1998 Honda Civic: complete transmission failure

Filed Dec 1, 2007 · Transmission · 114,400 miles · MA

1) transmission failure in a 1998 honda civic lx for the second time and with only 115,000 miles. 2) transmission was replaced prior when car had 59,000 miles. 3) transmission (third one now) replaced for the second time.

Filed Jan 23, 2005 · Transmission · NH

I have had trouble with my transmission slipping and high revving rpms on my 1998 honda accord coupe v6 ex. I have researched this on the internet and found that literally thousands of people are having the same problem. I feel that this is manufacturers defect that should be recalled. Now I will have to spend close to $6000 for a new transmission that is obviously the manufacturers problem. Thank you for your time.

Filed Aug 13, 2004 · Engine, Steering · 89,940 miles · CA

Consumer stated that granddaughter bought a certified honda civic and had nothing but trouble since she purchased the vehicle. One month after the vehicle was purchased the head gasket blew out, and needed to be replaced. This was done by the dealer that sold her the vehicle. Then, power steering pump leaked, and it was repaired 2 months later. In may of this year the same thing happened power steering pump leaked again. *ak the engine had to be replaced again at 89440 miles. The transmission was replaced due to shifting problems at 90552 miles.

Filed Jan 29, 2004 · Transmission · 53,000 miles · GA

1998 honda civic ex w/ 55,000 miles. Vehicle began shifting harshly @ 53k. Brought to dealership, reported dtc p0730. Dealer recommended replacing automatic transmission for over $4000. Found tsb 00-012 which recommended flushing transmission & replacing linear solenoid. Followed tsb recommendation. Helped for 2 days but problem returned. Tsb 00-012 suggested honda might offer goodwill consideration for cars out of warranty. I asked dealer to split the cost with me which I have heard has worked for some other people with this same problem. They referred me to centralized honda cust srv which denied my request. Meanwhile I have found the following information on several transmission rebuilder sites regarding my transmission model (b4ra): "common complaints in the a4ra, b4ra, and m4ra transmissions are harsh upshifts, downshifts and forward engagements, while reverse engagement is fine. These problems can be caused by a broken cpc (clutch pressure control) valve spring. The spring is located in the secondary valve body, and not available from honda. Sonnax has developed a replacement spring 88894 that has a wire diameter larger than the oem design. This significantly reduces the stress on the spring, preventing future breakage." to me, this suggests that this model of honda transmissions contains a faulty part, resulting in much higher than normal transmission failures. I believe that honda should stand behind their products & extend the warranty for the automatic transmissions affected by this problem & not just provide random goodwill assistance to a select few who complain the loudest. Honda's denial that this is even a problem (even though there is a tsb identifying a huge group of potentially affected cars & transmission rebuilders have seen the problem so often that another company has actually seen fit to create a better replacement part) has turned me from a virtual honda evangelist to a very dissatisfied customer who would be hard-pressed to purchase another honda.

Filed Nov 4, 2003 · Transmission · FL

One week after having car into dealer for the 52,500 check up it started jerking violently between gears as I accelerated and decelerated. Took car back to dealer to have them look at it and was told that it needed a new transmission.

Filed Feb 19, 2003 · Transmission · 78,000 miles · LA

My 1998 honda civic ex (80,000 miles) is having tranmission troubles. It will rev up but the car will not speed up very well, when it shifts into 2nd gear the car shakes and abruptly shifts into 2nd gear. I had the fluid changed at the end of december and it seemed to fix the problem but a week later it was back and getting worst fast. The dealer told me I needed a whole new transmission and it would cost $3600 plus labor. I took the car back without the service down and searched the internet and have come across hundreds of people posting complaints of the exact same problems, some of them have 2002 with 10,000 miles and have these problems. I find it hard to believe that this is not a factory defect.

Filed Oct 15, 2002 · Transmission · 67,200 miles · CT · crash · 1 injury

The owner is having problems with hesitation with possible cause being the automatic transmission. The owner did keep the car serviced/maintenance with the last item being a tune-up. Liberty honda has been performing any and all maintenance on the vehicle. The vehicle is not being driven due to the transmissions' performance. Mr consumer felt dealership used dirty transmission fluid which may have ruined the transmission and caused hesitation and wanted to charge consumer $4000 to replace transmission. However, dealership claimed that the 2 accidents vehicle was involved in caused the hesitation. Vehicle's transmission was replaced at another dealership at a lower cost to consumer.

Filed Oct 7, 2002 · Transmission · DE

Transmission was replaced on 2000 + failed again (internal failure) on 2002. Mr

Filed Sep 18, 2000 · Acceleration, Transmission · CA

Due to a defective transmission system, vehicle slips while driving which causes rpms to go up. This may cause a crash. Dealer said they need to replace transmission. Please provide further information.

Filed Feb 18, 1999 · Transmission · MN

Transmission failed causing vehicle to surge.

Filed Jan 26, 1999 · Transmission · MD

Since the day we bought it, the transmission intermittently jerked (sometimes violently) when downshifting, especially around 40 MPH. It also downshifted at odd times, like going down hills. I took the car to the dealer on 12/12 & they reported "no problem found." on dec 27 the engine made lots of noise but had little speed & my family had to drive the handicapped car the short distance home. The dealer said the computer reported that the transmission ration was wrong. They said the more they worked on it, the worse it became. They couldn't fix it even with the help of honda experts, so they intended to replaced the transmission. Unfortunately, the dealer wrecked the car & they have had the car a month. We want a new car because we don't trust the reliability of the car but honda & the dealer aren't cooperating.