Blew my valves

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Old 10-12-2006 | 12:22 PM
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Blew my valves

Well I just brought my 05 TL in for service, A1 service and to look at the 3rd gear grind. WEnt on a test drive for the trans and of course it didn't work and they said they have not had any problems like this. Meanwhile they replaced my 3rd gear last time i was there. My check engine light was on and my car was idleing like shit. To make a long story short, because of a mis-shift (i have a 6mt) I ruined my valves. They wanted $800 just to open up the engine to diagnos and tell me what they could do. Warranty does not cover mis-shifts. This sucks, I"m sick over this. I beat the piss out of my 99 integra, mis shifted on that and no problems. 140K miles of torture and never had any probelms. I have 38K on my TL and I'm screwed. I guess I'm going ot go to a private mechanic so Acura doesn't ass rape me on the price.
Old 10-12-2006 | 12:26 PM
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How badly did you mis-shift?? I haven't heard of "normal" mis-shifting affecting the valves. Did you go from 5th to 1st or something???
Old 10-12-2006 | 12:30 PM
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I went from 3rd to 2nd.
Old 10-12-2006 | 12:41 PM
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The reason I mis shifted is because I've been getting a catch or grind going from 2nd to 3rd and 3rd to 4th. I was pulling onto the highway and when I went to put it into 4th it grinded, i pushed it up and then back in to what i thought was 4th but was 2nd.
Old 10-12-2006 | 12:46 PM
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Originally Posted by chfields
How badly did you mis-shift?? I haven't heard of "normal" mis-shifting affecting the valves. Did you go from 5th to 1st or something???
Doesn't matter what sort of mis-shift it is, if the engine over revs and floats the valves so that the pistons hit them, you're screwed.

The 3.2 is an interference engine design so if the valve train gets out of sync, blown timing belt, etc., it's all over but the pay out for repairs.
Old 10-12-2006 | 12:48 PM
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Originally Posted by Papaman677
I went from 3rd to 2nd.
that fucking sucks dude.
Old 10-12-2006 | 12:49 PM
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^ It shouldnt have even let you shift .... you would have had to JAM it in to 2nd if u were going THAT fast
Old 10-12-2006 | 01:32 PM
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Ooouch... so sorry to hear. What was the speed/rpm when you were shifting out of 3rd?

Taking it to a private shop sounds like a good idea. Hope it works out without costing an arm and a leg.
Old 10-12-2006 | 01:39 PM
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Arm and a leg, i feel like i just got kicked in the nuts. I was pushing 3rd gear, wasn't really looking down. Car lunged forward when shifted into 2nd obviously. Slammed the clutch in as fast as I could. Didn't have to slam the car into gear though (2nd that is). Thought it was going into 4th
Old 10-12-2006 | 01:40 PM
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I remember when i misshifted on my previous acura, the dealership was nice enough to pay for the labor, and all I had to cover was parts.

Just go in there and raise hell...maybe that will help.
Old 10-12-2006 | 01:42 PM
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I sold my 2000GSR. The guy who bought it did the same thing about a week after he got it. It cost him around $1500.
It can happen to the Integra also. The sad thing in his case he thought the dealer was trying to rip him off. So he didn't replace the timing belt when they had it open. It had like 85k on it...... Should be changed by like 90k. So.... He will be back.
Old 10-12-2006 | 04:27 PM
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Originally Posted by ludachrisvt
^ It shouldnt have even let you shift .... you would have had to JAM it in to 2nd if u were going THAT fast
Blame it on the multi-cone synchronizers. They made the shift into 2nd much easier, and quicker.

Let me guess. You were winding out in 3rd and went to throw a speed shift (hopefully it wasn't a power shift - was it?) into 4th and hit 2nd instead.
Old 10-12-2006 | 05:06 PM
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don't want to sound like a dick or anything, but I don't understand how people miss shift. i guess i can understand if you're fairly new to driving stick. i've been driving MT since I was 16(26 now) and I've never had a accident like that. even when racing. i was in a friends 93 Accord with an H22 and he miss shifted really bad. me and my other buddy kind of laughed. he let me drive it about an hour later and i ran through the gears like a champ. i think it made him feel bad. lol

anyways... that completely sucks that the warranty won't cover your engine troubles. i know shit happens. i hope it all works out for you.
Old 10-12-2006 | 05:45 PM
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how the hell did they know that you misshifted in the first place? why would you tell them that? sucks that the TL was built here....
Old 10-12-2006 | 05:56 PM
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Originally Posted by kosh2258
Doesn't matter what sort of mis-shift it is, if the engine over revs and floats the valves so that the pistons hit them, you're screwed.

