When I'm going into 2nd and 3rd gear particularly, the shift is never very smooth/fluid. When I pull the stick into second, it seems doesn't pull back into the gear seemlessly. It seems to feel 'jagged'... almost like it pulls back to one specific point, and then steps/snaps into to gear. It definately feels like a 2 step processes instead of one fluid one. Does this make sense at all the way I'm describing it? Is this normal? I never hear the gears grind at all, so I don't think it's a major problem (if any problem at all). it simply feels like things aren't synch'ing up properly in the gear box. Is this just charactistic of a short throw transmission?

If the car is turned off and I go thru the gears, everything is very smooth. The roughness only happens when I'm driving the car.

 

I do not know if you are feeling a lot of problem or just small amount. When I was in talking to the Acura regional manager we were talking about some of the problems such as flat spotting.

He brought up about the transmission and asked if I could 'feel' the synchros when going from 1st to 2nd to 3rd. You can feel about three distinct steps when going from 1st to 2nd if you do it slow enough.

If this is what you feel, it is expected.

 

I'm having the same issue. The funny thing is that the gears were engaging very smoothly last week. My car has only 400 miles on it. I'm a very experienced driving stick and have never grinded the gears in this car yet. But I will definitely taking it to the dealer because it's becoming very annoying to shift. It's almost like the gates have shifted. I don't think that this is a characteristic of the car. Especially when you consider that my car did not have this a week ago.

 

Agreed.. it is annoying. I find it hard to believe that the lack of smoothness could be intentional. I cringe every time I shift into 2nd or 3rd now because of it. No grinding, yet it still feels like I'm forcing it into gear a bit. I think things just aren't synch'ed up.

If I go from 2nd to nuetral and then back to 2nd.. it doesn't show the problem.

 

I have the same issue:

If u change gear from 1st to 2nd and 3rd, if they are not rev matched (the engine turns at the same speed as the transmission) , it's not smooth as butter as if the car was parked (but no grinding).

But when I downshift from 3rd to second, I can see a two step process, it's smooth at the stroke, then it a kind of harder to get it in.

I think this is just the synchro at work.

 

I think that is normal. Can it have something to do with a lockout of first gear? I don't know if the lockout would even be by the shiftgate itself, but I don't get the feeling except when I'm going from 3rd to second at a corner, stopsign, etc. If the lockout os at the shiftgate, then it's possible the we're hitting a piece of it