Hey guys, I've been loving every minute of my ownership of my MY07 ap2 in laguna blue. I just rolled over 18k miles but have one worry. I always knew the gearbox was knotchy but i'm not sure if it's getting worse.
Essentially, I feel the 1-2 grind a fair amount and the other gears have 'feel' and are rougher than i remember. I also feel like the clutch engage is rougher now. Am i getting worse in my shifting? Am i just now noticing it more? Do those things sound like they go hand in hand at all?
I'm planning on getting the MTF replaced soon and possibly greasing the shifter + clutch fluid. What do you guys think? Is this bad to feel the 1-2 and sometimes 2-3? Am i damaging anything?

 

All my S2000s have been very notchy. Some new mtf should help a bit. My AP2s seemed to be most notchy from 2-3.

If the new mtf doesn't do anything, it could be a clutch issue.

 

Okay I'm so sorrry for this thread- i feel ridiculous. It was mostly pilot error. I went out this morning after reading 1 of the great Billman's posts. I think I had been getting use to the clutch and was shifting too fast. Meaning since the throw was too short, I was clutching and coming out of gear at the same time. Not grinding on the way into the next gear, just not timing it the smooth quick way that S's should be driven. I was confused when I read about shifting too fast and now I know my error. I thoought it was saying to pause in between 1 and 2. Not pause between clutch in and shift.
I went for a drive this morning and made sure to have my foot to the floor before coming out of gear. Made the tranny like butter again. I'm an idiot.

 

yea, out of all the manual, performance cars ive driven, the S2K takes a bit of a slower shift for it to feel right...once you get the timing down, its buttery smooth...id look into the TSB for the tranny though, im not sure, but i do know some years had a synchro issue, but i think that was the earlier AP2's

 

Glad you figured it out, I would do an oil change too for the tranny, it really will make things much more smoothe.

 

changing the trans flud every oil change helps, also pausing while you shift for a sec to let the gear sync, or shifting above 4500rpm. Ive done the same on my previous S, live and learn

 

Changing the clutch fluid helps as well. Flush mine out every 15k and it makes a noticeable difference.

 

My AP2 ran fine with the Honda MTF but I had to change it out every 10k miles or so. I could almost feel is degrade as time went on. I tried a few different transmission oils in my AP1 and nothing works even close to Amsoil. Amazing stuff it really changed the feel of it.

That's just my car though...

As someone else said, flush clutch fluid often and adjust play of clutch pedal.

 

My clutch fluid is nasty after even 15k miles... is that normal?

I have not tried the amsoil trans fluid, although the diff fluid is amazing so I gotta give it a try.

In my experience:

Gm syncromesh Friction modified >>>>>>> Honda MTF. First few minutes of driving are much more smooth, shifting feels more crisp.

And as always Zero rod play on the clutch pedal is a big help along with greasing everything related to the slave.

 

1. I almost didn't buy my 04 in April of 2010 b/c when I drove it, with only 8745 miles on it, it was "notchy" going into 2nd and 3rd.
2. I put in new Honda fluid, the next summer Pennzoil Synchromesh, and the next summer, Amsoil. Each time there seemed to be a slight improvement.
3. Also, I will say something that will get me criticized b/c I will be accused it's all in my mind: when I used a heavier stainless steel shift knob (bought from Ryan at Moddiction), it did better, less notchy. I have used the original shift knob, the CR one, Voodoo, and the Anvil 2 (the stainless steel one), and I have rotated the Voodoo and the Anvil 2 back and forth on the same day, different days, and different weeks, and it works for me.
4. In fact, I'm getting the regular Anvil, which is slightly heavier, but mainly b/c it's wider, personal preference. The Anvil 2 is oblong.
5. If you believe this, Moddiciton is having a 10% sale with no shipping going on right now. I assure you I'm not a relative, ha! I learned about him on the S2KCA site, and I think I saw a post by him somewhere since I've been playing on this site this vacation, so I'm sure he is a sponser here as well.
6. I pause a second in neutral between shifts,and next time I drive my S (which is my work car), I will follow the advice of making sure I don't even take it out of gear until my clutch pedal is on the floor; I shift so unconsciously, and since I pause a second in neutral, I don't think that is th issue, but I'd love to discover I'm wrong and admit it to everyone, especicially on the other site where I have compained about this for neary 3 years.