This is the 3rd time this has happened to me so let me explain...

I'm at a light. The guy next to me wants to have a go at me so I let him. Light turns green. I accelerate hard and I get to the redline in 1st gear, go to shift into 2nd and GRRRRRIIIINNNNDDDD. Won't go into 2nd at all. Doesn't even try to go into gear. Other guy speeds away and I look like a noobie. Then once I stop and try to set off again normally it won't go into 1st gear. As in I cannot physically move the shifter into to 1st gear position. It is like it is blocked. I'll have my foot hard down on the clutch with all my strength pushing on the lever and it just won't go in. BUT 2nd-6th gears work fine so I can still drive the car starting in 2nd gear.

Here is the crazy thing. Days later after driving my car the best I can, it will miraculously go into 1st gear again and then drive like normal like nothing happened. And If I drive normal without racing it will shift like butter without grinding any of the gears.

This is clockwork. Happens the same EVERY time I redline 1st. And I would have no problem replicating it for a dealership.

I did speak with the tranny mechanic at acura and he said he has heard of it happening before and that the problem was the pressure plate and not the transmission. And that makes sense to me seeing as how the problem will just work itself out and not grind gears after the fact.

If it was the tranny syncros it would grind every time no matter what. At any RPM. And it would get progressively worse. Not just go away.

Info for you...
1) I had 3rd gearset replaced per recall instructions a long time ago.
2) Fluid has been changed to royal purple from GM syncromesh. I like it better. Needs to warm up first, but it is good stuff.
3)My car has 115k miles and this is an original clutch.
4)Clutch fluid is at normal level and not leaking.

So can anyone tell me if they have heard of this happening before?

Also, any input on whether you think I'm right or wrong about the faulty pressure plate is welcome and appreciated.

Thanks for your help.

 

I'm guessing that something is bad with the first and 2nd gearsets as it comes together and the syncro's are related to each other. With them wearing down or not engaging properly, it could cause the issues you are having.

 

That's possible however that doesn't sound like something that would work itself out. If that was the case I probably would never go back into first gear, right?

 

I had the same thing go wrong in my 6MT Audi S4 at 73k. It ended up being the 3rd gear syncro. It required the trans to be pulled and rebuilt. Audi tried to charge me $6,600 for the rebuild even though the car was under warranty.

 

I'm at dinner but I have a guess. Just subscribing to the thread so I won't forget it when I get home.

 

Ok IHC. I look forward to your input.

 

with the car off, can you get into first gear?

 

Nope. Not at all. It won't even try to go into gear.

 

C'mon peeps. I need more input on this one.

 

Would be interested to see what comes form this. I am having the exact same thing after the transmission 1-3 gears were replaced. This started b/c I was having the 3rd gear issue. Now my car is at another Acura dealership and they are telling me they cannot duplicate the issue. But they can hear the gear whines I am having which they say are subtle barely noticeable noises. Will be keeping an eye on this thread.

 

If it won't go into gear with the engine off, that elminates the clutch assembly and synchros.

I would start with checking the linkage when it's acting up. Have someone try to shift into first gear while you watch the linkage on the trans. Once you see what it's trying to do in order to engage 1st gear, try and help it out by hand or make whatever adjustments you can find. Sometimes they will leave a set screw or clamp screw loose and it gives just enough wiggle room that it screws up when you shift hard. It could take a few days for it to go back to it's normal position. This should be pretty easy to spot with someone else trying to push it into first gear.

Check for worn shifter bushings. Mark the linkage to the shifter shaft with a sharpie and remove the linkage. Try shifting by hand. If it goes in by hand easily, start tracing it back from the linkage to the shifter itself.

The dealer has been known to screw up reassembly of the trans on more than one occasion. It can be internal. Next time you change the fluid it would be a good idea to look for metal shavings.

FWIW, RP fluid is terrible, especially as a trans fluid. It does not protect as it should. Very unlikely this has anything to do with your problem but it would be a good idea to switch to something else the next time you change the fluid.

 

^what he said...

 

Linkage. Hmm. Had not considered that. I will check it out. There's no way my bushings could be worn out because they are the metal ones from corsport. But I will still see if that's a problem.

 

Going along with what you said, if the linkage turns out ok would that mean there is a problem with the shift fork inside the tranny? I don't know.

 

I assume those are the bushings at the shifter itself? I haven't worked on a TL specifically but usually there are more bushings located in the linkage somewhere between the shifter and trans and/or at the trans itself.

Most of the time there's a lever on the shifter shaft that's locked down with a bolt. If that bolt isn't tight, it can allow the lever to move into "no man's land" especially when you shift hard. It can also be a slight adjustment. Did you have this problem before installing the aftermarket shifter bushings?

The shaft usually slides in and out and rotates. If any one of these movements are off you will lose gears and it doesn't have to be off by much to seriously screw things up.

 

x2 on what ihc said.

Ive had hondas shift linkage do weird shit before on hard shifts and never do it on regular daily driving. I blamed it on bad modded shift linkage most of the time, but then I had it happen on a stock setup. basically the bitch pin was replaced with a bolt and nut (we lost the pin uninstalling it...hate those fuckers), but it had come loose and there was enough side to side play that it wouldnt go into gear (it was actually binding with the other piece of linkage). located another bitch pin and installed it and issues went away. would have never thought that little of play would cause so many issues, lol.

 

The bushings I replaced were at the linkage at the transmission. So you guys are saying that I should check the linkage at the shifter in the cabin, right?

And no it didn't happen before I swapped the bushings.

 

have you tried moving it with your hand yet?? go outside and do that shit now... takes 15 seconds... lol