Transmission & Differential - 1st gear

When I'm driving, (I'm not sure how fast you have to be goingno faster than 10 ), but you can't put your car into first. Like if i'm coming to a stop on a slight up hill, or pulling into a driveway or parking, when I down shift from second I can't go into first., if i'm going faster then like five. Second is too low, it feels like it wants to die and sometimes does. I have to either stop and shift, or go super slow and shift. Sometimes I want to shift back into first and I can't. I have no problem shifting from a stop or in and out of first. just in the situations listed above. I'm sure others have the same issue. Does anyone know how this works(mechanically or electrically...), or how I can disable. Prefferably how I can disable it, Thank You So Much!!!! Its a 95 civic d15b7 manual.

sounds like your synchros are going in your tranny. but a little more difficult the faster your going is normal. try revving the motor a little to align the synchros.

That's exactly what I have with my tranny. And exactly as sacicons said...rev your engine up and try to catch where it will fall in.

I asked my dad and he said that it was a safety precaution. and that it does that in other gears. he said if i was in 5th ger going 90mph on the freeway, and tried to put it in 2nd. it would't. I wouldn't try it, but i can see why this is so. so that you don't ruin your transmission. I tried what you said. and it still didn't work. If I'm holding the clutch shouldn't I be able to at least put it into any gear and still hold the clutch regardles of whether or not the engine revs and the transmission match up?!?!
Do you know how to disable what i'm talking about?

yeah, it should do it a little, but if he almost has to completely stop, then its a problem, if im slowing down, i can put mine into first at or near redline with only a little blip on the throttle. and thats just to help save my new clutch.

You need to rev match. Let your clutch out while you are in neutral and rev the engine a little bit. Then, while the rpm's are still up, push the clutch down and it should go into 1st pretty easily. Only thing I can think of is your synchros are shot.

how would I know whether my synchros are shot. What are they?

Synchros, or synchronizers, are put in manual transmission cars to eliminate the need for double-clutching. They allow the collar (connects gear to the driveshaft which goes to the wheels) and the gear to make frictional contact before the gear is actually engaged so that they can synchronize their speed, hence the name. If your synchros are worn down, it will be very hard to put the car into gear, and the gears will sometimes grind.

I think that could be possible. sometimes the gear doesn't go in. it grinds for a second and then I just shove it in there and works fine. do you know how much a job like this cost. Is it possible to do it yourself. I've got a pretty good setup in my garage. I've got a hot rod I'm building, So tools and equipment are not an issue.

Don't try to rebuild your own tranny unless you already have a new one to use for when you f*** it up. The reason your car won't go into first when you're moving faster than about 4 mph is that Hondas have very narrow first gears, and thus they only have low-speed synchros on first gear to keep you from making a mistake. Also, why are you compression braking in the first place?

1st gear is only to get your car rolling. So if you are driving 10mph or more(no exactly sure of the speed could be more) the first gear looks up and it will not let you shift to 1st gear again. I have two civic's and both are like that and my dad has Nissan Pickup and it does the same thing. If you really want to shift into a 1st gear then while trying to shift into gear hit your brakes fast. Always worked for me newer tried revving the engine thou.

i tried it today, just to see. when i was rolling, i stuck it in first and let out the clutch, it went to a little over six grand, so its not a lock, its just the synchros arent working too great. im betting the friction material on them is worn about down to nothing. and yeah, dont bother rebuilding it, just get a new (used) one off of ebay or something. if youve seen the inside of a honda (or most any) trans, you know what i mean. and its so damn simple to swap one out. i did it in the parking lot of my apartment once.

ORIGINAL: Kappa22


[quote]The reason your car won't go into first when you're moving faster than about 4 mph is that Hondas have very narrow first gears, and thus they only have low-speed synchros on first gear to keep you from making a mistake. Also, why are you compression braking in the first place?

AND

[quote]Vovka86
1st gear is only to get your car rolling. So if you are driving 10mph or more(no exactly sure of the speed could be more) the first gear looks up and it will not let you shift to 1st gear again. I have two civic's and both are like that and my dad has Nissan Pickup and it does the same thing. If you really want to shift into a 1st gear then while trying to shift into gear hit your brakes fast. Always worked for me newer tried revving the engine thou.






What is compression braking? and is there any way to disable the first gear locking up? And what do you mean by "braking fast"? Thanks!

ummm. compression braking is using the compression to throttle down AKA, engine braking. no. its there for a reason, yours is just worse than normal due to wear. and tapping hard on the brakes for a second to slow the car down to get the tranny in gear.

