Help diagnose my clutch rattle.

Car: 96 civic DX Hatch Miles: 93k or so PO: College of Charleston Prof, so lots of short trips.

Issue: Rattle from trans area when clutch pedal is out at idle in neutral. If pedal goes in, rattle stops. Car also has developed the tendency to chatter a good bit on a 1-2 shift, If not slipped slowly while engine is at a semi matched rpm.

Knowns: All the engine mounts are stock and completely trashed. I believe the PO was a horrible man. trans driver.

Car is driveable and reliable. But I want to fix this issue and the mounts after august 23rd( read after my MBA is over).

So What say you GRM?

edit: forgot to put that I believe either a busted spring or a wrecked throw out bearing.

I was told that was TOB noise in my SHO.

I do get a squeak when I put in the pedal. hrmm. Google also showed up some issues with input shaft bearings... I really don't want to crack the trans.

Same noise in our Subaru was fixed when the release bearing was replaced.

The chattering may be from the engine flopping about, or the clutch may have been pre-ruined by the PO's ineptitude.

don't crack the trans. folks are dropping B-series swaps in these cars and tossing out perfectly good D-series engines and trans all the time. you should be able to find a good trans for the cost of repair parts, and at that point its a simple R&R.

http://www.civicforums.com/forums/36-mechanical-problems-vehicle-issues-fix-forum/246971-diy-diagnose-manual-tranny-noises-save-some.html

Is main shaft failure common?

I wouldn't call it "common", although it does happen. I have only read about 2, and I've been on several honda forums for about 8 years now. that doesn't mean that folks didn't have a mysterious noise, and they just snagged another trans and swapped it, without investigating what the noise was. one of the 2 cases was due to the oil passage for the front bearing being blocked, and it oil starved.

Rattle at idle in neutral with clutch pedal out= somewhere between the pressure plate and the end of the input shaft, there's a problem.

Push in clutch pedal and noise changes or goes away immediately, most likely TO bearing or possibly pilot bearing (not common). Pilot bearing noise can be a lot like input bearing noise.

Push in clutch pedal and the noise 'winds down' slowly, most likely input bearing noise. Possibly gear rollover rattle, that can come from both the input and cluster gear bearings getting worn, this allows the two shafts to move apart slightly (.008 or so) which changes the tooth contact area on both gears. Lots of manual trannies do this with age and will last practically forever. Rollover rattle is generally audible during shifts or when letting off the gas so that the tranny is 'unloaded', input bearing noise usually is not.

I push in the pedal and the noise ceases immediately

ignorant wrote: I push in the pedal and the noise ceases immediately

Most likely the TO bearing. With 93K on car it would be a good idea to replace the clutch while you have it apart.

OK... Clutch it is..

Suggest a budget/performance brand or good quality OEM replacement. I'm done with cheap dangerzone parts.

usually, you can find an OE grade replacement from exedy for about $100. thats whats going in my 86 Si til I get the turbo motor sorted.

Does your car have a fork? If so, look at the fork pivot.

ddavidv wrote: Same noise in our Subaru was fixed when the release bearing was replaced. The chattering may be from the engine flopping about, or the clutch may have been pre-ruined by the PO's ineptitude.

How much did this repair cost you? I've got the same thing with my Suby, it's been like that for 30k miles... Did you do the clutch at the same time?

(sorry for the hijack!)