1987 Honda Civic LX rough shifting

A friend of mine has a super clean 1987 Honda Civic LX that he wants to sell
me. It has a new a/c compressor, timing belt, battery and tires and it runs
great. The only thing that concerns me is the automatic transmission shifts
pretty rough through all of the gears. When you slow down upon approaching a
stop sign/light, it even gears down roughly.

Have any of you guys experienced these types of issues with your Civic's
automatic tranny? If so, did it require a complete transmission rebuild in
order to solve the bang/rough shifting problems? I wonder what the average
price is for a 1989 Civic LX's transmission to be rebuilt? Less than 2
grand? I was recently quoted $1,800.00 USD for having the transmission
rebuilt in a 1990 Nissan 300ZX--so I would just about have to believe that
it would be less expensive than the Z car's transmission rebuild.

Thanks in advance for any information you guys can provide me with regarding
the 1989 Civic LX's transmission(e.g. type, behavior, problem resolutions,
etc.)--as I really would like to purchase this little car. It's in superb
condition other than the tranny issue.

 

Oops. I meant 1989 in all of the references. Sorry about that...

 

=================

J.,

I didn't see the mileage mentioned, but if he's put Dextron in the
tranny, rather than Honda ATF, that will explain the clunky shifting.
I'd see it as a good sign for you... once it's yours, drain and refill
the tranny and you'll have one that shifts like new.

Hondas are a bit rough on the shifting anyway, since the inside of the
tranny is WAY different from other brands. Make sure you get the owner's
manual (even if you have to buy one) and read it thoroughly.

'Curly'

===================

 

Thanks for the insight there 'Curly'! Most likely I'll end up buying the
car, so changing the transmission fluid and filter will be my first approach
towards resolving the bang/rough shift issues. If that doesn't take care of
the problem I am willing to invest in a complete rebuild of the tranny
because of the overall condition of the car. It has 122,000 miles on it, but
with a Honda/Acura, Toyota/Lexus or Nissan/Infiniti product I'm never too
concerned about mileage that high. Especially if it is very obvious that the
vehicle has been taken good care of.

J. Perry