All D-Series smart people

[Canuck 93 Civic Si]

Like many people on this board, I have a D series powerplant bolted onto an S20 transmission.

Also like many people on this board, im not on my first tranny. I replaced it once and tranny number two sounds like its about to hatch on me. My question for you experienced people is, what is the problem with these transmissions? There must be a common problem with them that makes them fail so frequently. Is there a bearing that fails? a bushing perhaps?

Please let me know. Ive been asking around for a while now and no luck.
Thanks

 

[reckedracing]

i guess 3rd gear is at the very end of its respective shaft inside the tranny...
and thats what leads to the failure...

they always start out by loosing 3rd gear sync's, and then 4th...

unless you blow that shit up and then any gear can be victim #1...

 

[civicious]

the problem?

they're d-series.

that's the problem. plain and simple.







seriously. d-series tranny's aren't meant for beating on. they're meant for driving grandma to Sav-A-Lot and back.

 

[Canuck 93 Civic Si]

Im not grinding any gears yet. 1st is a little stif going in, it always has been. I double clutch as much as i can to save the syncros any unessesary wear. The problem i keep having is that, the dam thing starts making noise, like something is rattling around inside. It usually starts off quiet and gradually gets worse. Yes, i do beat on it every now and then, but not wrecklessly.
Maybe ill pull apart the old one and see if there is anything obvious that i can see.

 

[Hatchbacks Anonymous]

<-----D-series tranny broke due to 3rd gear. Tranny lasted me about 8 months. Car was 2000 EX

 

[mtnbkrpnk]

Would cryo-treating and shotpeening help any??

 

[BseriesKllR]

I heard the 92+ d-series trannys suck and the 88-91 si tranny is bullet proof.

 

[HondaMoCo]

they are d-series tranny's they are not meant for speed whatsoever, they just blow, same with the d-series block, its not made for speed, if you ever get a chance look at a d16 block next to a b16 block they are both 1.6 liters, look at the size difference, and the engineering that went into the two different blocks, d-series are just not made to race, im not saying they cant be fast, plenty of people have done it, but when it all comes down to it, the d-series just blows ass, its not considered a performance motor.

 

[BigJ]

No one has a clue do they?

Its simple most D-series transmissions hav a single synchro for each gear, while a b-series has dual synchros, which makes the b-series so much stronger.

And yeah the ripping on the d-series doesn't help. Trust me, mine is on the end of its life, and man do I hit it hard in each gear. Still burns out 3rd, lol, after it lets out a moan of exasperation(grinds loudly).

 

[reckedracing]

yea, i can say from personal experience that the 88-91 si trannys are NOT bulletproof...

now the 4 speeds from the 88-91 civics... those are TIGHT...

lol

blew that up before i went to the si, whose life is now grinding to a halt...