98 Accord EX transmission

[Jim White]

Hi All! My daughter's 98 Accord EX V6 transmission is acting up. On the
first start of the day, and only then, the transmission acts like it is in
neutral and then catches. I have the transmission fluid replaced, an
additive added, and the transmission filter replaced. Any ideas?

TIA

 

[Miniman]

There isn't much beyond what you've done that can be done with the
transmission in the car. I didn't realize that there was a replaceable
filter on the V6 transmission. The high RPM with a cold engine could be
making it jerk into gear on the first start of the day but in any event this
doesn't happen with a normal transmission unless the RPM's are unusually
high.

Unfortunately the transmissions are flawed on the '98-'02 V6 Accords and
yours might be showing early signs of trouble. I just had a rebuild done for
$1300 with Honda parts at a local shop. My advice: Get a fixed price for a
worst case scenario before even getting a diagnosis - there are many crooks
out there that can sweet-talk you out of your cash. $2000 should be the
highest that any shop charges for a rebuild with OEM components. If you
can't get a price like that, get the $1800 Autozone rebuilt unit and have a
car repair shop (not transmission expert) install it for $500 (tops).

My Accord made a grinding noise in neutral and park for a long time before I
had any clutch problems but I have heard of many different syptoms of
failure on this poorly designed transmission.

Good luck!