The 3.2 is an interference engine design so if the valve train gets out of sync, blown timing belt, etc., it's all over but the pay out for repairs.
How can that happen if there is a rev limiter? I understood that the TL has a rev limiter to prevent things such as this. Well, I'm sure he'll learn to be more careful shifting in the future. Expensive lesson.
Old 10-12-2006 | 06:12 PM
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Lol I always shift from 3rd to second in sport shift mode

never going extremely fast though ( no more than 40mph )
Old 10-12-2006 | 07:27 PM
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Originally Posted by JJaber06
Lol I always shift from 3rd to second in sport shift mode

never going extremely fast though ( no more than 40mph )

he was in a 6spd
Old 10-12-2006 | 07:29 PM
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that sucks, I mis-shifted my 1994 3000gt vr4 twice at the track, lol first time it went to 8k rpm, because I couldnt get it into 4th, then I couldnt get it in once again which is when I looked down and saw 9k rpm!! Car ran rough for about 1/4 mile then ran normal after that.

That sucks with the tl though, how do they know you mis-shifted it? Shouldnt have told them, just say "I dont know what happend"
Old 10-12-2006 | 07:30 PM
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Manual trans is slightly different(well VERY different) than an auto trans. The rev limiter can't prevent you from manually downshifting.

Mike
Old 10-12-2006 | 07:51 PM
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Originally Posted by crazymjb
Manual trans is slightly different(well VERY different) than an auto trans. The rev limiter can't prevent you from manually downshifting.

Mike
It won't/can't keep you from manually downshifting, but it's supposed to cut the power when it reachs a certain rpm, regardless of how you do it.
Old 10-12-2006 | 08:04 PM
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Well I got the car back from the dealer and they had all the codes on the receipt of the work that was done on the car. It registered in the computer what had happened. I didn't even say I mis shifted, they told me I did. I learned how to drive stick when I was 13. My father taught me on his 1990 300zx. I do know how to drive it but accidents do happen. I guess I really have nothing to blame but myself. It just really sucks. I just find it funny that I did this to my Integra a few times and nothing happened. Friend of mine said that it's because of the high compression engine, where as my integra (not the gsr) was not. I'm just hoping that I didn't blow ALL the valves, maybe it's just 1 or 2.........wishful thinking. Anyone know how much a job like this costs?
Old 10-12-2006 | 08:18 PM
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Old 10-12-2006 | 08:23 PM
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Originally Posted by chfields
It won't/can't keep you from manually downshifting, but it's supposed to cut the power when it reachs a certain rpm, regardless of how you do it.
The rev limiter will prevent you pushing the engine any faster provided you're in a gear and your foot is on the gas since most if not all rev limiters cut off fuel delivery. It won't prevent the engine from revving past it's max rpm if you downshift, intentionally or unintentionally.
Old 10-12-2006 | 08:28 PM
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Originally Posted by laidback93
don't want to sound like a dick or anything, but I don't understand how people miss shift. i guess i can understand if you're fairly new to driving stick. i've been driving MT since I was 16(26 now) and I've never had a accident like that. even when racing. i was in a friends 93 Accord with an H22 and he miss shifted really bad. me and my other buddy kind of laughed. he let me drive it about an hour later and i ran through the gears like a champ. i think it made him feel bad. lol

anyways... that completely sucks that the warranty won't cover your engine troubles. i know shit happens. i hope it all works out for you.

It doesnt matter how good you are at stick, accidents happen. Even the best drivers get into accidents, it just happens.


Sorry about your misfortune man, i know how you feel, trust me.
Old 10-12-2006 | 08:50 PM
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Originally Posted by geronimomoe
The rev limiter will prevent you pushing the engine any faster provided you're in a gear and your foot is on the gas since most if not all rev limiters cut off fuel delivery. It won't prevent the engine from revving past it's max rpm if you downshift, intentionally or unintentionally.
Exactly. I'm no mechanic, but the only way I could forsee the car interfering with such a shift is to use the electronic gate control like they do to prevent the 5th to Reverse shift. Wait no..... I got it.... how about the VSA hits the brakes to keep the car under the max speed for that gear.

J/K

Sorry to hear about your misfortune. Thanks for sharing so the rest of us can learn. May the force be with you, or is it "live long and prosper" now that Trek is back.
Old 10-12-2006 | 08:56 PM
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I just cant believe one mis shift did this. I watched one of our members take his TL on an enclosed track in Ft Worth. He was constantly in vtec and on the rev limiter. Just hauling ass around that track for 30 minutes. Not one issue.
Old 10-12-2006 | 09:11 PM
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papaman667 is probably one of those guys we see on youtube.com

but really... sorry your having problems... maybe the dealer would cut you a break if you put up enough of a fuss..
Old 10-12-2006 | 09:58 PM
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Originally Posted by ayethetiense
how the hell did they know that you misshifted in the first place?
Without opening the "TL logs everything" can o' worms, the TL also logs max speed, rpm and a few other things that can be easily accessed.

