CVT Destroyed at 45k, looking to MT swap

gtman

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The point being that no one, OP included, thinks that this car wasn't driven beyond what the average owner would do. The Accord based CVT mated with our 1.5T's is fairly robust. I'm tuned 2.5+ years and most tuned CVT cars have done well.

My point being, the CVT didn't just up and die out of the blue. It was a cumulative thing.

I know you're new here but I say that as the guy who runs the community tuning reliabilty database.
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hondabandit

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Why is any of this relevant to what I asked? Are you seeing things I didnt even write? OP answered and that's that. You don't know me. You're projecting.

The point being that no one, OP included, thinks that this car wasn't driven beyond what the average owner would do. The Accord based CVT mated with our 1.5T's is fairly robust. I'm tuned 2.5+ years and most tuned CVT cars have done well.

My point being, the CVT didn't just up and die out of the blue. It was a cumulative thing.

I know you're new here but I say that as the guy who runs the community tuning reliabilty database.
 
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Nickthewaffler

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Why is any of this relevant to what I asked? Are you seeing things I didnt even write? OP answered and that's that. You don't know me. You're projecting.
The point being that no one, OP included, thinks that this car wasn't driven beyond what the average owner would do. The Accord based CVT mated with our 1.5T's is fairly robust. I'm tuned 2.5+ years and most tuned CVT cars have done well.

My point being, the CVT didn't just up and die out of the blue. It was a cumulative thing.

I know you're new here but I say that as the guy who runs the community tuning reliabilty database.
Lets keep in the DMs please.
 

Gruber

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Its also been great learning so much about the car, I feel like im invincible and anything that happens to it it ill just fix it.
Good for you, that's an unbelievably great feeling. :thumbsup: It's a pity you only have a civic - if you pulled apart and then assembled a Mercedes Benz or a BMW and figured out all the cables and computers then maybe you could start making money off of your experience.....
 

bcrichster

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The point being that no one, OP included, thinks that this car wasn't driven beyond what the average owner would do. The Accord based CVT mated with our 1.5T's is fairly robust. I'm tuned 2.5+ years and most tuned CVT cars have done well.

My point being, the CVT didn't just up and die out of the blue. It was a cumulative thing.

I know you're new here but I say that as the guy who runs the community tuning reliabilty database.
Does that mean an Accord 2.0t (K20) transmission will fit the 1.5t (L15)?
 


gtman

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Does that mean an Accord 2.0t (K20) transmission will fit the 1.5t (L15)?
I don't have a clue on that. The CVT the 1.5T uses is based on the one from the last gen Accord.
 

bcrichster

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I don't have a clue on that. The CVT the 1.5T uses is based on the one from the last gen Accord.
ah, figures I must've missed something..
Does anyone know if the Acura 10sp tranny (k20c1?) fits the k20c2, then?
 
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Nickthewaffler

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Waiting for the Si motor swap onto a CVT.
What would be the purpose of this swap? Power gains would be minimal I believe, Why not build the internals?
 

gtman

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What would be the purpose of this swap? Power gains would be minimal I believe, Why not build the internals?
Totally agree here. Dynos have shown that the power difference while more than "minimal" isn't drastically different. Especially considering that a $500 tune gives you considerably more power output than the Si with proven good reliability (at base tune levels).

The yellow on the Hondata dynos below are the stock power outputs.

Si
Honda Civic 10th gen CVT Destroyed at 45k, looking to MT swap 2017-civicsi-plus6-power-torque

204.5hp / 212.1 tq


Non-Si
Honda Civic 10th gen CVT Destroyed at 45k, looking to MT swap dyno_15turbo_civic_9ps

190.7 hp / 191.7 tq
 
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NeoDragons

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Okay okay... I've been holding off for too long. Here is an update, the good, the bad, and the ugly...

The good: The swap as far as I'm concerned is possible and I was successful in figuring it out. Currently, the Si MT is in the car and I've driven about 400 miles on it. It shifts well, it took a tune, and drives without engine lights. I had many issues and problems, I really don't have the time or space to go into in detail, but if someone wants to do this for real, I'll consider writing it out on another post or something like that. I didn't have to take it to any mechanic and did it all in my garage, so I'm happy with that. The cost hasn't been too crazy just yet.

