Hey guys,

I have a 1996 Civic LX (4 cyl / 1.6L) and the tranny is just about shot. 4th gear is completely gone, so I have to shift from 3rd to 5th and vice-versa. Also, without a load on the motor, the shifter pops out of 3rd and 5th.

I've been looking for a used D16Y7 tranny and finally found one today out of a 1997 Civic DX Hatchback with 130K miles. The story I got was that his brother swapped it and the motor over to a V-Tec setup. The guy was asking $300, but when I got there, I checked it out and the input shaft seemed a bit sloppy. What I mean, is that when looking directly at the end of the input shaft, you can take the shaft and move it side to side and a little bit in and out. Is this normal or a big deal? I'm thinking it's not normal and that the cause is the input shaft bearing.

I'm no transmission guy, (he wasn't either), but I didn't think that was normal, so I talked him down to $75, thinking I'd have to repair at least one thing before installing it in my car.

So my questions are:

1. Is the play in the input shaft normal or does it need to be addressed?

2. If not normal, would the ISB be the cause?

3. This may be a stupid question, but when checking the tranny out on my bench, I rotated the input shaft and shift through the gears, but only have three positions for the shift linkage (all the way in, all the way out and halfway in/out). I can watch the revolutions increase/decrease where the transaxles go, but where are the other three gears? There should be 1st-5th, plus reverse, right?

4. When bench checking it as discussed in #3 above, tranny shifts easily without being forced and no weird noises. Is there something else I should be checking on this trans before I install it (aside from flushing/filling with new oil)?

5. Would a rebuild kit be a good idea if the tranny history is unknown? If so, what does a decent rebuild kit cost and where is the best place to get one?

Any help you guys can offer would be a great help. I'm mechanically inclined, but this is my first rodeo as far as transmissions are concerned.

Thanks,

Aaron

The video of the input shaft play is still uploading, so if it's dead when you click on it, try back soon.
http://youtu.be/q1sZaZmDZbM

 

It shouldn't have that much play, no. It might be caused by the ISB, or another bearing within the transmission. http://www.synchrotech-transmissions.com/. Talk to them for a full rebuild kit. The ISB is the LAST thing you can take out of a transmission, so you might as well go ahead and replace all of the other bearings and seals while you have it apart.

As far as shifting on a bench, what you were doing was 3/n/4. For 1/2, and 5/r, you have to rotate the piece you were moving in and out. It's easier if you attach a shift linkage and idler arm to it.

 

Wow that is really bad!! You should not have any play in/out or side to side. One thing you really need to check is the Gear teeth surfaces. With that much play you may have some teeth with deep wear patterns in them. Depending on severity of them, you may have a boat anchor on your hands. Get it opened and take a look.

 

I wouldnt pay 300 for that... Yes ISB will cause input shaft play, you have to pull apart the whole trans to get to the ISB and its still not fun to try and get it out... I have a 00 hx with si final drive thats been rebuilt for 200

 

OK, so I started tearing into the transmission today, but have a question....what's the trick to opening the case? The most i can get it open is about 3/4". I tried using two crowbars and gently prying on both sides, but didn't want to hurt the internals or crack/warp the case. I did notice that the ISB basically fell apart when I got it cracked open. As you can see in the pictures, seven ball bearings fell out, so obviously that needs to be replaced. Just need to get the damn thing broken apart to see what else needs to be replaced.

As always, any help or ideas would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Aaron

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...=1EasnDlsxaOUA

 

Did you use snap ring pliers to remove the snap ring on the countershaft ball bearing?

You need a service manual.

 

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