I believe Honda went to selling the gear with the synchro. 1st gear synchro with 1st gear, etc. That would explain the cost.
I haven't tried the auto trans fluid yet. Sounds possible.
Depending on how far into the trans you want to go, I have an idea. Using valve seat lapping compound , lap the synchro's to their corresponding gear. Your not trying to create a shallow grove in the gear, just take the shiny stuff off. You might try moving the synchro blocking ring to another position (turn it) on the synchro ring before putting it back together. Oh yea, clean all the valve grinding compound off both the gear and synchro before putting it back together. If the synchro teeth are rounded off, nothing is going to help except replacement. I've tried repointing the synchro teeth with a dremel tool using the cutoff disc, but only for racing. And there, they didn't last very long anyway.
Replacement might be the only option, but remember your still getting a used trans.
Good Luck.

By Butch Dennis (216.40.234.143) on Wednesday, August 04, 2004 - 10:33 pm:

I believe Honda went to selling the gear with the synchro. 1st gear synchro with 1st gear, etc. That would explain the cost.
I haven't tried the auto trans fluid yet. Sounds possible.
Depending on how far into the trans you want to go, I have an idea. Using valve seat lapping compound , lap the synchro's to their corresponding gear. Your not trying to create a shallow grove in the gear, just take the shiny stuff of. You might try moving the synchro blocking ring to another position (turn it) on the synchro ring before putting it back together. Oh yea, clean all the valve grinding compound off both the gear and synchro before putting it back together. If the synchro teeth are rounded off, nothing is going to help except replacement. I've tried repointing the synchro teeth with a dremel tool using the cutoff disc, but only for racing. And there, they didn't last very long anyway.
Replacement might be the only option, but remember your still getting a used trans.
Good Luck.

By Bryan (66.32.255.51) on Wednesday, August 04, 2004 - 12:32 pm:

There might be another issue that could cause this problem. I frozen up pilot bearing could be the culprit as well.

By Hugh Johnson (Oneson1) (144.138.198.142) on Wednesday, August 04, 2004 - 02:41 am:

Firstly, try another mechanic :D, secondly try some auto trannie fluid in the G-box instead, we found it made crap g-boxes into reasonable ones for about 10,000k while you look for a better or reco'd unit.

hugh

By Sinjint (4.37.72.123) on Tuesday, August 03, 2004 - 05:55 pm:

The mechanic confirmed dead synchros. He is telling me the fix will be 850 on the low end, 1600 on the high end. Apparently he said you just cant by the synchros on their own anymore. Does anyone have more advice?

Thanks.

By Goodriver (Goodriver) (64.180.189.169) on Monday, July 26, 2004 - 01:32 pm:

have you checked your adjusting leever on the transmision from the cable?..it might not be opening up the clutch apart...

By SINJINT (4.37.72.123) on Monday, July 26, 2004 - 01:56 am:

Sorry, Miles

By SINJINT (4.37.72.123) on Monday, July 26, 2004 - 01:56 am:

I am pretty certain the car only has 49K. Its in outstanding shape, no scratches, no rust, interior is perfect. I spoke with the last two owners, and they seem to be on the up and up. I guess you really never know though. I will try draining the gearbox, and fill it with 10W-30. Thanks everyone.

By Mike S (202.12.233.21) on Monday, July 26, 2004 - 12:18 am:

With only 49K (miles, kilometres?)on the clock (can you verify this? could it perhaps be 149k?), I would have thought it's a little early to be having worn synchro troubles.

Before you go looking for a new trans, try draining the gearbox oil and filling it with the correct oil (as per Jonathan's post). Putting gear oil (80W-90 etc) in these 'boxes is sure to cause problems.

By osminsd@aol.com (68.7.165.149) on Sunday, July 25, 2004 - 08:00 am:

This answers my question why my gears grind when I try to shift fast. When I take my time and let the revolutions come down, it shifts very smooth. This message board is so helpfull, thanks for sharing your information.
Roger

By Chaffneue (Chaffneue) (66.183.171.165) on Thursday, July 22, 2004 - 10:34 pm:

Yup dead synchros.. same problem on mine.. as long as it's not popping out of gear, just slow down a little or put it in neutral between shifts on those hard days. A refurbished tranny shouldn't set you back much, but it's kind of hard to find.

-Richard

By CVCC x 2 (64.229.183.163) on Thursday, July 22, 2004 - 08:13 pm:

Syncro problems, not uncommon to first gen Civics that have beeen driven hard over their lifetime.

By Jonathan (68.193.10.141) on Thursday, July 22, 2004 - 06:22 pm:

Synchro's tend to go in these tranmissions, that does sound to be your problem. Do you know what kind of lubricant is in there? Should be regular 10W-30, not gear oil, not synthetic.

By Sinjint (Sinjint) (4.37.72.123) on Thursday, July 22, 2004 - 06:11 pm:

Hello all,

I just bought a 77 with 49K. The car is in pristine condition, but is not shifting nicely at all. When I attempt to shift from one gear to the next, the gears will grind. If I let the engine rev down before making the shift, I have no troublr. I would like to be armed with some information before I head off to the mechanic.

Thanks