corza

I've had my 07 SI since May. In the first month I experienced the issue with shifting into third when I was trying to do it aggressively but since I have gotten use to the feel of the shifter and I no longer have a problem. As someone said earlier in the thread, if you learn to be just a little less forceful with the shifter if works fine and there is no loss of acceleration. There is nothing wrong with the transmission, it's just user error on the shifter. The technique "I" use is to lay the palm of my hand on the top of the shifter and slide the shifter into place allowing my palm to slide across the top of the shifter as resistance is dealt with, which allows the shifter to seat into position without forcing it. I have been driving performance automobiles including racecars since the 60's and I did learn long ago that you often have to adjust to car to get it to do what you want it to. Honda makes a great car, you may just have to learn how to drive it.

Vinc84

It is awesome that my Edmunds posting is being passed around lol

I was just Googling more Civic forums to copy&paste my old and recent posts about the 3rd Gear Problem. I will assure you that from what I know, the fix is 100% true. Here are my original and recent posts:

Hello everyone I joined this forum just to respond to this thread. I have done so at other forum boards including Edmunds under the same name Vinc84. This is an issue I have looked heavily into and am in the works of getting my 07 Civic SI fixed for good. Please note that I am simply going to copy & paste my original postings from Edmunds on here. You can find the original Edmunds thread by Googling: Honda Civic SI 3rd Gear

or by visiting this link:
http://blogs.edmunds.com/roadtests/558

It will be the very first link that Google draws up.

In my posts I heavily describe how I've experienced the fauly 3rd Gear issue, and I know many of you will be able to relate to what I've written. I've also written about my trips to the dealership and how my car was after I changed the MTF to Amsoil Syncromesh (My Honda Dealership looked this up on their updated service computer and agreed that this is indeed the Honda recommended fluid and yes if your car does not have it you should get it b/c it is now what ALL recent Civic SIs should have). And finally I write to inform about an official Honda released transmission fix, which is like a recall but at the same time not a recall. So please read and if you have any questions you are welcome to e-mail me at:

vinc@umd.edu

Here are my posts:

vinc84 - Dec 4, 2007 7:09 am (#26 Total: 30)

Tuesday December 04 2007 - 9:45am

Hello to all you other '06-'07 owners and to you curious would-be Si-owners.

I am currently writing this comment from my local Honda dealership. I have experienced the sluggish 3rd gear from since the first week I purchased my '07 Civic Si. The third gear started out being a little stiff but overall shifting was smooth. After the break-in period of about 1000 - 1500 miles, it got much worse. The first 3rd-gear grind occured somewhere between 700 - 1000 miles, and thereafter I'd say I get the missed-gear and/or grind at least once or twice every two weeks...each time that it has happened it wrenched my heart.

Anyways, I'm at about 14,500 miles now and I've gotten fed up with the 3rd gear issue. Last Friday I brought my car here and spoke to the manager of the service dept. and told him all about the issue. Apparently, Honda recognizes the 3rd gear issue for both the Civic Si and the recent S2000s as well. Both cars are recommened a transmission fluid swap from the original fluid to Amsoil Syncromesh (as others on here have already stated, I am just plugging that Honda verifies and in fact recommends this fluid). So I got my transmission fluid changed to the Amsoil Syncromesh for no service fee since my car is stil under warranty. The manager told me everything should run smoothly now and to give it another try and if the same problem persists even after the transmission fluid swap, then the warranty will cover for even a transmission overhaul if it is required.

Well, I drove my Si around this past weekend and I will say positively that the transmission fluid does in fact improve the smoothness of the shifting. However, my third gear still seemed 'damaged' from all the grinds it had received before I got the new transmission fluid. Even though it's improved a lot - it still hangs a bit. And as fate would have it, while driving yesterday the third gear didn't take and it kicked my shift knob right back at me...and if I wasn't already familiar with the routine then I would have grinded the gear yet again! Upset, I brought the car back and told the service manager that the problem occured again and that even though the transmission fluid probably would have fixed the problem if I got it changed from day one - it is simply now a problem with how damaged and frayed my 3rd gear is and also how damaged the shaft that slides in and out of the gears has gotten from being chipped at from the 3rd-gear 'grindage'.

Well, the result of that long story is that I am now sitting here at the dealership while the manager is waiting on confirmation with Honda Tech to see what parts they're going to need for a transmission overhaul. My Si is fully paid off, still new, and under warranty thankfully. I am expecting that it will be fixed to the state that it should have been in when I purchased the car. We as a consumer deserve the best in performance from our Civic Sis. If you are truely concerned about the long-term health of your transmission and you are experiencing the 3rd-gear issues - then I suggest you go look into it at your dealership and get it fixed while your warranty will still cover it.