Or better yet, just leave it in neutral...

When you rev match it's really quite easy to put it into gear. Just have it in nuetral with the clutch out, rev the engine a little, and throw it into first. Once you get the hang of it, it becomes second nature just like normal shifting.

I guess I'm not getting my point across: STOP COMPRESSION BRAKING

I usualy don't compression brake. I just want to get into first when I'm going slow and on uphills I need more power than 2nd. or when I'm parking. I only compression brake:exting the freeway, and on the street. I leave it in 4th and brake until 20mph, then I just brake. That way I'm nott braking the full weight of the car, and to save my brake pads.

ORIGINAL: Super Mario

I usualy don't compression brake. I just want to get into first when I'm going slow and on uphills I need more power than 2nd. or when I'm parking. I only compression brake:exting the freeway, and on the street. I leave it in 4th and brake until 20mph, then I just brake. That way I'm nott braking the full weight of the car, and to save my brake pads.

Yeah and destroy your engine while your at it. Don't worry about going hard on your brakes. It's what they are made for.

Yeah and destroy your engine while your at it. Don't worry about going hard on your brakes. It's what they are made for.

Destroy isn't the right word here. But compression braking in the lower gears does put unnecessary wear on your internals. For 4th and even 3rd, though, you'll be fine.

And Super Mario, I know what you mean about D/S-ing to 1st up hills or rolling up to a stop sign.

I compression brake all the time because this is the way I was tought to drive...(KRAZ trucks with 12 gears and no synchros), but I guess you're right about unnecessary stress on the internals. Our engines aren's designed for that really.

So is there any way to disable it after all that. Not that it wasn't helpful, believe me it was, but is ther anyway to do that?!?!

KRAZ

I remember those. I never got to drive one thou

never got to drive one thou

You haven't missed anything special:-D It's a pain in the you know where. I had to push-start a loaded one once...it was about 20tons and nobody believed that it was possible:-D That's how I made my first $50...but like I said nothing special and highly uncomfortable...

my 04 civic wont let me do that either i took it to honda and they said that this is a safty feature so i dont blow my tranny, so when im driving on hills or in parking garages i just have to go slow and deal with it

ORIGINAL: civicexboy

so when im driving on hills or in parking garages i just have to go slow and deal with it


ORIGINAL: XCM828

When you rev match it's really quite easy to put it into gear. Just have it in nuetral with the clutch out, rev the engine a little, and throw it into first. Once you get the hang of it, it becomes second nature just like normal shifting.

.

I had a Corolla that seemed to have worn synchros. Especially in the cold. I put full synthetic gear oil in the trans which holds its viscosity regardless of temperature. That solved the problem!

ORIGINAL: Kappa22

Don't try to rebuild your own tranny unless you already have a new one to use for when you f*** it up. The reason your car won't go into first when you're moving faster than about 4 mph is that Hondas have very narrow first gears, and thus they only have low-speed synchros on first gear to keep you from making a mistake. Also, why are you compression braking in the first place?





Not me i can get like 40 out of first 70 out of second 105 out of third 130 out of fourth and almost 200 out of fith if it would pull my car tht fast.

oh yeah, and i thought of an appropriate time to use compression braking. in the rain. it keeps the tires from locking up and still slows your car. just thought id throw that out there. i was watching initial d (battle 8) when i thought about that, then i thought id go ahead and post it in here.

Should work on snow too. But will it work on ice?

its better than locked up tires. itll probably still slide a lot, but better than slammin the brakes.

Should work on snow too. But will it work on ice?

It does work on snow, but if you're unkucky enough to get on ice with less than 70% thread compression braking doing about 20mph I wish you luck...and a clear road ahead of you...

My car is hard to put into first too. when I brake, I just put the brakes on until the engine is at around 1,500 RPM then downshift to save wear on my clutch parts. I only do this if I'm rounding a corner or something, otherwise I just put it in neutral if I'm coming to a stop. I don't put the car back in first unless I'm from a stop. I even use second when I'm parking my car in the garage going 5 MPH... However, if I shift really quick from first to second there have been some instances where the gears ground before engaging. I just jammed the stick too hard though, lol I know better now.

That is EXACTLY ME. I do the absolute exact same thing. If i would have written it down thats what i would have said!

ORIGINAL: Super Mario

That is EXACTLY ME. I do the absolute exact same thing. If i would have written it down thats what i would have said!

I bet he's psychic or something.

I'll bet.....