2021 CTR 1K miles impressions & questions

[Ultimateone]

It's because it's basically an Android head unit... I miss wireless carplay also

Sponsored

 

[TheCanadian]

Give it a few years....when there's an idatalink compatible with the 16+ Civics we'll be able to bypass it with a much better aftermarket unit.

 

[SiR]

Love the ‘21 SGP FK8 CTR. It has reignited my passion for a manual transmission, and I believe it’s one of the best 6 speed sticks out there. Couple of gripes tho: 1) occasional 2nd gear grinding 2) horrendous infotainment with intermittent CarPlay and occasional blank/black screens.

Is it normal? Wonder how many owners are experiencing these 2 issues?

PS: thought I share the pic after paint correction, custom ppf front + key parts and ceramic coating on the rest.

the infotainment I can live with, but the 2nd gear grind and occasional 1st lock out is real, it’s pretty much proven at this point the transmission does have its quirks. If you shift slower at lower rpm from 1st to 2nd, it never happens, but it’s certainly annoying, and an oversight from Honda.

For those who says they have no issues at all, it’s either they are lucky to get a very good one, or they just naturally shift slow and relaxed. It’s human nature that “ oh I don have this grind issue, it must be all the other drivers suck, they don’t know how to drive, I’m just better driver....”

No! I have driven quite a few manuals, including previous and current gen Si. The R is the first car I have grind issue. I might try adjust the clutch next to see it helps.

 

[NapalmEnema]

the infotainment I can live with, but the 2nd gear grind and occasional 1st lock out is real, it’s pretty much proven at this point the transmission does have its quirks. If you shift slower at lower rpm from 1st to 2nd, it never happens, but it’s certainly annoying, and an oversight from Honda.

For those who says they have no issues at all, it’s either they are lucky to get a very good one, or they just naturally shift slow and relaxed. It’s human nature that “ oh I don have this grind issue, it must be all the other drivers suck, they don’t know how to drive, I’m just better driver....”

No! I have driven quite a few manuals, including previous and current gen Si. The R is the first car I have grind issue. I might try adjust the clutch next to see it helps.

Put more miles on or adjust your Clutch Master Cylinder (there is a good writeup that you can follow to do it in your driveway) I promise I was feeling as you did when I first got my Type R - I shift and drive fast and I don't grind at all anymore after the transmission broke in. But try the CMC adjust a LOT of people solved their issue with that minor change.

 

[SiR]

Put more miles on or adjust your Clutch Master Cylinder (there is a good writeup that you can follow to do it in your driveway) I promise I was feeling as you did when I first got my Type R - I shift and drive fast and I don't grind at all anymore after the transmission broke in. But try the CMC adjust a LOT of people solved their issue with that minor change.

I already changed the transmission fluid, but that didn't eliminate the issue. How much did you adjust your CMC? should the biting point change after the adjustment?

My understanding is that, after the adjustment the Clutch should disengage earlier before going all the way to the floor, allowing more time for the car to react to fast 2nd shift

 

[NapalmEnema]

I already changed the transmission fluid, but that didn't eliminate the issue. How much did you adjust your CMC? should the biting point change after the adjustment?

My understanding is that, after the adjustment the Clutch should disengage earlier before going all the way to the floor, allowing more time for the car to react to fast 2nd shift

I didn't end up needing to adjust the CMC just when I was about to the grinding I had experience just seemed to fade away with miles. I drive - hard - all my cars - but I was about to do the following -

CMC adjustment
if that didn't work
CMC replacement / modification https://www.civicx.com/forum/thread...-slave-clutch-cylinder-grinding-issues.43316/
Then fluids etc..

Like I said, I believe this transmission needs a bit to 'break in' so drive smooth for a few thousand then start getting more aggressive - but if your grind is all the time and even with easy shifting then the above is in play.

I'm over a year and a month on the car now and ~14k I think on it and it's not ground at all since around 5-6k if I recall.

 

[SiR]

I didn't end up needing to adjust the CMC just when I was about to the grinding I had experience just seemed to fade away with miles. I drive - hard - all my cars - but I was about to do the following -

CMC adjustment
if that didn't work
CMC replacement / modification https://www.civicx.com/forum/thread...-slave-clutch-cylinder-grinding-issues.43316/
Then fluids etc..

Like I said, I believe this transmission needs a bit to 'break in' so drive smooth for a few thousand then start getting more aggressive - but if your grind is all the time and even with easy shifting then the above is in play.