It really is a shame that some of the '06 - '07 Civic Si transmissions are faulty by default from manufacture. If you're looking into buying one, then make sure the car has had the Amsoil Syncromesh fluid put into the car before you take it off the lot...it will make your life so much easier. I'm pretty certain you won't have any problems at all if you buy the car with the Amsoil Syncromesh already in the car.

I will be posting another update with further news about my car for the curious. Good luck everyone.

Vincent T. (Maryland)
'07 Civic Si Nighthawk Pearl w/ Nav

vinc84 - Dec 5, 2007 4:29 pm (#27 Total: 30)

Okay guys, I have big/good news:

The service manager at my local dealership got the word in and told me that Honda now officially recognizes fauly transmissions for its 6-speed transmission cars - as far as '03 Civic Si all the way to recent '08 models - including S2000s, Accords, and 6-speed Acuras.

There WILL be a fix issued in January 2008 - the exact date is not announced or known yet. This is not a total recall on all 6-speeds. Cars will be addressed in a case by case basis - basically if someone has a problem and it is recognized as being related to the confirmed 6-speed transmission issues - your dealership is obligated to fix your car for you free of charge, even if your car is no longer under warranty (past mileage or years).

The fix:

I didn't get very many details but basically I was told that for the the '06 - '07 Civic Si models (maybe '08 as well) that there is a transmission kit in the works that will fix the problems everyone is talking about - basically a crappy 3rd-gear and the hanging, grinding, and rejection when shifting. The tranny fix will change the gear syncrhos for gear 1 through 6 and will fix and improve the shifting of not only the 3rd gear, but of the gear box entirely. For those of us who get this fix, they will basically give you a new transmission - new fresh gears and re-synchronized, etc. Awesome.

Conlcusion:

So, everyone who's experiencing any problems at all - nows the time to bring your Si into the dealership and bring up the problem and ask about the transmission fix that's been announced. If the manager or service worker has no idea what you're talking about - tell them to contact Honda Motor Corp and ask because they should have been updated with instructions about the coming transmission fixes - the manager I spoke to didn't know but he had the intelligence to look into my problem further to find out if there was one.

Good luck everyone, by the Jan 2008 this issue should be taken care of once and for all, so go get your Si fixed. To anyone looking into buying the Si - I suggest you wait until January comes around so that the fix takes. Just make sure you're buying an Si that has the new transmission layout and the new required transmission fluid in it.

Vincent T. (Maryland)
'07 Civic Si Nighthawk Pearl w/ Nav


[B]steve2333 - Dec 27, 2007 8:18 am (#28 Total: 30) [/B]

Thanks Vincent,
The information you provided was needed and accurately desribed the problems I was experiencing. It saved me the bother of trying again to get my dealership to work on the problem without "replicating" it first. I read your post to the Service Manager, and then he finally understood (or accepted what I had been telling them).

Steve2333

vinc84 - Jan 13, 2008 2:10 am (#30 Total: 30)

That's awesome Steve I'm glad you didn't have to wait for those service guys to replicate the scenario in their test drives. I find it probably impossible to replicate the issue unless one of them actually owned you car for a few days and drove it from cold start to run a few errands. And no one has the time or the trust to loan their car out to someone just to show them what the problem is.

It is good that your service manager took my post at face value. Originally I printed out this threat before I posted on it to show MY service manager. He tried to replicate the problem, but to no avail.

At least he knew about the Amsoil Syncromesh and changed that for me for free. But after that didn't really work to well, he found out about the transmission fix by Honda. So I'm thankful for that and I hope we all get that fix soon.

Did your service manager also learn about the transmission fix and have you received it yet or are you still in the process as well? Let me know how it goes for you, good luck.

Vincent T. (Maryland)
'07 Civic Si Nighthawk Pearl w/ Nav
email: vinc@umd.edu




vinc84 - Jan 13, 2008 1:47 am (#29 Total: 30)

Hello everyone it's me again, I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays.

It is now the middle of January 2008 and I haven't gotten in contact with the service manager at my local Honda dealership concerning that transmission-kit fix yet. He said he would call me when it's available but of course he probably would forget...

So, this coming Monday I'm going to probably stop by the dealership since I need an oil-change and new air-filter anyways, and while I'm there I'm going to see if the fix is available yet. I seriously hope it is because my car has gotten MUCH more sluggish since my last post. I'm now at 16,000 miles and I'm beginning to think my clutch is burnt or something. It just doesn't feel the same way anymore. Or maybe I just need that oil-change and air-filter but I doubt those two maintenances would make my car sluggish like that at all. (20% oil life, air-filter I think is recommended for change at 12- 15k miles.) It is definetly drive-train related.

