from what I am looking at and saying "leaking from a vent". <TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by littleredcivic &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">drop the trans and check it out. try to keep everything clean so you can identify the leak spot. your poping out of gear problem is most likely related to a damaged case or internal components. D series transmissions are inexpensive and everyone has a spare</TD></TR></TABLE>

when you say "swap it right in" how "right in" is it. I have any tools necessary however do not know what is involved with the swap. Is it as easy as dropping it and putting in the new or more complicated. I work quite a bit on this car however transmissions are not in my resume. Also, I have a mechanic that will replace the tranny with another for 200 (new tranny not incl). How many hours would this job consume?

 

Would the oil on the ground be a completely different color and texture than either the oil in the engine or tranny for that matter?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 95LXDRIVER &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Would the oil on the ground be a completely different color and texture than either the oil in the engine or tranny for that matter? </TD></TR></TABLE>

Should be. Engine oil should be a little bit darker, as where manual tranny fluid should be a light yellow color, at least Honda MTF is.

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 95LXDRIVER &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
when you say "swap it right in" how "right in" is it. I have any tools necessary however do not know what is involved with the swap. Is it as easy as dropping it and putting in the new or more complicated. I work quite a bit on this car however transmissions are not in my resume. Also, I have a mechanic that will replace the tranny with another for 200 (new tranny not incl). How many hours would this job consume?</TD></TR></TABLE>

You remove some motor mounts, unbolt the slave cylinder from the front of the tranny, unbolt the tranny from the block, and slide it off. It's much easier than it sounds or looks. Opposite of removal for installation. If you don't know what you're doing or have never done it before, give yourself the better part of a day (5-7 hours) to do it just because if something can go wrong or you might get stuck, it will and you will.

 

scratch that question. I am sure you are right with the rear seal now that I have had some time to think about it. Would asbestos shavings from the clutch mixing with the oil give it the black color and strange texture? This is my last concern...that the leaking liquid is not similar to my motor oil or tranny oil. When I say strange texture, within an hour of sitting on my garage floor, it turns to more of a resin than liquid. I can scrape it off with a knife.

 

the hardest part of doing the transmission swap is dropping it and lifting it up from the floor because it weighs around 85 lbs. i think your rear main is leaking like everyone else.