2001 Honda Civic intermittent clutch problem

My daughter came home last night and reported that she was having
problems with her clutch. She said that is smelled like it was getting
hot and it was hard to shift into lower gears, though she could easily
shift into 5th which is unusual since it is normally a bit "stiff" going
into 5th.

I got up this morning and drive it and it seems just fine. The car has
about 32,000 miles on it and to my knowledge the hydraulic clutch has
never been worked on (we bought the car used last year).

Has anyone seen any intermittent problems like this? What could be going
on here?

--
Mark E. Adams, 2004 -- drop the "dot" to email me.
http://adamslan.shyper.com

CONSIDER: ===========---------,,,,,,,,,............. . . . . .
If I cannot bend Heaven, I shall move Hell.
-- Publius Vergilius Maro (Virgil)

 

first things first, check the fluid level, its beside the brake fluid under
the hood.

If it smells like its getting hot, its 1 of 2 things:

1. Its slipping and worn out, unlikely at your mileage
2. She did a burnout that made the clutch slip. My brother did this once,
he was in reverse going about 40KPH, put it in first and let 'er rip. It
smelled pretty bad for about an hour in the car, but didn't do any permanent
damage, clutch only got replaced at 200000kms. Moral of the story is that
you can do that a few times without worry, but a regular practice of that and
your looking at replacing the clutch. Fun, but expensive.

t

 

I talked to the daughter at lunch today. First, she did not tell me that
it smelled hot. That was an unrelated incident from somebody else that I
must have misunderstood somehow. Second, I drove it around town for 45
minutes this morning and I think I was able to reproduce the problem one
time.

I was downshifting into a stoplight and felt the gearshift bind as I
tried to pull it into 2nd. To me, it felt as if the synchronizers
weren't quite meshing -- no grinding, just a stiff lever. I lifted my
foot off the clutch and then stepped on the clutch again, and as
expected the gearshift slipped right into 2nd very smoothly.

I think that's all it is. Now I just have to convince her.

--
Mark E. Adams, 2004 -- drop the "dot" to email me.
http://adamslan.shyper.com

CONSIDER: ===========---------,,,,,,,,,............. . . . . .
Who does not trust enough will not be trusted.
-- Lao Tsu

 

If you feel its not a clutch issue, IE the synchros, then make sure you check
the fluid level in the trannie. The top hole is accessible from under the
hood, a 17MM bolt I believe. When you take that out, trannie fluid should
come out (albeit slowly). If it doesn't go buy some Honda MTF from the
dealership and fill it up.

If its really low, check for leaks, though at your mileage, the axle seals on
the trannie are not really a suspect. Maybe speedo cable? I'm not sure if
the 01s still use a cable or not.

t

 

Also, worn out shifter bushings can cause the symptoms you describe. Honda
has a kit to replace them all, they are nylon and quite fragile.

t

 

to me, thatd be a sign to flush/bleed/refill the clutch fluid.

 

This just in: the after-market air breather she and her boyfriend
"installed" had fallen off its bracket and gotten pinned in the clutch
linkage preventing the clutch from disengaging.

I think this one is solved.
--
Mark E. Adams, 2004 -- drop the "dot" to email me.
http://adamslan.shyper.com

CONSIDER: ===========---------,,,,,,,,,............. . . . . .
The mome rath isn't born that could outgrabe me.
-- Nicol Williamson

 

I was going to ask the question of "Are you sure she's the one driving it?"
if the clutch was smoked... Glad you found it!

t