I bought my 1999 V6 Coupe from a mechanic who worked at an Acura dealer about 18 months ago. It was traded in because the transmission failed. The mechanic bought it because the dealer was gonna send it to auction and he was a fan of that body style. So he rebuilt the transmission and drove it for a year before selling it to me and moving on to his next project.

The transmission shifts great once up to operating temp but first thing in the morning, when it is cold and I'm easing thru my neighborhood, it 'flares' on the 1 - 2 upshift at very small throttle openings, and again on the 2 - 1 downshift when I'm slowing down for the stop sign at the end of my street. When accelerating hard, it's fine.

During the summer, when ambient was 65+ degrees in the morning, it was barely noticeable but now, with fall coming on strong, ambient is below 50 in the morning and it has gotten much more noticeable.

When I say 'flare' I mean the tach needle jumps up 250 - 500 rpm as 1st gear disengages and before 2nd gear engages. Kinda like a mini false neutral between 1st & 2nd....

I have 'flushed' the transmission twice since purchase using SeaFoam Trans Tune and refilled it both times with Mobil1 synthetic ATF, hoping to feel some improvement but it really didn't help.

Back in the 80's when Honda first came out with their 3-speed automatic, I rebuilt plenty of them (I was shop foreman at Price Honda in Dover, DE back then). So if I had to guess, I'd say the 2nd gear clutch pack wasn't shimmed properly during the rebuild. But now I'm an old guy and this transmission is way, way different than that 3-speed I worked on.....

Opinions???

Thanks Guys,
Michael Rush

 

There are a lot of potential causes for this problem, and based on the cold/hot scenario, and that is was previously rebuilt, it is quite possible too tight of an o-ring was installed on the apply pistons, or the balance pistons are leaking fluid. (If he took the cheap way out, he probably re-used them) Once warm the seals expand more readily, and seal a bit better.

Honda B7 transmissions have shift flare problems from 1 to 2, and this can also be the result of a leaking clutch pressure control valve end plug.

Using new clutches and steels would bring installed height to within a hair of spec. I have had zero issues with clutch pressure plate and friction/steel clearances on any Honda. Now if you "tech" was stupid enough to install 3rd gear steel plates in the wrong clutch stack (there is a .010" different), it would be quite possible to have at least two loose clutches. The 4 thicker plates belong to 3rd gear. This would not cause a flare-up on its own, as the wear distance is greater than the difference of all 4 thick steels. (Which is .040" inch total) I have seen clutches with nearly .350" of end play come in and still hold the gear reasonably well. (.350" == total fail)

 

Great information, Thanks!