I mean, when I really want my car to go fast, I can MAKE it go fast, but I feel as if I have to really press on the accelerator more lately. I don't remember having to try as hard or give as much gas for it to push, and I really don't get that "kick" when i accelerate anymore. But defintely not a full blown clutch just yet.

In either case, I've already sort of been promised by the service manager that if my clutch was worn out or entirely "burnt" then he would go ahead and associate it with the faulty 3rd gear issue. Hopefully my clutch and everything is fine, but if they're not then I hope they will indeed fix it without me having to pay for the parts or service.

Although of course someone could always say it is the driver's fault and that the driver pay for it - but in this case, since Honda is officially taking responsiblity for the faulty transmission issue - I believe they'll cover any other RELATED issues and treat it as a special case since it is highly probable that those other mechanical problems are related to the gear/shifting issues. So if you're going in to get this fix, remember to ask them to perform a full vehicle inspection in case your clutch and whatever else is screwed up.

Has anyone else already went ahead and found out more information or received the gear fix? If so, please explain to the rest of us how it went and how your SI is doing now. I'll update again after I find out more information about the fix - whether it's available or not yet, etc.

If anyone has questions or comments you are welcome to email me:

vinc@umd.edu

Vincent T. (Maryland)
'07 Civic Si Nighthawk Pearl w/ Nav

Vinc84

AppleSauseSi,

I'm not a fake person =P My posts are simply my encounters with the 3rd Gear issue thus far. I am going through the same problem that you all are going through with your car. I'm simply sharing the news I've found out through my dealership and retelling my story on forums so other people can benefit from it. If you have already done so, please take my origina Edmunds postings to your dealership and ask about the transmission fix as well. If they have no idea what you're talking about, ask the service manager nicely to check the official Honda service bulletin because it is on there! If not, ask them speak to someone at Honda Motor Corp. about it and they should inform him that there is a fix in the works or perhaps it is now available - I haven't had time to check it out. I'm going to do so this coming Monday. I'll let you know what happens then. Good luck.

Vincent T. (Maryland)
'07 Civic Si Nighthawk Pearl w/ Nav
vinc@umd.edu

Vinc84

IntegraKing,

I also left my car with them for a few hours so they could try to replicate the problems I was describing. That was when I got my transmission fluid changed to Amsoil Syncromesh. It helped but didn't fix the problem. You should go ahead and ask the service manager to just please contact Honda Motor Corp and ask if the Transmission Fix for the Civic Si is available. If he has no idea what you're talking about, he will soon learn about it because the fix is announced on Honda's official service bulletin! That is how my service manager found out. Once it is available for the dealership to obtain, it is a matter of ordering the necessary parts and fixing up your car. Good luck.

Vinc84

AWESOME RESEARCH:

http://www.automotivearticles.com/123/article_253.shtml

These guys did a good job at pointing out the 3rd gear problem.

Vinc84

If you're looking for a quick answer without reading my long post, I'll sum it up.

Honda has announced a transmission fix for the 06 - 07 Civic SI (and any other Honda 6-speed that qualifies for the fix). The announcement is on their official service bulletin for any dealership to draw up to see for themselves. If the service manager still fails to figure out that this is a Honda recognized issue and that there is a fix for it, kindly ask him to contact someone at Honda Motor Corp about it for you and they SHOULD be able to inform him about the fix through the phone.

Again, the fix involves basically overhauling your existing transmission and changing a few of its mechanics around. THIS IS BASICALLY A NEWLY LAID OUT GEAR BOX. You will probably want this even if you don't experience 3rd gear issues because this is what Honda is putting out there as a fix and as a new transmission lay out. I suggest that if you have an 06 and 07 SI, that you bring your car in and see if the fix is necessary for you or not. Personally, I'd get it done just to stay up to date with the parts. Unless of course you have an aftermarket tranny or something.

Good luck. fix through the phone. Good luck.

Vinc84

Corza, although it is also true that the drive is very much involved when it comes to the car's driving performance - when it is a faulty mechanical issue there is nothing the driver can do about that. Since Honda is recognizing this as a problem, it vindicates everyone out there who has been experiencing this problem. It wasn't any of our faults afterall. If you drive an 07 Civic SI Corza, you might want to check your car into the dealership for inspection anyways. Because the new gearbox lay out is something you'll want whether you have a problem with the 3rd gear or not. It's just staying up to date with your car's service.

Vinc84

On another forum someone responded to my post with:

"Where's the announcement? Do you have smething offical or is this just something that the tech said?"

