I'll tell you about something that has happened to me 3 times now since I've had my TSX (about 8 months). Sitting at a dead stop, I cant put the shifter into 1st gear. Cluth is all the way down, the thing will just not go in. Tried multiple times.

I end up having to start in second, or go into neutral ... let off the clutch...push in the clutch and try again (then it usually goes in).

So like i said, its only been 3 times out of I dont know how many hundred that have been ok. Should I have this checked out? Any ideas why this would happen?

 

That use to happen on my 2000 Civic all the time, more than 3 times in 8 months.

 

If you have the clutch all the way in, the transmission is not spinning. Then you may be trying to but teeth on teeth and the gear shift won't change. Just be in neutral, let off the clutch (get the tranny spinning again) get back on the clutch and then shift.

It happens.

 

Cool, thanks guys.

 

Not a big deal. I've had this happen to me in a bunch of cars. Lung's advice should solve it.

 

I thought this thread was about something else.

 

I have a habit of always pressing in on the clutch and going from 2nd to 1st before I drive off. (just a quick shift without movement) I never have problems getting into first doing that!

 

Its all marketing.

 

Yeah the same thing happens in my Accord.

 

Do you guys ever have trouble shifting all the way into reverse? It would go have way in, but not all the way. I would have to try multiple times, then it would finally go in. Is this the same case as not being able to go into first at a dead stop?..."teeth on teeth"?

 

Yup!!! What I normally do, if this happens, is to put in 1st then in reverse.

 

I gotta try that next time I have problems with it...thanks for the tip [vwong].

 

usually a bump to 2nd and back to first will fix it. but i always shift to 1st as im stopping just before i come to a complete stop. i have been doing this as habit since i learned to drive. for 2 reasons. you may not know when the light is going to turn green and you may need to be in 1st gear before you take off. and 2 it makes shifting easier.

 

happened to me in my Explorer.... yea it was a 5-speed.

 

...but if he's at an almost dead stop, then the other half of the transmission (the driveshaft) isn't spinning either. So it should be fine.....right? :sqnteek:

I think it's just something weird about how Honda (or whoever their tranny supplier is) designs their synchros. I have the same problem most times and got flamed for mentioning it before....

 

I have a '97 Civic and have never heard of this... but i go back down the gears as i went up - again, not sure why, just the way i was taught?!?

explain how: as i come to a stop, if i'm in 4th, i'll go back down to 3rd, then 2nd, then once i'm stopped. back into 1st.

not sure why i do... can't imagine doing it any other way

and yes, i thought this thread was about something else too...

 

Right...NOTHING is spinning and at a dead stop. Thus you're trying to put teeth on teeth in the gears. The trick is to get something spinning again so that the teeth are not aligned, then try it again.

 

So you leave your car in gear while you are stopped? I could never do this, and I dont think its good for the clutch pedal anyways.

 

I've had problems shifting OUT of reverse. On a couple of occassions, I shifted into reverse, but the transmission did not engage when I released the clutch. I pressed the clutch, then realized that I can't get it out of reverse!! I ended up turning off the engine, pressing the clutch and finally got it out of reverse after moving it a bit. Really weird, but it happened to me twice already (5000 miles).

 

I had a problem this morning where i tried putting it into reverse with the clutch down and it kept making nasty unhappy sounds like the clutch wasnt in... I was just rolling out of my driveway backwards so i just rolled instead .. hasnt happened since

 

Reverse needs to be put in at a standstill since it is a square cut gear with no synchros. Rolling backwards and trying to put it in gear is bad.

 

Yea...I've actually tried to put it in reverse while I was rolling back and it didn't sound nice...it was kind of a grinding noise so I havn't done it since.

 

Right. But isn't that what synchros are supposed to take care of?

 

Maybe there needs to be some spinning force for the syncros to work?

 

So the thing to do then is shift into reverse before i even let the car move... I never had that problem with any of my other cars though

 

Yes. I wouldn't really call that a "problem", though...

 

At stop signs, yes - at a stop light, no i take it out. Sorry for not making that clear before.

 

I don't really have the same problem shifting into first, but then I often shift from neutral to second then up to first when at a stoplight. Old habit I learned on my MG, not really necessary on the TSX. I normally have the trans in neutral when stopped. I've never ground the gears going into reverse, but twice I've missed R and hit sixth instead and stalled.