Hi all, well i'm working on my dads car and just fixed the tranny leaking from the axel oil seals but when the car isn't warmed up, it shifts hard and slips. When its warmed up everything is fine but i do hear a whinding noise when i come to a stop... anyone else encounter this?

98 accord LX

Thanks

 

is it auto? if so then the tranny is starting to fail. good way to check is do a tranny oil change and when you remove the bolt look if there any metal shaving on the magnetic tranny oil bolt.

 

I have to concure, the shifting issue most likely would have been taken care of by a power flush.
The "Whine" is of a more problamatic issue. It either indicated problems with the turbine (Torque Converter), or oil stavation (supply pump is having difficulty drawing fluid from the reservoir).
Professional intervension is advised.

P

 

when it is extremely cold, I let my car run for about 3 mins before I put it into gear. when it is like -10 or colder I wait 6 mins cause you need time for the tranny fluid to start flowing before you put it into gear.

The whining that you hear is the tq coverter starting to fail in the trans. I would not replace the converter but instead overhaul the trans......

 

thanks for all your input, i did get a check engine light code of p0740 electrical malfunction torque clutch converter. I cleared it and it never came back on. How much does a overhaul of the transmission cost and should i even bother trying the power flush?

 

about 2K from the honda dealer

 

should i attemp to get used tranny? Also should I try the power flush?

 

There are salvage yards out there (Woodfin's comes to mind) that offer Used assemblies with, not only different mileage's but different levels of warranty as well. It could be a route which could mean a successful repair.

The thing to remember:
Buy the Trans, have Repair Shop install it. = warranty on Transmission only
Have repair shop supply and install Transmission = warranty on both Transmission and Installation labor.

The $65.00 to $80.00 you'd spend might turn out to be well spent as well. It should definitely have a positive effect on shift quality; and it MIGHT have some effect on the 'whine' complaint (IF caused by a restricted V/Body screen)

P

 

i am disappointed in honda, the tranny just turned 100k, the older honda's i've had in the family never had tranny problems but the 99 civic hx my mom has also had tranny problems, a flush fixed it though.

 

I have to agree on your observation on the successful Civic Flush. I've see flushes fix things I swear would have had other transmission's heading for Aamco.
If there's one thing i religiously recommend is adherence to the oil change and transmission fluid change intervals.

P

 

I see this time and time again in the 6th Gen Auto Transmissions. Why doesn't Honda just do a recall? Same thing with the SRS light going off for no reason.....I don't understand that when this many people have this problem that they don't do a recall and try to correct it...but then again they make more money if they don't do a recall I guess.

 

they warrantied the units for 100K

 

well it started happening at 101k =/

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Integra_Boi &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">well it started happening at 101k =/</TD></TR></TABLE>


Honda will work with you on this.....just keep pushing them without being too harsh..............

 

brought it to a shop today.. they found me a used tranny with 40k on it for $1400 and wanted $495 for labor + tax.. fluid.. Total: $2000

Is this a decent price?

 

If your shop owns a BG Transmission Flush machine, I'd suggest investing the $70. - $80.00 for a power flush. As I stated earlier, I've seen them work near miracles. The thing that scares me is the turbine whine from the transmission.

As to your question about the quote you recieved; I'll break it down into two parts.
1) Parts Price. Assuming a 30% Markup on parts, he's paying $920.00 for the trans. As to it being out of line, you have to determine things like mileage (40k = Good), availability of used units in your area (demand), etc.
2) Labor Price: Assuming a $65.00 / Hour labor rate, he's telling you the job takes 7.6 Hours. (If his rate is higher, the time is less.)

Your Personal data gives no hint as to where you are, which can have a really big effect on Repair prices (IE: Little Rock Arkansas is cheaper than Metropolitan Boston).

Just as visiting a doctor, I'd suggest a second opinion.

P

 

P_Adams thankyou very much for your input,

The reason to me deciding to no more power flush because the mechanic said he had it on the lift and its still leaking out of the axel seals that I just replaced. He said he had one car that replaced 3 times and finally just ending up changing the tranny because honda said the differential inside was bad most likely. As for location, i'm located in the suburbs and i would say demand is moderate. I have another friend that owns a shop that can't seem to locate a low mileage one, he found one for $1200 with 90k. Labor rate is $75 dollars at the shop. I'm assuming the $1400 is the price he actually gets it for since my friend gave me his $1200 quote with no markup.

