Honda civic cvt auto judder

worried_jim

I really don't want to replace my 98 civic cvt but the auto box is getting very "jolty" and shudders when setting off (forward or reverse). It has got slowly worse over the past year and when ever I've spoken to mechanics they've all rubbed there chins and said get a recon box but before I do this or replace the car which will be a stretch financially would it be worth just replacing the gearbox fluid, would this help?
I've checked the level and it seems ok, but I would describe it as a pale brown colour, a bit like oil and it smells a bit like something burning, if I took to a garage to get it changed (if its worth it) how much should I expect to pay?

worried_jim

bump..........

vikingaero

worried_jim wrote: »

bump..........

I thought it was a judder?

Sounds as though the fluid has burnt out if it's a brown colour. Most ATF fluid is Ribena colour. On most autos the valve body burns out with age and leads to the juddering. New fluid can help if it's not too advanced - cost around £120-150ish from an independent

Best bet is to find an auto specialist from https://www.fedauto.co.uk to do the fluid change if that's your first option. The main reason for this is that on a lot of autos not all the fluid can be drained out - a good 1/3 of the old stuff can remain. Most garages will not have the means to pump out the old fluid unlike auto specialists who will have the equipment to hand.

worried_jim

I forgot to add, from cold first thing in the morning the judder is barely there and after a mile or so it will be quite severe when I pull away every time. once above 5 miles an hour everything is fine.

Volcano

You're not alone:

http://www.justanswer.com/questions/1os1x-1998-honda-civic-1-6-esi

Just found this that appears to suggest it's a known problem:

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3828/is_200706/ai_n19433399/pg_2/

Apparently the problem bulletin is "TSB 02-003" which

The bulletin calls for replacement of the TCM and start clutch as a set.

So it appears that's what you need to do. Whether this is going to be economical (ask a specialist auto box company) on an 11 yo car you'll have to decide.