That MTF from Honda is probalby nothing more than engine oil with an additive or two... mberndt is right, and he's also right about not adding anything else to the tranny fluid.

If it is the clutch, you should be able to figure that out by checking it!! Have you done the clutch previously? If not, 163K is about as long as I'd ever expect one to live.

 

Now that I think about it, did you put enough oil in the tranny? It could be low, or you could be leaking some, which would explain the 20 hours until failure...
Otherwise, sometimes these cars can pop out of gear if the tranny or engine mounts are bad, causing the engine to not sit level...
yes 163k is alot of miles for a stock clutch, but I think my Civic EX has 190k on the original clutch, cause I can tell it's starting to give up...
Here's how to tell your clutch is on it's way out, drive up a steep hill (if you have any) in 3rd or 4th gear, (steep enough to not increase your speed with the gas floored) and watch your rpms, if they start to rise and the car isn't necessarily going faster, the clutch is slipping and needs to be replaced.

 

h

 

but the additives are to help the transmission shift better and yes i do my own work i used to write service bulitins for acura america and it if the clutch is going bad doesnt mean it wont be able to shift all it means is that it doesnt have enough surface to engage into certin gears and that gear is normally fifth gear or 6th or forth all depends on the tranny

but i bet u people dont know how a clutch works either ... i works by the contact of the clutch to disengage or engage into a gear and if you ride your clutch or late shift or sometimes pre shift your clutch could be grinded down till where it is thin enough to make contact which your make it not be able to shift in or shift out of a gear
shitfucks

 

I've done many clutches myself, including Hondas; I know exactly how they work first hand. Don't be a jackass, people are just trying to help. I have used regular engine oil as well, and it worked fine.

I had a cracked pressure plate and I was still able to drive the car to a shop, so no a worn/damaged clutch doesn't mean it won't shift.

There is a much easier way to test the clutch while parked...with your foot on the brake, put it in second gear and let the clutch out without giving it any gas - the car should stumble or die - if it doesn't before you get the pedal out most of the way your clutch is slipping and may be worn out.

I got 170K on the clutch on my 240, but it was WAY worn when I pulled it out of the car.

 

:rofl::rofl:

I bet you wrote their service bulletins.

 

You're smoking something on this one too... NO WAY a stock tranny will take that kind of HP, and even if they could, you need a pretty decent clutch to handle any kind of power with the tiny diameter they have packaged in there. The stock clutch is not that great.

 

:hahano: :hahano:
LOL
Dude, come on u can't be serious LOL

 

LOL! This is hilarious but kinda swerving away from getting the guy some help...
It stands to reason that because the last thing you did before the problem started is change the tranny oil, then you need to start there. Check the level of the fluid and make sure you're checking it at the right place and with the car on level ground. If the fluid level checks out, and wasn't too low or high, then proceed to changing the fluid.
It's simple logic here. Go with the least expensive repair first and if that doesn't work, then move on. I can't say for sure if your clutch is going out, or if the fluid change will fix your problem. Someone mentioned a test to find out if your clutch is going, and it is a valid way of checking.
Hope this helps ya,

Will