I'm over a year and a month on the car now and ~14k I think on it and it's not ground at all since around 5-6k if I recall.

So, I guess you have no issue with fast shifting now? Like 1st gear to red line and fast shift to 2nd like you run for 1/4 mile.

All 3 grinds I have had in my 6000 km of driving were during high rpm shifts from 1st to 2nd, like around 5000rpm. This is easily avoided by shifting early and slowly, but I can see this being super annoying when i go to the track.

Thanks for the input anyways, i think i will drive another 2000 km before I commit to the CMC adjustment.

 

[NapalmEnema]

So, I guess you have no issue with fast shifting now? Like 1st gear to red line and fast shift to 2nd like you run for 1/4 mile.

All 3 grinds I have had in my 6000 km of driving were during high rpm shifts from 1st to 2nd, like around 5000rpm. This is easily avoided by shifting early and slowly, but I can see this being super annoying when i go to the track.

Thanks for the input anyways, i think i will drive another 2000 km before I commit to the CMC adjustment.

I drive fast and hard - let me put it this way - I replaced my front tires at 7k :x

Good luck but may as well check your CMC adjustment now if it's that bad Every car different bud - a LOT of people had to get the CMC adjusted to get the experience I have on my car it feels. Simple thing to check with hand tools in your garage from what I read - all in the footwell by and large.

 

[tde1205]

i have a '21 SGP about to hit 2.5k Miles - R41120
just like yours.

glad I'm not the only one that feels the clicky/nothcy
everyone says its normal. I've learned that being smooth when shifting helps. watch this video, he gives you an idea on how to shift in these short shifter transmissions.



& for the car play dash issue - yes. this weekend it happened to me, actually while I was driving it reset & went black screen had to wait for it to restart. the fact that the iphone needs to be connected for car play is soo annoying. Bluetooth is good but the sound quality is better when its wired.

 

[Cornercarver]

Have put just 8,000 miles on this '18 CTR since buying it last year with 13,800 miles on it.
Have rarely heard any grinding - but you have to be very deliberate on the shifts as the 1-2 shift can be tricky if revved too hard. Double clutching of course will smooth out shifts, but admittedly I don't do that enough. Basically, grinding is so rare that I don't consider it an issue. The infotainment system has generally worked fine, at least for Android, but is hardly the selling point of this car. Everything else is amazing.
The only major issue is the 39.5 foot turning radius. So you have to watch it on tight right turns and come out farther than you think you need to before turning the wheel or risk scraping your wheels and tires. And don't pull in too far on a vertical parking spot with a curb -or your front lip will pay the price. Other than that, the car is the best I have owned, and darn near perfect. You picked a winner, enjoy!

 

[Deleted member 47337]

Love the ‘21 SGP FK8 CTR. It has reignited my passion for a manual transmission, and I believe it’s one of the best 6 speed sticks out there. Couple of gripes tho: 1) occasional 2nd gear grinding 2) horrendous infotainment with intermittent CarPlay and occasional blank/black screens.

Is it normal? Wonder how many owners are experiencing these 2 issues?

PS: thought I share the pic after paint correction, custom ppf front + key parts and ceramic coating on the rest.

Hey bud, welcome to the community! =)

So, there are still some people that don't know about the CTR's clutch and Synchro system it seems. Let me explain a little bit about the Type R.

The clutch on the Type R is a pretty hefty clutch. You don't have to worry about any premature wear. However, Honda (and other manufacturers) have been putting clutch delay valves (or Clutch Delay Mechanisms) inside of the Clutch Master Cylinders.

What this does is it prevents the clutch from engaging in a harsh manner, but it also delays the engagement for a slight moment. It's not the most reassuring feeling if I'm being honest, because sometimes the clutch can feel unpredictable as to where it actually engages. However, you'll eventually get used to it. Some people have removed it and/or modified it. Personally, I'd leave it there. You get used to it. You start to find the sweet spot on shifting and your seating position.

Honda assumed that younger people would be buying the Type R (Which isn't the case here in the South...it's the exact opposite. It's all older folks) and Honda had seen from the past (young CRX and S2000 owners) that drivers would drive them hard and ram-rod shift the living daylights out of their cars. So, Honda put that mechanism in place to protect the transmission from heavy clutch dumps.

Also, this car doesn't like to be rushed when shifting...at all. Especially from 1st to 2nd. The Synchros is not designed to handle a rushed shift from 1st to 2nd.


Just so you know....cause most Type R owners don't...

