TSX1012m6

2012 TSX 6 Speed W/ 47K miles. Ever since the weather has gotten warmer, my clutch pedal has slowly developed a creaking feeling. I applied a little bit of high temp grease to the pin that enters the firewall from the clutch. It seemed to make the problem better, but as soon as it hit 70F outside, it got worse. Now its to the point to where during engaging/disengaging (especially closer to the floor) there is a very annoying vibration/notchy/hesitation feeling. The car enters and drives through all gears fine (although second is always been annoyingly hesitant unless you enter it slowly).

I went to the auto store and bought some aersol white lithium grease and sprayed it into the square cavity in the area that meets the firewall on the clutch pedal. My thought was that the grease I used was not able to fully enter the cavity. I made multiple sprays, and cleaned the area thoroughly. Its not fixing the problem. Maybe its a bit better, but the problem is still there.

I did some reading on the topic, and there are many complaints on various honda/acuras with this issue. People are pointing to the throw out bearing, slave/master cylinder, or an all out clutch replacement (among other parts). The car has 47K on it. Im not an expert but I never experience clutch slipping. Minus the vibration, the clutch is always precise. Does anyone have any thoughts on what this could be? The Acura dealership I go to is ran by a bunch of shysters that I do not trust, especially there service department. They tried to charge me $900 for a VTC Actuator replacement, and on my own research I found that the vehicle still has a powertrain warranty. There response was "Oh, yeah it does". I'm already lined up for a $140 diagnostic charge.

BROlando

I've never opened up a 2nd gen to see if the trans has a guide sleeve for the release (throw out) bearing.

If it has a guide sleeve, it may be worn/barreled/pitted as a result of wear and tear from the driving environment...or at some point, the clutch was serviced...and someone goofed and used anti sieze as a lubricant (its not a lubricant for sliding parts). And/or someone goofed and did not replace the guide sleeve when they serviced the clutch.

The 1st gen has a release bearing guide sleeve.

Guide sleeves should be replaced when servicing the clutch (its usually a $30 part), and be lubed with Honda High Temp Urea grease, specifically .

Sometimes, the release guide sleeve is built into the trans case. The 06-11 Civic Si is that way. It can also become pitted from using the wrong grease or wear and tear. It should be sanded smooth (gently...by hand), and greased with Honda HT Urea.

A bad throw out bearing could also be a problem. But Honda hydraulic TOB's are always engaged. I guess the additional load from the clutch leafs could cause vibration only at the end of travel.

One easy way to diagnose is to remove the slave cylinder cover, aim at the release bearing guide...and spray some grease on it. If the pedal feels smooth, you likely found your issue. The spray grease is usually a temporary fix, though.

Also try filing the "wear nipple" off of the slave cylinder rod ball (all very suggestive names for you to giggle about). Regrease that with HT urea.

Worst case is that none of that works and you have bad engine thrust bearings from:
-Low oil at some point
-Holding down the clutch pedal at stop lights

TSX1012m6

Thanks for all of this info. I'm noticing that the problem is more apparent in warmer weather. Today was about 45-50F. The problem was not really apparent today, and the dealer suggested I bring it back when it is worse. They did cut my aftermarket key for free though! That was cool.

The problem was indeed better today, although the dealer couldnt really feel it, I could because I knew what to look for. Yesterday when it was 70+ out, for sure they would have noticed it (I was considering not driving the car at all it was so bad). So maybe the white lithium grease did something. Moving forward, I would like to grease the slave cylinder like you mentioned. Although this isnt my exact car, would this same process apply as in step one in the video below? Starts at 0:51


Thanks for the help!

Jaheri_cbp

Its the clutch master cylinder for sure, mine made this same squeaking noise when pushing in the pedal, and was a premature failure if you ask me because it started to squeak when I had about 72k miles on it. Apparently the quality of some of hondas oem parts has degraded over the years longevity wise because I soon replaced it with an oem civic em2 unit soon after the squeaking and the noise has not returned. I currently have almost 160k miles on the car.

Jaheri_cbp

edit: I might want to mention that I did also replace my clutch at around 90k miles and now either my guide sleeve (which I didn't regrease when changing the clutch smh) or throwout bearing is squeaking now and makes a very similar sound, much more audible outside of the car than was the squeaking from the cmc though.

I definitely recommend taking it back to the stealership after the lithium grease bandaid has worn out because it will probably be louder than ever once the grease has worn off.

BROlando

CMC problems are also very likely. I re-read and it looks like OP is getting the creaking/crunching that comes with the CMC acting up.

I know 1G TSX people upgrade to a more simple EM2 civic CMC. I had a crunchy CMC and I just replaced it with ab Exedy TSX CMC a few years back. It sometimes acts up when its hot/humid, but its good for the most part.

Also check for a cracked pedal bracket.

TSX1012m6

Took it back to the dealer today, last time I took it in, the problem went away as I pulled into the dealer. I have to say, this Acura dealer that I go to looks great but the service is terrible. The guy helping me knew nothing about cars and really was faking interest in everything I was saying, it was obvious and rude. He had a tech come out (oh that was pulling teeth to make happen) and the tech felt the problem instantly. He wasn't interested in small talk, but that's fine I'm sure the guy was busy.

Got a call a few hours later and they are going to replace the CMC. I looked into it a bit and it does looks a like a driveway-able job, but I'm going to pass on doing this repair myself. I have an aftermarket warranty that is covering the repair so I am just paying the deductible. I swear this dealership thinks they are repairing BMWs.

Cost for the repair = ~$512 - It's a 45 minute job and around a $100 part. I have an aftermarket warranty that I have to pay a $250 deductible, even then it seems a bit pricey for this repair. At least it is being done by the dealer. /rant

Jaheri_cbp

250 bucks isn't horrible, especially if you have never done a cmc, this one isn't the easiest to get to, but just having the piece of mind of having it bled and adjusted correctly, 250 is slightly high but fair if you don't know of another highly qualified or regarded mechanic in the area, thank goodness for warranties.