Civic 92 EG Si stops after 3-4 minutes

[Gester]

Hey,

I have Auto Civic 92 EG Si and after about 3-4 mins of driving the gearbox will just not stay in gear and no matter what you put it in will just rev likes its stuck in neutral.

Up until this happens the gearbox feels perfect and nothing else seems wrong except some excess smoke from the exhaust. You have to wait an hour or two then you can drive the car for another few minutes before the same thing happens again. This has pretty much rendered the car useless :(

Ive spoken to some people and they say it could be the ecu, or the gearbox oil or the gearbox itself. What do people here think it could be? I dont think its the gearbox because up until the point it just stops staying in gear it seems 100% perfect. The engine is a D16A8 with Auto gearbox. Could it be a sensor? Althought it just wont go into a any gear when this happens and just free revs.

What could it be? :)

Thanks in advance for the help!

[mj3610]

PM ECU-MAN if its a ECU problem he'll know

[destrukshn]

i had the same problem with my car.. about a 8 months ago.
to fix it i had to change gearboxes.
but first try the solenoids on the gearbox, which is on your car should be located, towards the front of the car, and looks like 2 cylinders next too eachother, under the distributer, should be 10mm bolts and a 2 wire plug.
try that out first.

[ECU-MAN]

doubt its your ecu, more so low on ATF ( Auto Tranny Fluid ) or yur 1st gear clutch pack has seen better days. also dont rule out the shift solenoids,

what happens when you put it in 2, do you get drive ????

there are ways to test oil pressure for specific gears but you need the special Honda guages for that.


is your tranny fluid redish/maroon or brown

[EG5[KRT]]

definately auto fluid.. this happened to me in my parents car.i went to reverse and it just free reved... majority of the time its the fluid.. if u dont top it up u will get ****ed gearbox so i suggest u top up on honda auto trans fluid.

[Captiva_Blue]

The fact that it only works for a few minutes and then requires a time of inactivity (ie: cool down time) then works again for another few minutes suggests that one or more of the clutch packs is pretty well buggered or that your transmission fluid of the wrong grade. When a car has the wrong grade of transmission fluid, it tends to fail to engage a gear as it gets past its optimum operating parameters. If this isn't fixed quickly, it will ruin the gearbox permanently. 2nd gear will likely be the first to go. Could also be that your torque convertor is a little over the hill..

Couple of questions.. How many KMs has the car done? Is it the original gearbox? When was the last time it was serviced and was the transmission fluid checked or changed during the service? And like ECU-MAN said, does it engage if you take off in 2nd gear or any other?

[Gester]

Well some good news, I don't think the auto tranny fluid has ever been replaced as when I drained it today it was jet black. I put some anti-slip fluid with honda auto tranny fluid and the car lasted driving it around the block for about 15 minutes! I'm yet to test it further but for now it seems fixed! yay :)

Its a 92 Civic EG Sedan Si that I managed to pick up for $1k so its a bargain but its done 300,000 km's but its in great condition still and only one owner so I have full service history. Surprised that the gearbox and everything still goes really well! I plan to do a B18C conversion in the next few weeks which should make quite a bit of difference ;)

I will change the oil again in a few weeks just to make sure all gunk is out with the new oil as well, but for now it seems good just a small shudder changing from 1st to 2nd that is getting less and less as the oil gets worn in.

Thanks for the help guys.

[ECU-MAN]

good stuff,

when you change the oil again, do not put in any aditives, just use honda ATF