New Project: Canadian only Civic HF??

[War_Wagon]

Oh ok, I didn't know the wagon and the coupe transmissions were different. Like you said I am pretty sure I wouldn't be able to notice that difference without a tach though. The input shaft bearing is noisy in this trans, I know it's common but I am not going to do anything about it right now. I am going to change the fluid for what it's worth though, is there a synthetic fluid you would suggest for these gearboxes Gasoline Fumes or should I just stick with the Honda stuff?

[2000neon]

Originally Posted by Sven7

Well at any rate, it's good to know you didn't get an STD.

I was skimming through this thread half asleep and this made me laugh. Then I remembered you were talking about cars.

[Gasoline Fumes]

Originally Posted by War_Wagon

Oh ok, I didn't know the wagon and the coupe transmissions were different. Like you said I am pretty sure I wouldn't be able to notice that difference without a tach though. The input shaft bearing is noisy in this trans, I know it's common but I am not going to do anything about it right now. I am going to change the fluid for what it's worth though, is there a synthetic fluid you would suggest for these gearboxes Gasoline Fumes or should I just stick with the Honda stuff?

When I put the HF trans in my Wagon, I initially reused the old Honda fluid. It shifted great, better than the original trans. I tried Mobil 1 0w-20 synthetic motor oil in the trans. Not a good idea. It might be more efficient, but the synchros don't like it. I picked up two quarts of Pennzoil Synchromesh, I'm just waiting for a shifter shaft seal to arrive. I've read that the Honda fluid is too thin for an older Honda trans. I don't know if that's true, my main reason for not using it is the lack of a local Honda dealer. Redline MTL is probably good too.

I have a noisy bearing too. Mostly in first gear.

[War_Wagon]

Yes mine is weird, can really only hear it in 1st. But sometimes its fine, like if I just got off the highway it will be quiet for a while. But when I am in town it comes and goes, and if it's cold and you rev up in 1st gear it sounds like it's going to come through the hood lol. I think of it as my eco-rev limiter ha ha

[Gasoline Fumes]

I usually only hear mine if I take my foot off the gas in 1st gear. I try not to think about it!

[Ryland]

I've used 0w30 AmsOil in all of my 5 Honda transmissions for the last 10 years and never had an issue with it, Mobil 0W30 is what I currently have in my engine and my brother has in his Civic VX transmission, I've never used 0W20.

[Gasoline Fumes]

I don't know why my trans hates the 0w-20, but I can barely get it into first gear if it's rolling. There could be half a million miles on this junkyard HF trans....

[War_Wagon]

I realize I am biased, but having had the chance to drive a LOT of different makes/models of cars over the years, I have yet to find a late '80s - late '90s Honda that doesn't shift buttery smooth. You don't realize how spoiled you are with a Honda gearbox until you drive a Cavalier lol. My wagon had 336k KMs on it, and one of my Insights has 369k KMs on it, and they both shifted smooth, never popped out of gear, and the shifter was still nice and tight. Sure they might get a little noisy, but I will just turn up the stereo a little louder! /end Honda 5 speed fanboy rant.

[MetroMPG]

Subscribed. Looking forward to seeing what this car does for you & vice versa.

[War_Wagon]

Well I haven't driven this car much, and am still horsing around with it. I have some of the body panels polished, but others aren't so it looks ghetto two tone ha ha. I finally insured it though, so I will be driving and working on it more. I decided to replace the leaking valve cover gasket, and check the spark plugs while I was at it today. And this folks, is why no matter what the previous owner tells you was just done to a car when you buy it, or what you figure must have been done recently, you should always check the spark plugs!



This car actually ran without misfiring. All four plugs were as bad as the one in this pic or worse. My crappy phone camera doesn't zoom in any better, but the electrodes were actually all uneven and worn on weird angles. Left side is correct .040" gap, the ones in it were worn too big to measure with any of the feeler gauges I had lol. It sure starts a lot smoother now, not surprisingly, and pulls waaaay smoother away from a stop light. But like I said, it actually ran ok, so if you didn't check you wouldn't think they were this fried. Oh, and one was hardly finger tight, I didn't even need to put the ratchet onto the socket and extension to get it out. Plus they were Champion plugs?? Who puts anything other than NGK in a Honda?? This guy's mechanic must of disliked him or something ha ha.