'93 Honda Domani - transmission troubles

phillip.weston, Apr 1, 4:14am
Hey guys, have a '93 Honda Domani here with the ZC 1.6L engine and automatic transmission, travelled 142,000kms. In August 2007 at 117,000kms the transmission was rebuilt, and in October last year the transmission was flushed and refilled with fresh fluid. The transmission slips and flares up between gear changes - it will take off from a standstill in 1st and change to 2nd alright, but when it drives in 2nd, 3rd or 4th it will slip when you apply moderate throttle. It's generally fine when it's cold but once it starts warming up then it will start slipping. At highway speeds in 4th and torque converter lockup clutch applied it seems alright, although after driving for say 10-15 mins it will go from sitting at 2600rpm at 100km/h to around 3000rpm at 100km/h and will act as if the torque converter lock up clutch is no longer applied.

Any ideas where to start looking! The fluid is definitely at the correct level and doesn't smell burned or is discoloured. I just find it strange for the transmission to do this after only 25,000kms after being rebuilt (at a cost of over $2800 too!)

Let me know your thoughts. Cheers guys!

carkitter, Apr 1, 5:20am
It needs to be rebuilt again, there's no other way around it, theres nothing to adjust or tweak from the outside.

If the trans had failed due to abuse, I'd expect to see burnt oil. I suspect the rebuild was done without keeping to the strict tolerances required for the multi-plate clutches and thus it has worn prematurely. Was it done by a Honda dealer!

franc123, Apr 1, 5:55am
It would be interesting to know what the internal pressures were like, ie if there were any internal leaks and also if the correct fluid was used in it at the last change, they need to use either the approved Honda fluid or the Castrol TQ95 equivalent and not the usual Dex2/3.As above the clutch plate clearances are very critical to their shift quality and life, you need to know what you are doing when setting them up.

phillip.weston, Sep 18, 1:48am
it was done by Mainstreet transmissions in Hamilton. Can't seem to see a kick down cable, perhaps the line pressure is electronically adjusted like Mitsis.

I had another look at it this morning in the daylight, and the fluid does look to be a bit redder than usual, and there were traces of black grit on the dipstick. I also noticed that on the transmission cooler line there was an inline EFI style fuel filter fitted. I wonder if it's a little blocked and not flowing enough fluid back to the oil pump.