Unfortunately it's not that easy to view the official Honda service bulletin. You can view service bulletins through certain websites that charge you around $20 - 30 for a detailed print out of a particular service bulletin...but I'm not going to do that when I've already been told about it personally by my dealership. Basically, I'm just sharing what I've learned about the issue from my own findings at the dealership. I've done as much as anyone can about the problem. My local Honda service manager drew up a Honda service bulletin that addresses the 3rd gear problem officially. He told me that there is a fix that is due in 2008 as early as the month of January. I was then told I he will try to contact me about it when the fix is available. I have been going to this dealership for maintenance on my old 97 Accord Coupe LX SE, 98 Civic EX, and Honda Oddysey as well as my 07 Civic SI. I am treated very well there so I don't think I was lied to. There is no reason to lie to a customer about a false fix.
Only someone at your Honda dealership can assure you about the fix if you don't take my word for it. I'm merely relaying what I was told by a professional. Again, this is why I suggesting that anyone who is experience this very same problem should also take their SI to the dealership and inquire about the problem and fix.

In either case, I'll update this forum and every other forum I have posted on about how everything goes when I bring my car for regular maintenance tomorrow on Monday. I'll speak to the service manager again to see what's up with the release of the fix. I'll post again then.

IntegraKing

Excellent.

Keep us all posted here. I actually had to cancel my appointment I had scheduled due to some OT here at work. I have yet to re-schedule but will do so ASAP.

Vinc84

So I got my oil changed and I got that reflash done this morning - my baby drives a lot better - or at least I think it does haha.

The service manager there is so awesome, he gave me the oil change and service for 50% off. He always gives me a discount so it sucks when he's not there when I come in for maintenance b/c I'll get charged regular prices.

Well enough about me, here’s what I was told about the 3rd gear fix:

Unfortunately he said the parts are still being made but they should be done soon. The reason why it's taking so long is because Honda Motor Corp is trying to manufacture enough of these parts to be able to meet the demanding number of complaints for repairs.

Also, he said Honda does in fact recognize this problem officially – meaning it’s in their books. However, it simply just isn't listed in their service bulletin yet because why would they list it now when the parts aren't even available yet? So he wasn't able to give me a service bulletin # or code for the fix since it just isn't available yet. At least I was informed about it still thankfully.

So, when the parts are finally manufactured and there is a nice surplus of them available, Honda will then at that time list the fix on the service bulletin making the service available.

Furthermore, information about this fix will probably NOT be sent out to people in the mail like past service announcements have been simply because it is not a universal problem that all owners experience. Honda probably finds it more efficient to not alarm a high number of owners who don’t have to worry about this particular repair. Although there are a large number of SI owners who are experiencing this, it is still considered an isolated problem and not an epidemic problem. Therefore it will not be treated as a recall since it does not endanger the driver. If you feel that you have the problem, then it is your responsibility to bring your vehicle to be inspected.

Since this is not yet listed on their service bulletin, in order to get your dealership to acknowledge this fix my service manager suggests that you have your dealership's service manager call the Honda Tech line and ask about a fix concerning the "06-07 Civic SI 3rd gear problem" (or however you want to say it) and someone over the phone should know what he's asking about and will confirm and inform him about it.

After that, it's just a matter of waiting for the parts to be made but at least the service manager at your dealership will know that it's for real. My service manager assured me not to worry because they will know when the parts are available because when they are finally complete every dealership should be receiving an official bulletin posting about it. So get your name on a memo with your dealership so they hit you up when the fix is available.

Finally, most of you are probably worried about not being able to get this fix because the service team at your dealership is still giving you a hard time about replicating the problem. The service manager at my dealership only tried to replicate the problem with me because at that time he had no idea what the problem was or what caused it. He told me that he only tried to replicate the problem to try to identify it. However, now that he knows that Honda officially recognizes that there may be a case where there is a problem with a vehicle's 3rd gear and gear syncros, he no longer needs to try to figure out what could be wrong. So, once the parts for the fix is available, all he’ll have to do is have the service team take a look at my transmission and other related parts, inspect them to see what I need, then order the parts to fix it up.

It should be that easy for all of you. If not then I’m sorry that your dealership doesn’t treat you nearly as good as they should like the way mine treats me. If it comes down to it, you can always tell them that you’re going to give the service manager and his team a bad rating when you get your next service survey call about the services you’ve recently received! Or even threaten to call customer service and tell them directly about the poor manner in which you are being treated. That will make him treat you better, trust me. Sometimes you have to be a jerk too - just don't over do it.

I hope this answers most questions but if anyone has more questions just ask me via private message and I'll get back to you asap.

Good luck
- Vincent