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Hello everyone noob here - I did introduce myself in the intros thread so please feel free to check that out for our story:
Anyway, I have a question regarding shifting. I am having a hard time finding the gears in the car particularly 5th and reverse. It could just be my familiarity with German cars but for a short shifter I feel like fifth and reverse are somewhere over in the passenger seat and I have to manhandle the stick to get it to "seat" in 1st, 2nd, 5th, and reverse. 3rd and 4th just slide in but I don't get a lot of feedback on whether they are actually "seated" In short I end up sliding into 3rd while tying to get 5th more often than not. The clutch is silky smooth and grabs hard at just the right spot but the shifting is taking way too much brain power for my liking right now. I searched the forum and found the over tightened pin solution but that wasn't it.
Any ideas or am I just being too sensitive?
Stats: B20Z2 (CRV) Bored 0.5mm over (0.020) CP Forged 11.5:1 Pistons 84.5mm Manley H Beam Rods Bearings OEM Honda (Rods, Mains) Oil Pump – Aftermarket LS/VTEC Golden Eagle Kit VTEC head but I have no idea which one or what the internals are All Seals replaced Magnetic Drain Plug Blox Throttle Body OEM Intake Manifold and fuel rail Blox Fuel Pressure Regulator Cold air intake Header - 1320 performance 4-2-1 missing from the header 2 join back to resonator as result of deer strike Will replace with: 1320 performance 4-1 V2 megaphone MagnaFlow HFC - 53956
Transmission: GSR Type-R LSD Carbon Synchros Exedy Clutch Kit Magnetic Drain Plug New Axles Blox Shift **** and short shifter Hasport B series shift-linkage SI Cluster
ECU: Neptune P28 ECU package w/ Moates Demon V2 – Bluetooth Street tuned
Sorry for the confussion, my past experiences has been with VW GTI's This car is a 92 Honda Civic. I must say I am liking the Honda so much more than the VW particularly to my wallet.
The 5th gen (92-95) "short shifter" doesn't really do anything to shorten the shift travel it's just a shorter stick.
You will just have to get accustomed to the reach to the right for 5th and reverse. Also for reverse (known to be hard to get in gear) throwing it into second then into reverse seems to be the trick. 2nd seems to position the shaft better so reverse slips in a bit easier.
The 5th gen (92-95) "short shifter" doesn't really do anything to shorten the shift travel it's just a shorter stick.
What are you talking about? That's not even close to true. The bottom section is positioned further away from the ball pivot which does shorten the distance needed to engage the gear.
OP it sounds like you might have a bolt instead of a spring pin on your shift linkage which would be easiest to check. Otherwise the shift change mechanism inside the trans may be damaged.
Ok, because I really am a total noob. you are talking about the piece below, correct? From other threads I found on bolt vs spring this sure sounds like the issue. eg. a lack of positive feedback on gear selection and a rough time with 5th and reverse. I am going to lift the car this weekend to put the new header and HF cat on so I will give it a look then and report back. Too cold to look at it right now in the drive way
What are you talking about? That's not even close to true. The bottom section is positioned further away from the ball pivot which does shorten the distance needed to engage the gear.
Thank you for the clarification. I got the incorrect impression based on a conversation with a Honda Technician.
That makes sense if the lower end is farther away from the pivot point. That would reduce travel in all directions. This makes me suspect the technician only ran into hack short shifters on the 5th and 6th gens which weren't actually short shifters, just a short stock stick.
If you're having a hard time telling if the car is in gear or not, try some new detent springs. It sounds like the detent seats on the shift fork are worn out. The issue might be exacerbated by the tight shift linkage and shift linkage bushings. If the 'gates' feel vague, the shift change holder might also need to be replaced/rebuilt.
I believe you can install 2 of 3 of these springs from outside. The 5th/reverse detent ball and spring is inside the case. Centering spring might also be a bit of help here. Speedfactory and hybrid racing make some.
Thanks everyone for the help so far! OK so we had it up in the air today to put the new header on (1320 V2, 4-1 megaphone) and checked out the linkage while I was in there. It does have the proper spring pin and retainer. The parts are all shiny new. I double checked the shifter pin as well and that was fitted properly. I guess I could try detent springs but honestly the transmission (GSR) was rebuilt recently by a previous owner and I hate to assume... but I I would think you would address those in a rebuild.
Interestingly, after the header was back in the shifting seemed to be a little cleaner when I took it out for a test drive. Maybe me just mucking around with the linkage realigned something? A little background here: I needed to replace the header (a 1320 4-2-1) because it had broken off at the 2 join and the cat connection. Supposedly when the previous owner hit a deer. Not sure how that happened, maybe went in a ditch? But I am thinking when that all got ripped off maybe it damaged the linkage somehow?
Some other interesting finds on the car so far - It has a catch can from the valve cover (epoxied in, looks terrible) plumbed to the can mounted in the bottom of the engine bay, I don't think the previous owner ever emptied it. because it was full and the Valve cover studs were half closed off with a tannish sludge. So I am looking for a better valve cover and catch can now as well. - THAT is a can of worms I'm not ready to get into yet
The CAT was deleted and the resonator is a rusty mess, half the exhaust hangers are missing, and the muffler tip just looks stupid (pretty sure it's just a tip put on the OEM muffler) so I am looking for recommendations on a cat back as well.
OK so I figured it out! I realized the extension mount rubber for the torque rod was upside down and someone had used a couple of small washers to hold it in. The extension mount stopper was missing so I quick fabricated up a replacement out of some Stainless Steel I had around. The shifter is now nice and smooth with solid gating.
Shifting question - Hard to find gears?