The bad: I'm currently having some minor electrical issues with the VSA module, which I ended up replacing with one I found for $75 at a salvage yard, but I think my own wiring may be the issue as I checked for continuity between my connections and wasn't picking it up.
Mechanical issue: I would have well over a few thousand miles on the car if it wasn't for this. There is a clicking sound I hear whenever going over bumps or dips. The clicking sound sounds like axle pop, but I've inspected both axles and they seem to be fine with minor radial play. The lower RMM from Cusco however was blown out, but still holds loosely, so maybe the engine is bumping around in there.

The ugly: On my last time driving the car, earlier this week, the AC broke, and I had no cold air coming in. I'm guessing something might have bumped into it, so I've stopped driving the car. I was hoping something like this might happen, it will help me find the issue and locate the sound. I don't mind paying a salvage yard for more parts, it has been fun learning to replace everything in car anyway. I know this is not a good way to go about doing things for your wallet.

The plan: I'll be taking the car apart this weekend and installing 82 hasport mounts on all contact parts, so 3 engine mounts. I'll inspect for dings, rubbing, or anything all around the engine. I'll check every single wire that was changed for proper resistance and continuity. Anything that looks at all damaged will be replaced. The car won't be driven until doing so. I might also build the engine in the next month if everything electrical goes well. This will allow me to fully inspect the engine bay for damage, cracks, etc...
awesome write man. really appreciate you took the time and effort to docoment your swap. really hope you get to iron every thing out. as a cvt owner myself who tracks the car, this was great to read
 
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Nickthewaffler

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Any comparison to see if a rebuilt CVT could have a LSD plopped in?
My first priority rn: make sure the car runs better than before, and clean up all the wiring and touch up all my work.

I'd love to take apart the CVT, so ill do that after.
 
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Nickthewaffler

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Update #Idek

Just finished up with the electrical work and I'm now happy to say the car has no error codes other than low tire pressure(from track) and srs(from aftermarket seat install). Stupidly, the Frankensteined VSA module connector had one wire that was in the wrong place by one hole. You can imagine how I felt when I found the issue after this many weeks of troubleshooting. Drove the car about a meter and the warning lights disappeared. Brake hold started to work and so did the hill-assist system. So electrical work has been successfully completed! I still have the guage cluster with the PRNDS popping up, so I already arranged to pick up a MT one up from a salvage yard.

Unfortunately, the motor mount install, though successful, for the most part(the engine side mount was incorrectly packaged by hasport and will be resent soon), did not solve the clicking issue. Still when going over bumps there is an audible rapid clicking sound and feel on the driver side lower engine bay area. Axle and motor mounts have been rooted out and are unlikely to be the issue.

When installing the sub frame, I didn't use an alignment pin, so there is a small chance the sub frame is clicking due to being misaligned, not so sure about that one.

On a side note, don't buy Cusco's rear motor mount. It was destroyed after just one track day. I'm now running a 2/3(stock passenger side) set of hasport 82a mounts and don't notice much differnce in NVH from just a drive around the block, but they are significantly more beefy looking.

I have ordered a set of HKS coilovers and will be replacing front and rear suspension components, hardware, and bushings when they arrive. For now I will drive on the sound and eventually I'm sure I'll find the source! (Hopefully not while on the highway merging into 100 mph LA carpool lane.)

Next I will be making a steel front and side splitter set connected to a flat underbody shield. I have torn most of the plastic on the track and don't wish to bother with weak aluminum or expensive custom carbon. I'll weld it up nice and strong, but I'm not looking forward to oil changes once it's done. Maybe I'll design a custom inspection cover.

A list of minor work to wrap it up includes:

Re-stitching my recaro's- I crawled around and damaged them a little.
Replacing interior trim panels- however gentle I was, the clips eventually break on some pieces after a dozen or so removals.
Polish and clear-coating my carbon hood- the garage damaged the very tip of it when I closed it on the hood.
Gauge cluster- as mentioned.
Under glow replacement- my 2 year old opt7 set was also beat up by track days with the underbody.
Shift boot needs to be tightened- I picked a cheap universal set on ebay, maybe I'll just buy a civic-specific one.
Cleaning the car- He's a dirty boy rn.