Correct me if I'm wrong.
Old 10-12-2006 | 10:10 PM
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Yes I wrote before that they looked it up in the computer and it said what happened.
Old 10-13-2006 | 07:44 AM
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Originally Posted by chfields
How can that happen if there is a rev limiter? I understood that the TL has a rev limiter to prevent things such as this. Well, I'm sure he'll learn to be more careful shifting in the future. Expensive lesson.
Let's put this in a different perspective. Run your MT car up to say 100 mph on the freeway. Push in the clutch and shut the engine completely off. Now you're coasting down the road at 100 mph without an engine runing. Cram the shifter into 2nd gear and let the clutch out. Immediately pull to the side of the road, get out of the car, and go back and pick up all the engine and tranny pieces you just scattered all over the freeway....
Old 10-13-2006 | 07:45 AM
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Originally Posted by Papaman677
Yes I wrote before that they looked it up in the computer and it said what happened.
There really isn't a way to hide things anymore is there. How long had you driven the car since you missed the shift? I would like to know how long it keeps that information in the computer before it over writes it....or does it just save the peak numbers?

By the way, is the car under warranty? If so, and there is a confirmed shifting problem, why wouldn't they warranty damage from that exact shifting problem? I think I might want to pursue this a bit further with the service manager. If still no joy, take it up the ladder with Acura directly...and if they agree to fix it, go to a different dealer.
Old 10-13-2006 | 07:56 AM
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Originally Posted by CobraGuy
Let's put this in a different perspective. Run your MT car up to say 100 mph on the freeway. Push in the clutch and shut the engine completely off. Now you're coasting down the road at 100 mph without an engine runing. Cram the shifter into 2nd gear and let the clutch out. Immediately pull to the side of the road, get out of the car, and go back and pick up all the engine and tranny pieces you just scattered all over the freeway....

It doesn't matter if the car is running or not. When a car is mis-shifted like he did it will not stop the engine from over-reving. The drivetrain/transmission/wheels is all pushing the engine speed up. The REV limiter only controls the gas input from the pedal that's it. Once it hits the rev limiter it cuts the gas out. When you over-rev gas pedal isn't included in this scenerio. I have done a mis-shift on a 99 LS1 TransAm and bent some pushrods. It was easy on that car because of of the crappy transmission gates it had.
Old 10-13-2006 | 10:58 AM
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Originally Posted by CobraGuy
There really isn't a way to hide things anymore is there. How long had you driven the car since you missed the shift? I would like to know how long it keeps that information in the computer before it over writes it....or does it just save the peak numbers?

By the way, is the car under warranty? If so, and there is a confirmed shifting problem, why wouldn't they warranty damage from that exact shifting problem? I think I might want to pursue this a bit further with the service manager. If still no joy, take it up the ladder with Acura directly...and if they agree to fix it, go to a different dealer.
I've been driving the car for close to 2 weeks. When I brought my car in they made me take a ride with a tech to duplicate the shifting problem, which did not happen. They said they took it out later in the day and nothing happened. The tech said he had no knowledge of any transmission problems. I told him he should surf around the internet. I even told him about the transmission fluid and that honda came out with a different trans fluid. I remember seeing the post for that somewhere on here. I don't know if I should call up acura and explain the problem and see what happens. I don't even know who I would contact about that. Obviously the dealer didn't want anything to do with it. $800 for a tear down to see the extent of the damage. How many valves do we have in the TL? Is it a 24 valve? I'm hoping I didn't bang up all of them.
Old 10-13-2006 | 11:46 AM
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^ - unless the valves are terribly expensive, once you open it up, might as well replace all of them for peace of mind
Old 10-13-2006 | 11:52 AM
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What was the RPM logged during the alleged mis-shift???

Floating the valves resulting in a decrease in immediate compression is one thing . Floating the valves resulting in them striking the piston is another..

Not an expert on the TL engine by any means but I would speculate floating to the point of contact with the piston would require several 1000's of rpm above the redline etc..

Is a Honda "V-tech" more susceptible to this????

I'll be interested to read the outcome on this one Papaman - Raise heck with Acura, after all, it was partially due to a known trans issue (whether your dealer admits it or not...).


Good luck!
Old 10-13-2006 | 01:01 PM
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^ Vtec, vtech is a phone
Old 10-13-2006 | 02:01 PM
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Originally Posted by ubnpast
^ Vtec, vtech is a phone

He's got a problem with his phone too????? Damn...
Old 10-13-2006 | 02:05 PM
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Mis-shifts are never covered under warranty, and as you said they can tell when you mis-shift. BMW's have very tight tolerances between the valves and the piston. One misshift even slightly and you are done. And BMW will be able to tell if you mis-shifted and it doesn't matter if you have 5 miles on the car it's still not under warranty. You just gotta try to be more careful; accidents do happen though. I have seen some Acura dealers though do it under warranty so I guess it depends on the dealer and if they like you.
Old 10-14-2006 | 12:50 AM
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i miss shifted an Integra from 2nd to 1st at redline, we saw the tach go to about 9400 but the engine lived no side affects at all. Thank god because it wasnt my car heh. Thats about the only time i missed a shift and went into the wrong gear.
Old 10-14-2006 | 01:23 AM
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In my old Formula... which is an auto... I downshifted into second at about 80 mph by mistake... the RPMs did not go over redline, but the wheels were locked and sliding... only for maybe 1 to 2 seconds before I got it out... no damage at all...

Just curious why wheel lock would not occur??


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