Transmission-No reverse 2000 Honda Civic

[Lee Ann]

Hi Guys-

I am writing to see if someone can help with a little advice.

I have a 2000 Honda Civic VP, 4 cylinder 1.6 L engine, automatic trans.

Complaint: The transmission will not shift into reverse.

Background: It has been difficult to move the shift lever from park to drive or park to reverse for a little while now. My daughter just reported that she can not get it to go into reverse. She says there is no Check Engine light on and no flashing lights on the dash. I am not aware of any other problems with it shifting during travel. The fluid level is fine but appears dark. I cant think of any other relevant information to share.

Let me know if you have any suggestions. Thanks in advance.

Topic

[Its me]

If the fluid is dark and at the proper level, then take it to a transmission professional…

I don’t want to give bad news, but Hondas of this era were known for Transmissions going bad… Many times they overheated… On some, the solution was to install a separate transmission cooler… You may be past that point…

Wishing you the best…

-Karl

[Lee Ann]

Thanks for your response, Toyota Karl.

What about shifting cables (since it had been somewhat difficult to put into reverse from park but otherwise shifts ok)?

[Its me]

[quote=”lar1969″ post=106145]Thanks for your response, Toyota Karl.

What about shifting cables (since it had been somewhat difficult to put into reverse from park)?[/quote]

I cannot say if it is your shifting linkage… Perhaps it may be… Unfortunately, I have to occasionally tell people what they don’t want to hear… I am not always right… and a second opinion is your right…

I have said before that people don’t want to hear bad news… It is human nature, and they will want to hear it is something easy (hey, who doesn’t)…

That is why I suggest you take it to a transmission professional while it is still drivable… they have seen this a hundred times…

I truly hope it is something easy… experience with Honda Transmissions has shown me otherwise… I hope someone pops up and says it is just a worn bushing or something else… lets hope….

As I say… This is internet advice and the car is not in front of me, so I am giving you the best information based upon what you told me, and what I know….

All the best

-Karl

[Lee Ann]

Thank you again. I appreciate it very much.

I’ll keep you posted.

[Lorrin Barth]

If the transmission does what it should once you do get in the selected gear it may well have something to do with the shift linkage. I remember driving my sister’s Odyssey and you even had to have the parking brake on to shift out of park.

[Lee Ann]

[quote=”barneyb” post=106167]If the transmission does what it should once you do get in the selected gear it may well have something to do with the shift linkage. I remember driving my sister’s Odyssey and you even had to have the parking brake on to shift out of park.[/quote]

Thanks for your response, barneyb!

[Tom]

I had an 89 Accord that became difficult to shift, and eventually wouldn’t shift at all, and it turned out to be a problem with the cable.

I think the color and odor of the fluid is going to be important. If it looks and smells good, then maybe you are lucky and just have a cable issue. If it is dark, and smells burnt, then I would expect that there are issues inside the transmission.

Either way, this is something you should deal with quickly. If it isn’t the cable, the longer you drive it, the more damage is likely done to it.

[Lee Ann]

[quote=”Tomh” post=106193]I had an 89 Accord that became difficult to shift, and eventually wouldn’t shift at all, and it turned out to be a problem with the cable.

I think the color and odor of the fluid is going to be important. If it looks and smells good, then maybe you are lucky and just have a cable issue. If it is dark, and smells burnt, then I would expect that there are issues inside the transmission.

Either way, this is something you should deal with quickly. If it isn’t the cable, the longer you drive it, the more damage is likely done to it.[/quote]

Thank you Tomh for your response. It’s in the works.

[Bryan Umberger]

Please let us know how it ends up.

[JOHN SHORE]

HOW MANY MILES AND DOES THE FLUID SMELL BURNT “BURN TOAST
JOHN

[Lee Ann]

[quote=”JO3SHO” post=106586]HOW MANY MILES AND DOES THE FLUID SMELL BURNT “BURN TOAST
JOHN[/quote]

Hey John,

Sorry I missed your post as I have been away from the forum for a little while (doing exhaust and suspension work on my project car Saturn SC2 and more recently diagnosing and replacing a MAF sensor in my daily driver, Saturn LW 300).

The Honda now has 179,000. will be due for a timing belt real soon. The trans problem has been fixed. Ya wanna know what the problem was? A sticky gear lever. Apparently, if you travel with drinks in the cup holder and don’t use lids and then accelerate quickly, sugared drinks find their way behind the shift indicator and gum up the mechanism below. What fixed it was a good cleaning 🙂

KISS-Keep It Simple Stupid, as Eric likes to say, applied here 🙂

So glad it was this easy…

[Author]

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