I hope this all makes sense.
Thanks again

 

You didn't have a bad differential, you have bad bearings on your differential. This is very common on these transmissions and it doesn't stop there. The shavings and pieces of bearing go everywhere inside the tranny. The whining noise you hear is the gears, the wear from the metal makes them whine. This doesn't usually harm the valve body, a very good cleaning usually fixes that but some of the gears and bearings will need to be replaced to eliminate the noise issue.Check your main valve body seperator plate and your oil pump carefully for excessive wear too. Sometimes you can get lucky and just change the idler gears and eliminate the noise and sometimes not. I'd really be very carefull of another automatic unless it was very low mileage, like I said, this is not a uncommon problem with these tranny's.

 

Edduck welcome to the board ,

I think i'm going to go with the $1400 40k tranny this shop found me, he said one year warrenty. I need to make clear if its 1 year for both parts and labor or just one.

Thanks for your input also! I walked in honda and they said it wasen't common for the 98 accord and only the 01 accords =/...

 

Just so you know my background. Until about a year ago I spent just over 5 years working for the company that rebuilds honda transmissions for Genuine Honda Remanufacted Transmission. What I did was this. When time permited I repaired transmissions they could not get to pass a dyno test but most of my time was spent checking failed transmissions sent back by the dealer. I tested, disassembled and inspected them. Then I researched all the documentation and wrote reports based on what I found and suggested corrective actions. I know Honda transmissions better than most people and am still in close contact with some very knowlegable people inside honda transmission, until I quit I worked very closely honda transmission and even trained them on certain transmissions. Good luck with your new transmission, I sincerely hope it turns out to be a good one for you. Keep and eye on the fluid color and smell. I wouldn't be too surprised that honda says its not a common problem, do you really think they would admit that? Your transmission was most likely a MAXA or a BAXA mode, I've seen many of these differential bearings get so bad they slip on the hub they are press fit onto. A friend and I are getting ready to open our own shop and between the 2 of us we have almost 20 years experience in honda transmissions alone. If you want the best automatic on the market you will have to buy a Toyota but to be honest everyone is having trouble with trannys these days. Even my o3 ford 4x4 truck has tranny issues I keep a close eye out for.l

 

EdDuck, do you suggest a powerflush then? I've done turbo installs, suspension... cam gears and stuff but never anything with a automatic transmission so i'm totally unfamilar with what the main valve seperator is and idler gears. The only think I can think of is to get a power flush done or replace tranny... I bought some trans sea foam to give that a try.

Thanks

 

A power flush will not help you!!! Your diff bearings are disintegrating. Your better off with the used transmission as long as it is a good one. If it was a MAXA or a BAXA I think I would change those diff bearings and races before I installed it in my car, but then again I know how so this may not be an option for you. If you were close to Ohio I would tell you to bring it over and we could change them out real quick and install a new filter while you have it opened up too. On a honda you have to disassemble it to change the filter, nice design huh? I think they want to see you in thier service dept.

 

The 5th gen cars have excellent transmissions. Beginning with the 6th gen cars and even the 7th gen cars have crappy transmissions. I am thinking of a 1998 accord but we gotta get the trans checked

 

If you get 98 accord with a 4cyl you get either a transmission with diffential bearing problems (MAXA or BAXA) or the M6HA which has been known to wear a bushing in the mainshaft resulting in reduced pressure to a clutch and will eventually burn up the clutch and make it slip. If yo uget the V6 you get a different transmission. Check these closely for burned fluid and the presence of metal. I've seen a lot of these with diff bearing problems and thrust needle bearing failure, either of which usually damage gears. I'm not saying they are all like this but this is not uncommon for these transmissions based on my experience. If you ever have a honda transmission rebuilt make sure it is by a shop with someone well experienced with honda transmissions as there are certain checks and and adjustments that MUST be done or your trans will not last very long. Sometimes it is a pain to do the research and find a good shop from recommendations by people who have actually had a honda trans rebuilt but it sure beats doing and paying for it twice.

 

Doesn't this diff bearing look nice??

Customer complaint was "both axle seals leaking " and "won't shift cold"
Thank you Honda