Hi guys.... Just got a 98 Accord EX with MT. Has 152k miles. It's not drivable but can run the engine, looks good and well taken care of. The MT is shot according to the seller, I'm hoping it's just a clutch replacement that would do the trick. I'm having its timing belt done with water pump replacement as well. It already have four new shocks, new brakes/rotor, new spark plugs and wiring. Anything else I need to do while it's being worked on?

Thanks guys.

 

Have you taken it to a Honda shop for inspection?

 

No, not yet. I'm having a mechanic friend doing the job for me. He has replaced the clutch earlier today, and as he removed the tire, noticed that wheel bearing fell apart. Going to do the wheel bearing on both sides and replace the lower ball joints. Just asking if any other tips to pay attention at 150k.

 

U should replace the rear main seal while the tranny is out.

 

Agreed.
Nothing more infuriating to have this new problem after reassembling everything.

 

 

Update:
Finally had the car running, but was disappointed to find the 4th and 5th gear not engaging the drive, showing the RPM speeding up but not drive with gears. The first 1-3 gears are fine. What does that mean?

 

Is it doing the same exact thing it was doing before you replaced the clutch ?

 

No idea. I bought this Accord few weeks ago, wasn't able to drive it as the owner said tranny is shot. He didn't tell me details, but I assumed that the clutch replacement might do the trick. Apparently not, yet the clutch was worn anyway.
Should I flirt for 6 speed tranny replacement?

 

A 6th gen accord with a stick means you have the F23, right? There was no 6-speed that mates to the F23 IIRC, manual transmission and V6 had to wait for the 7th gen bodies.

 

Normally if it's going to slip it'll slip in all gears. With you replacing the clutch I would find it hard to be the clutch. 4th and 5th aren't even connected. Is it popping out of gear ?

 

WIthout taking out the tranny and look at gears, I'm not sure. It looks like the 4th and 5th gear teeths are gone due to abuse from previous owner. Either not knowing how to shift properly or being abusive grinding gears without clutch more than often.

Looking at this option:

Honda Accord 98 02 Synchrotech Manual Transmission | eBay

Thoughts?

 

4th and 5th are the last gears to go out its just really unusual

 

If 4th and 5th gear were stripped there would still be noise from the broken gears making some kind of contact. And I highly doubt PO was able to strip both 4th and 5th in an unmodified Accord.

Do you still have reverse?

I would suggest opening the hood and observe where the shift cables connect to the transmission. Have another person clutch in and shift through all the gears. Take note if the cables move the shift levers correctly. Verify the bushings on the ends of the cables are still intact.

If they do, then I would suggest removing the cable stays and cables from the transmission and then removing the cover of the shift levers. Verify that the shift levers, interlock, lock bolts and pins are still all in place.


IIRC a few years back a member had sheared off a pin or bolt on the shift lever/interlock mechanism. This allowed the shifter to function properly but the shift lever would not function the shift forks. Thus no gear selection. Think it was a $2 roll pin that had failed.
I've had a neighbors kid grinding gears in his DSM shitbox, turns out the bushings on the end of the shift cables had been oil soaked and rotted. Cleaned up and replaced the bushings trans shifted like butta... for a DSM.

 

Forgot to address this, yes Synchrotech is highly regarded around here.

 

Yes the reverse does work. I don't know much about this enough to do myself. My mechanic friend can swap transmission, but not sure if he could fix gears, take apart or reassemble gears. If I take to shop to have it fixed, probably would cost as much as getting the remanufactured tranny with this friend swapping out versus having shop fix the gears if it's not damaged as the labor would be killer. Hmm....

 

UPDATE:

Replaced the MT with Synchrotech tranny, the mechanic friend said it's looking like a new one. Put in fresh Honda OEM MT fluids. Started up and had sluggish ride trying to keep engine running. MT was perfect with new Exedy clutch kit. Took it home last week and got sluggish ride, mechanic said likely bad gas. Went ahead home with it for an hour drive. Sluggish ride went away, ride was jittery when at 55+ mph. All four tires are due for replacement anyhow. Had the car detailed, then gave it a 500 miles round trip ride over the weekend. Filled the first gas tank with premium gas and dose of Lucas Oil's fuel treatment. It's decent overall, nice leather interior with slight crack in driver's seat. The exterior paint is disappointing even after detail clean and clay bar it then polish. Noted minor grinding sound in back. Also has loud crankup for few seconds. Also during stops, the squealing sound shows intermittently. Something related to belt or pulley? The timing belt was done and belt is adjusted properly, slightly loosely set without any tightness.
Overall is happy with the drive especially the nicely shifted MT and had nice A/C working the entire trip. New tires is next on my list.

 

A minor grinding in the back could be a wheel bearing. Put the rear end up on a jack and try to push/pull the tire in and out along the wheels' axes of rotation. If its still tight, keep an eye on the grinding noise, if you can hear it, it's either something you can feel or will soon be. As soon as you can feel it, change the bearing. Past that point, the race tends to freeze on the spindle and it become a royal pain to change.

If a squeak/squeak shows during a stop, my guess is the brakes and not a belt. It could be moving parts not properly greased or cheap semi metallic pads.