Civic Type R Gearbox Issue

[danza]

Six weeks ago, I had my transmission oil changed by Honda. This may or may not be part of the issue.

This next part may or may not be part of the issue either, but it may be relevant.

I was driving my CTR yesterday, and gunned it off some traffic lights. I didn't floor it in 1st from the off, that's just painful on the gearbox. As I changed into second, I heard a loud BANG. At first I thought (read hoped) this was just a bit of backfiring, not that my CTR has ever backfired before though.

Shortly after this, I noticed a burning oil smell. I attributed this to the diesel van in front and went gently on my way. The smell lingered after the van went it's own way.

This morning, I checked beneath where the car was parked and found oil. I nursed the car to work (about a mile), and placed some cardboard beneath the engine area. I found clean oil (not engine oil) on the cardboard, so it seems my gearbox is leaking.

I'm thinking that the gearbox mount banjaxed itself (by hearing the bang), and the strain on the gearbox has caused something rather undesirable to happen, i.e. something's cracked.

I have someone looking at the car on Monday, hopefully it'll not be too major. If it is, well, I'll just have to swallow the cost.

 

[danza]

sounds like maybe a hole through the casing do all gears select ok?

99% of the time it's fine. I did have a minor issue getting it into 4th at one point though (it took two goes), although CTR gearboxes are known to be a PITA sometimes.

 

[danza]

Ouch unlucky, hope its a cheap fix. Although now's a perfect time to swap it for a DC5 box with the LSD

This has crossed my mind...

+1

I know a guy who breaks dc5's if your looking for 1

Roughly how much for a DC5 box? I can probably pick up a decent EP3 'box for ~£400, probably less.

 

[danza]

If you've broken a mount the gear stick will usually move back and forward quite a bit under acceleration or braking. I thought I broke a mount on my integra but it turned out to be a missing gearbox mount bolt

Well it doesn't move about. It drives as normal, apart from the leaking oil. I did initilally think that the Honda tech may had over tightened the tranny drain bolt, thus cracking the casing. The trouble with that theory is the drain bolt is below the line of the exhaust IIRC, so no oil would drip onto it.

My usual local service bloke is going to look at the car mindful of the fact that Honda may have done something to cause this.

I can feel an expensive one coming on!

 

[danza]

Are you taking it to TGM? Bit of a drive though

No, it'll be a case of get the mechanic to look at it, then either:

1. Wring the life out of Honda until they sort it.

2. Buy as low a mileage gearbox as I can without going mad and have it fitted.

3. Laugh whimsically over a cup of tea shared with my mechanic, due to it being a minor issue costing mere pennies to fix. Then cue the credits as I VTEC off over the horizon.

Most likely prognosis based on this car, my general misfortune with it, and how my day has been so far is 2.

 

[danza]

This makes me worry with the abuse I give mine that it will just give up soon

gL with getting it fixed.

You'll be fine.

 

[danza]

...how much to tighten it to

The above excerpt should give a hint as to what was found to be wrong by my mechanic.

Honda have admitted liability.

I used my AA recovery to have the car taken to them - how should I go about ensuring that my renewal premium is unaffected, seeing as it was Honda's fault? Also, my mechanic charged me £20 to look at it - maybe they can pay that whilst they're at it!

Anyway, on the face of it the gearbox is ok, but awaiting further investigation which they will undertake tomorrow in the form of road/rolling road testing.

 

[danza]

Ok, nobody's bitten.

Honda didn't tighten up the gearbox filler bolt properly. It fell out, causing oil to leak from the top of the gearbox. The bang I heard was probably the bolt/bung whacking into the underside of the car. They've had a good look at the gearbox and re-filled it, and it seems okay. It had apparently lost 0.25-0.5 of a litre of oil.

I'm going to give it a blast tonight to see if I can find any issue at all, hopefully I won't!

I'm massively relieved after spending several hours trawling the internets for approximate used gearbox prices, approximate fitting costs etc and thinking that I'd had enough of the damn car and would be selling it as soon as it was fixed (as it's now fine at no cost to myself, it stays).

As a plus, Honda gave the car a thorough valet, which will save me a few hours this weekend.

 

[danza]

Cheers for the comments. It seems fine so far, a 15 mile carefulish blast (it's damp out there!) and all seems well. Nothing out of the ordinary whatsoever.

As for getting them to write it up - I spoke to the service manager yesterday, and he oversaw the case. Apparently they're going to investigate what exactly caused the problem, but I'm sure I'll never know for certain. My best guess is that it was probably finger-tightened and forgotten about. AFAIK the gearbox takes 1.5L of oil.

I'm going to email the service manager regarding recompense for having an independent mechanic look at it (service manager was out today, and the amount was only £20, but money's money and all that), and also see if they'll warrant in any way if the problem they caused does have an effect on the longevity of the gearbox.

 

[danza]

It should be 2 litres.

Mines only 1.5, even though the Honda workshop manual says 2.

£37 for a gearbox oil change at Honda. I paid that then reduced to £30 when they realised it only took 1.5. Not worth doing it yourself for the cost of the oil.

You sure it's 2 litres? I have the EP3 service manual and it definitely says 1.5L. Anyway, that's not important!

£30 for a gearbox oil change!?!?

Mine was a bit more than that at just over £90.

Suffice to say I'll not be going back to Gatwick for any work in the future, despite their efforts at cleaning my car to say sorry.

i havnt read the whole thread, but has someone powerwashed all the oil off that leaked? that stuff stinks! Once the engine's propper hot i bet u smell it.
Edit, I love the way a gearbox oil change costs less than a computer diagnostic test but takes more time and costs the price of the oil vs labour only for diagnostic! honda fail.

The residual oil is still there, and does indeed make my car smell like a ghastly diesel running on chip fat.

 

[danza]

Honda have been rather spiffing at sorting this so far.

I asked for compensation for having to pay an independent mechanic £20 to diagnose the issue, and whether they'd warrant there's no damage to the box to receive this reply:

Good Morning Daniel,

I will send a cheque to you today for £20 in regard to the independent looking at your car.

I am sure that there will be no long term damage to the gearbox, however if any problem does arise due to the low gearbox oil within the next 6 months then Gatwick Honda will repair the gearbox Free of Charge.

I have noticed that unfortunately your wife hit a curb the other evening. I suspect that the lower arm is damaged. In some cases it can also bend the steering track rod. The lower arm from Honda is £131.88 plus VAT.

I hope this is a satisfactory conclusion for you and if you require anything further please contact me.

Regards

Text highlighted in bold - He's telepathic/reading the words that I post on here! Maybe our insurance company/designated repairer contacted him regarding the damage to the suspension, although the car is still outside our house, and we've not yet had any contact from the designated rerairer to give a detailed description of the damage!

I'm impressed though, and ultimately very pleased with the way Honda have handled this. Hopefully other people have more luck, and nobody has a similar issue in the future with their gearbox.

Props to Honda, and more specifically to Craig Curtis, the aftersales manager at Gatwick Honda.