trouble shifting gears

I have a 98 Accord Ex with an automatic transmission. It has about
115K miles on it. I have never had any problems with it but last
week, without warning, my car seemed to have difficulty changing
gears. When I accelerate it sounds like it is trying to change gears
but is stuck and then will suddenly switch. It causes the car to jerk
forward a little bit. When I come to a stop it jerks forward a little
bit then too. Kind of feels like somone lightly rear-ended me. The
next few days were without symptom. Then yesterday the problems
started up again. Today they were worse. The "check engine" light
came on today. Any ideas?

 

wrote in @h3g2000cwc.googlegroups.com:

Is this a four-cylinder or a V6?

When was the last time the fluid was changed? What fluid was used?

Take it to AutoZone to have the Check Engine light code read. Report that
here.

 

4-cylinder

oil changed 1 month ago (Jan 12). Oil used was 10W30GTX

going to auto zone now.

 

auto zone closed for tonight. will go in the morning.

 

foudn one open late. reading was "The PCM has detected an incorrect
gear ratio condition." Didn't help much. Already knew that.

 

I believe that Tegger was asking about the transmission fluid and not the
engine oil. Many folks have reported problems using non-Honda ATF and find
that their problems go away once they put Honda's ATF into the transmission.

Eric

 

transmission fluid would make much more sense. it hasn't been changed
in some time.

i noticed when i went to auto zone that the RMP gauge doesn't fall
back to zero when i am at a complete stop. it instead goes to 750.
when i am accelerating/driving between 20-30mph it spikes to 3000+.
it hasn't gone past 4000rpm. when the gears finally shift it falls
back to between 1000-2000rmp. it drives better at around 40mph or
higher.

 

wrote in @a34g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:

WHAT WAS THE NUMERIC CODE? That's what I need! AZ's descriptions are often
vague and incorrect.

The code will be something like "P1709", or "P1884".

Sounds like your transmission is slipping. Could be fatal, or could just be
low/old/incorrect fluid. Check the fluid level, then get it changed (NOT
"flushed") with genuine Honda ATF-Z1. It needs to be changed in three
stages to get all of the old stuff out.

 

The only time your tachometer will read 0 RPM is when the engine is not
running. It idles at about 700-800 RPM (when all is good).

You may very well just need your tranny fluid changed. Drain and fill it
3 times (drive for a week or so in between) with Honda ATF fluid (DO NOT
use anything other than Honda).

 

P0730 was the numeric code.

 

thanks! i never really paid attention to the tachometer before..

 

wrote in

AZ's description is incorrect, as usual. According to Honda, P0730 is:
"Problem in Shift Control System".

This means the Shift Control Solenoids or the Shift Valves are not being
actuated correctly.

This is most likely an electrical problem rather than old/incorrect
fluid, which would also account for the suddenness of the onset of the
problem.

There are a number of electronic sensors used by the transmission's
control unit (PCM). They can fail, as can the PCM itself. And the PCM
has been known to fail on these, as have the Shift Control Solenoids
themselves.

You need to have a Honda dealer diagnose this situation for you. Do NOT
go to an independent transmission shop unless they specialize in Hondas.

You can also have the dealer check for Technical Service Bulletins
(TSBs) regarding your symptoms. Sometimes there are known issues for
which there is a prescribed fix. I've been unable to find any relevant
TSBs, but then I don't have access to them all.

And while you're at it, you might as well get the dealer to change the
fluid. You're due for it anyway.