Hey guys. So I messed up my girlfriend's car('98 Accord/F23A1/Auto)... She brought it to me for CV axle replacement on both sides. I replaced the axles with no problem. After replacing those I had noticed she was low on trans fluid. Not even thinking I drove to the only place open that was close to my house, and got her some bullshit ATF... Best Choice. I was anxious to get her on the road and forgot Honda requires their own blend...

So here's what has happened since, and what I have done to try and counter the problems that arose.

I poured the fluid in and started the car and noticed it didn't go anywhere right off the bat via shifting in Reverse and D4. I threw the car back into park and a grinding noise presented itself. Quickly I shut the car off and realized I had screwed up. While in the process of draining and refilling(3x way) with Valvoline Maxlife ATF I noticed that when I shift into reverse the speedometer will read ~10MPH, D4 the speedo reads ~20MPH. Flushing the trans didn't work, and I even tried draining and refilling three more times! Still doesn't move, makes the grinding when thrown into park, etc.

Is her trans screwed? Or is it possible to open the case and fix something? Before you say it, no I can't swap it to a five speed! I've already asked... She wants her automatic trans.

Any input on fixing this problem would be appreciated!! I need to get this thing back on the road ASAP!

Thanks,
Brian

 

How many miles?
Seems the transmission may be on it's way out.

 

I don't remember the exact mileage, and I'm not near the car atm. I believe ~120K - ~140k.

EDIT: I know a lot can happen in 20k miles, but the trans was working fine before I changed the axles. I didn't test drive in between finishing the axles and pouring crap down it's throat.

 

How about starting with OEM Honda ATF and not aftermarket stuff - also verify you have the correct axles and that they are installed correctly - grinding is generally not a good thing...

 

You think there's a possibility it may still work with Honda ATF? I'll look at the axles tonight, Apparently there's two different kinds of axles to have; ABS version and non-ABS version. When I turn the key to the on position there isn't an ABS light so I got the non-ABS ones. They mated to the trans and hubs perfectly fine, I'll still check my work. But that shouldn't be part of the problem at this point.

Although, on the stock driver side axle, about mid-shaft, there was a little circle thing... Like in the picture below. However, the new one didn't come with one. Is this an essential?

 

^this^ if you got the left and right flipped and/or not fully seated in the transmission it could make a grinding noise when you try to move.

"contaminating" the fluid with the wrong type won't cause such serious problems immediately. all ATF is some sort of blending of lubricants and conditioners that also act as hydraulic fluid. the wrong formulation may effect the life, operating temp, smoothness and seal conditioning/leak prevention, but I can't imagine mixing a little of the wrong stuff with what's still in the case causing grinding and keeping you from driving the car normally.

Like MuffinMan said, get the right stuff in there and double check the rest of your work.

 

no, that rubber ring is a damper and most aftermarket and reman'ed axles don't have it. most folks can't tell the difference.

 

It doesn't make a grinding noise when I try and move. Only when I put it BACK into park. When I shift to reverse, drive, 123, etc., you can tell the trans isn't even engaging a gear, but when it goes back into park, boy howdie it's awful.

 

I think you have the axles in wrong. Make sure that they are lined up correctly. Cheap ATF will not cause grinding right off the bat. Your problem lies in the axles.

 

The transmission is spinning internally, and nothing is making it to the driveshafts. You can put almost any liquid in the transmission and it will 'work' for a period of time. Topping off with random fluid isn't recommended, but will NOT cause these issues.

You have no link between the wheels and the transmission. When you put it into gear, the speedometer is reading a speed due to the transmission spinning at that speed. When you put it into park, the grinding noise is the park pin slowing the transmission down until it stops and engages. It's basically like rolling the car at 10-20 MPH and dropping it into park...

 

Just make sure your car doesn't have abs. You can use abs axles in a nonabs car but not nonabs axles in an abs car.

 

are those axles seated all the way into the transmission? i did that once where i did not seat them in and the speedo would show the car moving whene it was sitting still. ended up grinding the splines off the end of one of the axles and that was a pain to try and warranty since it was not a defect or failure it was just abuse.

 

I'd rule out the fluid issue immediately by going back to Honda ATF - that's just why I suggested that.

And correct - there are two types of axles - what is the trim level Accord? if it's the V6, they may have all come with ABS since it was the 'premium' model - I'll have to double check that.

For the vehicle to grind in Park I'm thinking the axles are not seated correctly, or you were sold incorrect parts from what I assume was like an AutoZone/etc.

You may also want to check fluid level and make sure you aren't leaking anything.

 

I'm not sure on the trim level... It's an inline four cylinder with VTEC, block reads F23A1. I'll check again to make sure there is no abs, but I can swear it doesn't. She's locked the brakes up numerous times before(Not the greatest thing to hear over the phone). Is it even possible to seat the shaft wrong if it was the right shaft? I have 'the hookup' at Oreilly's and can get the different axles if I those will work whether or not I have ABS.

And I very much appreciate everyone's input! My girl sure wants her baby back. Haha. Hoping you guys are right about the axle, that would take a huge load off my shoulders. Lol.

Thanks again guys!

 

As others have said, it's generally a good idea to use ABS axles if you're not sure if the car has ABS or not. I admit I don't know how all cars operate, but the Hondas I've seen only have an additional ring on the axle for ABS. Non-ABS axles don't have the ring, but having the ring won't affect anything negatively on a non-ABS car.

 

That motor is the LX, EX and SE variant. I believe both the EX and SE had ABS and the LX did not.

Another possibility is the axle is one of those rebuilt/remanufactured ones and is just a dud out of the box.

 

Jack it up and try to spin the wheels. If they spin in opposite directions the axles are engaged. If only one wheel spins the axles are not installed properly.

 

This is the same thing that happened when the stub axle snapped off on the '95 EX(F22B1/MPJA). It still was grinding in Park.
Was driving fine, heard a clunk in the driveline, began to turn around and head home and was greeted with a grinding sound when I came to a stoplight. Attempted to accelerate and nothing. The tach and speedo worked fine, but I was going where?

No where.

I'd check on your axle installation. The inner cup needs to be fully seated against the transmission, and the outer stub axle nuts must be torqued down fully.