Before tracking again: Cooling Cooling Cooling so no more embarrassing tow-off moments! Hate feeling like a Subaru driver ;)
AM radiator.
AM intercooler.
AM oil cooler.
Brake cooling Ducts
Oil pressure and temp guage.
Turbo overboost safety switch/cutoff
Engine built at least 500 whp rating estimate.

It's going to be a long time before I rip the track up with my boy NIPP.

Also, there won't be any updates for a little while I suspect. So thank you to everyone who has provided their opinion and knowledge. Even the warnings, it all helped.

Edit: AC has stopped blowing cold :\, steering wheels controls don't work :|. More work, more work!
 
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Update #Idek

Just finished up with the electrical work and I'm now happy to say the car has no error codes other than low tire pressure(from track) and srs(from aftermarket seat install). Stupidly, the Frankensteined VSA module connector had one wire that was in the wrong place by one hole. You can imagine how I felt when I found the issue after this many weeks of troubleshooting. Drove the car about a meter and the warning lights disappeared. Brake hold started to work and so did the hill-assist system. So electrical work has been successfully completed! I still have the guage cluster with the PRNDS popping up, so I already arranged to pick up a MT one up from a salvage yard.

Unfortunately, the motor mount install, though successful, for the most part(the engine side mount was incorrectly packaged by hasport and will be resent soon), did not solve the clicking issue. Still when going over bumps there is an audible rapid clicking sound and feel on the driver side lower engine bay area. Axle and motor mounts have been rooted out and are unlikely to be the issue.

When installing the sub frame, I didn't use an alignment pin, so there is a small chance the sub frame is clicking due to being misaligned, not so sure about that one.

On a side note, don't buy Cusco's rear motor mount. It was destroyed after just one track day. I'm now running a 2/3(stock passenger side) set of hasport 82a mounts and don't notice much differnce in NVH from just a drive around the block, but they are significantly more beefy looking.

I have ordered a set of HKS coilovers and will be replacing front and rear suspension components, hardware, and bushings when they arrive. For now I will drive on the sound and eventually I'm sure I'll find the source! (Hopefully not while on the highway merging into 100 mph LA carpool lane.)

Next I will be making a steel front and side splitter set connected to a flat underbody shield. I have torn most of the plastic on the track and don't wish to bother with weak aluminum or expensive custom carbon. I'll weld it up nice and strong, but I'm not looking forward to oil changes once it's done. Maybe I'll design a custom inspection cover.

A list of minor work to wrap it up includes:

Re-stitching my recaro's- I crawled around and damaged them a little.
Replacing interior trim panels- however gentle I was, the clips eventually break on some pieces after a dozen or so removals.
Polish and clear-coating my carbon hood- the garage damaged the very tip of it when I closed it on the hood.
Gauge cluster- as mentioned.
Under glow replacement- my 2 year old opt7 set was also beat up by track days with the underbody.
Shift boot needs to be tightened- I picked a cheap universal set on ebay, maybe I'll just buy a civic-specific one.
Cleaning the car- He's a dirty boy rn.

Before tracking again: Cooling Cooling Cooling so no more embarrassing tow-off moments! Hate feeling like a Subaru driver ;)
AM radiator.
AM intercooler.
AM oil cooler.
Brake cooling Ducts
Oil pressure and temp guage.
Turbo overboost safety switch/cutoff
Engine built at least 500 whp rating estimate.

It's going to be a long time before I rip the track up with my boy NIPP.

Also, there won't be any updates for a little while I suspect. So thank you to everyone who has provided their opinion and knowledge. Even the warnings, it all helped.

Edit: AC has stopped blowing cold :\, steering wheels controls don't work :|. More work, more work!
i'd like to suggest this upgrade :

Honda Civic 10th gen CVT Destroyed at 45k, looking to MT swap 1602180826146

Honda Civic 10th gen CVT Destroyed at 45k, looking to MT swap 1602180853886
 


 


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