tuan209

hi everyone. i just got my tsx in 6sp and when i reverse it, it makes a "different" sound as to when im going foward. is this normal? kind of like a lil buzz or a whine.

Proo

Yes, mine does that. I thought it was weird, but then I heard other honda cars doing it too (maybe not quite as loud, but the same noise). Doesn't sound good...

iamhomin

Don't know the exact reason, but that's how all MT cars sound on reverse. The Manual transmission was designed in ways for the "whirring" sound to occur when geared on reverse.

tuan209

well its not loud but just lil different..thought it was odd since some of the other 6sp ive test drove doesnt have that sound, but if i could remember correctly some of the Hondas i test drove before did have it.

slo007

My 5AT whines very audibly going in reverse. Reminds me of my family's 1995 VW Passat Variant back in Brazil (German Passat model)... that thing whined going forward like it was under extreme duress. Inside, though, it was very quiet. That VW was the most reliable stationwagon we ever had. It kept getting broken into, though. There were only like 4 in the city (3 million city).

There are only 2 TSX's where I live!! I'm so cool.

ssm_tsx

My 6spd tsx does and and so does my auto civic. It's normal for honda cars.

MikeL

Reverse gears are cut differently, not on an angle (like forward gears) but straight.

Would anybody care to refute that statement? Because I don't really know and I just assumed that was the reason. But yeah, I'm curious too.

gilboman

it's a honda thing... all honda cars do that, but i never knew why though..anybody know?...

masmole

No it's not just a Honda thing... other cars do it as well. Just as my TSX has that whine on reverse, so does my audi, and my old mazda (very loud), and even my friend's bimmer. As someone alluded to before, it has something to do with the way the reverse gear engages the straight cut synchronizers. Check this link to see how it really works.

tsxer.ca

nice link. very useful information.

osubuckeye98

it's normal, I've had it on all the Honda's i've owned. In fact, I was expecting it when I backed my TSX out of the garage the first time.

Dan Martin

We have a winner!

stocker2000

Exactly right. Check out this link for an explanation

http://www.howstuffworks.com/question522.htm

It's perfectly normal for all MT cars that use spur gears and an idler for reverse. Absolutley nothing to worry about.

type-s

normal in MT cars.

yuhoo22

I think this is common to most if not all hondas....
Have the same noise on my 1992 Accord and my Dad's Odyssey

ClutchPerformer

You're right. Forward gears are helical, reverse are straight-cut. Helical gear teeth are designed to touch each other gradually, while straight-cut gear teeth touch each other all at once (across their whole width). What you hear in reverse is those teeth slapping each other.

Why? Because straight-cut gears are MUCH cheaper to make and most people don't spend enough time in reverse for the gear noise to really matter.