You don't have max power in 1st or 2nd gear. If you look at the stock fuel map for the Type R from 2017 - 2021, you can see that your power is limited to 80% in 1st and 2nd gear, and that's there for a reason.

Honda did that by design, because they knew that owners who took their car on the track would never, ever use 1st or 2nd gear. Our gears are very short and nobody in their right mind would ever down shift to 2nd gear on any circuit, let alone 1st.

3rd, 4rth, 5th, and 6th gear is where your meat and potatoes are. If you haven't noticed already, your most powerful gears that pull the hardest are 4rth, 5th, and 6th: Highway speeds...you'll pretty much annihilate anything around you.

Remember peeps, this car is a track car...literally. It's a track car with number plates on it. It was made for the Honda enthusiast that likes track driving. Honda wanted to beat the lap record at the Nurburgring for the fastest front wheel drive production car, EVER, to lap the Nurburgring...and they did it. The Type R ran a 7:43, right next to the Nissan GTR. Nissan GTR has a legendary all-wheel drive system and had 485hp (at the time) when it ran that benchmark time. So, yeah....that should tell you something.

The Type R has very little, to no sound insulation. It's loud in the cabin, no matter what you do. Top speed is only 177mph, and that's because the car has a ridiculous amount of down force at high speeds. It's no different than any other REAL track-focused car. Take the Dodge Viper ACR, track-focused monster with over 645 bhp...top speed is 177mph, just like the Type R. Has heavy cabin noise, Insane amount of down force from the fins, front lip, rear spoiler, etc...Same concept.

* These track-focused cars do two things really well, win races and set record lap times.

The Type R is not a drag car. It has a manual transmission. It's not going to be fast from 0-60, or beat ANYONE in a drag race, believe me.....but take this on the highway or any professional race track and you'll destroy everyone around you.

My personal car....I've had my 21 CTR and never seen a grind or hick-up at all and I have roughly 4k miles. I also had a 2018 for a few months before I bought the 2021, and I never had issues on that on either. Don't rush your shifts and I think you'll be fine.

I don't know....I personally love the Type R. The stock engine from OEM comes with forged pistons, a forged crankshaft, and forged connecting rods. That's insane for a car that costs less than 40k. This engine has to be one of the greatest engines ever produced and this is a car that should be praised...even with it's issues. I'd keep the car, modify or replace the CMC and enjoy it.

 

[F20C1A]

Love the ‘21 SGP FK8 CTR. It has reignited my passion for a manual transmission, and I believe it’s one of the best 6 speed sticks out there. Couple of gripes tho: 1) occasional 2nd gear grinding 2) horrendous infotainment with intermittent CarPlay and occasional blank/black screens.

Is it normal? Wonder how many owners are experiencing these 2 issues?

PS: thought I share the pic after paint correction, custom ppf front + key parts and ceramic coating on the rest.

What color? Is that the Sonic Grey? I have one that color. Have ground 2nd a couple times myself. I heard the same complaint myself.

 

[Lust]

My opinion about what causes the gear grinds are a result of two things: improper clutch adjustment from factory and improper technique.

I have a video demonstrating the clutch pedal adjustment and it only takes a few minutes.

Adjusting the clutch properly will optimize the amount of pedal free play to fully disengage the clutch as quickly as possible. This will subsequently raise the clutch engagement height which IMO is a good thing. You don’t want the clutch grabbing near the floor. Ideally it should be grabbing near the halfway point. Adjusting the clutch will also eliminate some of the vagueness in the pedal.



Changing your transmission fluid and getting the modified CMC will definitely help. I recommend AC Delco Synchromesh Friction Modified or Motul Gear 300. The modified CMC has an enlarged feed hole which allows more fluid to travel through the clutch hydraulics at a faster rate. This allows the clutch to be fully disengaged quicker. By doing this, we give the 2nd gear synchro more time to do its job and are able to shift faster.

Technique is also important. I’ve seen too many people say that they’re manual experts and are just downright abusive when it comes to shifting. Before even applying any pressure to the gear selector, the clutch should be fully depressed and on the floor. From there you need to be deliberate when moving the gear selector between the gates. I’ve seen people be extremely lazy and just shift in diagonal lines which can result in lock outs. I recommend using a zig zag pattern.

 

[WhiskeyTango]

For those who says they have no issues at all, don't drive the car hard, or they just naturally shift slow and relaxed.

Fixed for ya.

 

[Deleted member 47337]

Fixed for ya.

lol!

Sponsored