Advice needed- difficult to shift
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 33,169
Likes: 1,639
From: Randolph, NJ
I hate to be the bearer of bad tidings but that sounds a lot like what happened to my Si. One month and $2500 later (Honda also paid a portion) I had a new clutch and a rebuilt transmission. I hope it's your Clutch Master Cylinder or something simple like that, but be prepared. I only had 78,000 miles on my Si and the problem came on very quickly. On Tuesday everything was fine, on Wednesday the car had to be flatbedded in.
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 37,305
Likes: 18
This is my first post on S2Ki in a very, very long time and now that it's under new management, I'm going to give it a try within "Vintage" only. There are quite a few familiar names (and old friends) in this thread and they have given some excellent advice. I take this opportunity to give my warmest "Hello" to you all.
First, 67K miles is not a lot for an S2000 clutch unless it's been beat up by someone who drives carelessly. There are many examples of 100K mile S2000 clutches that still perform well.
The fact that it is "easy" to depress the pedal likely suggests that the fluid has air and this may be a result of its age. You didn't say what year the car is or how old the clutch fluid is. You also say that it gets a bit better when it gets warmer. Old fluid has absorbed a lot of water and when you heat up and boil water, air bubbles come out. Even air will exert more pressure when it gets warm, and hence, the difference you feel. 1st thing is to replace and flush the fluid with new.
Though you don't see any leaks under the clutch pedal or even under the car at the slave cylinder, doesn't necessarily mean there is no leak. The fluid can easily get past the first seal in those cylinders and simply hasn't made it out yet. One or the other may still require changing. However, do the clutch fluid flush first.
You also state that the fluid level is about 1.5" down. This tells me it's very close to or maybe even below the "low" mark. As the car operates, the "slosh" factor can easily cause more air to be drawn into the system, thereby compounding your situation.
Although Honda states that the transmission fluid is good for over 100K miles or nearly 10 years, don't believe it. At 67K miles, if it hasn't been changed within the last 40K miles, it's time. If you can row through the gears with the engine off, clutch pedal to the floor, it is not likely that your tranny is bad. Not being able to easily shift into gear when the engine is running is primarily due to the clutch not being able to completely disengage and remove all power input to the tranny from the engine. So long as the tranny is trying to be spun (as in a not fully disengaged clutch), it will resist going into gear.
First, 67K miles is not a lot for an S2000 clutch unless it's been beat up by someone who drives carelessly. There are many examples of 100K mile S2000 clutches that still perform well.
The fact that it is "easy" to depress the pedal likely suggests that the fluid has air and this may be a result of its age. You didn't say what year the car is or how old the clutch fluid is. You also say that it gets a bit better when it gets warmer. Old fluid has absorbed a lot of water and when you heat up and boil water, air bubbles come out. Even air will exert more pressure when it gets warm, and hence, the difference you feel. 1st thing is to replace and flush the fluid with new.
Though you don't see any leaks under the clutch pedal or even under the car at the slave cylinder, doesn't necessarily mean there is no leak. The fluid can easily get past the first seal in those cylinders and simply hasn't made it out yet. One or the other may still require changing. However, do the clutch fluid flush first.
You also state that the fluid level is about 1.5" down. This tells me it's very close to or maybe even below the "low" mark. As the car operates, the "slosh" factor can easily cause more air to be drawn into the system, thereby compounding your situation.
Although Honda states that the transmission fluid is good for over 100K miles or nearly 10 years, don't believe it. At 67K miles, if it hasn't been changed within the last 40K miles, it's time. If you can row through the gears with the engine off, clutch pedal to the floor, it is not likely that your tranny is bad. Not being able to easily shift into gear when the engine is running is primarily due to the clutch not being able to completely disengage and remove all power input to the tranny from the engine. So long as the tranny is trying to be spun (as in a not fully disengaged clutch), it will resist going into gear.
OMG......The sincerest "Welcome-Back" to you Dave !!!!
Welcome back, Dave! 
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Joined: Feb 2003
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From: The (S)Low Country