A while ago, I had an episode one night where the clutch fluid reservoir drained for some unknown reason. I filled the reservoir back up with fluid and it got better almost overnight. Then it started feeling bad again so I took it to Honda for a fluid change. It started feeling "notchy" so I changed it once myself during the summer.
Fast forward to a couple months ago. Shifting my s2k was feeling different again, like I HAD to put more effort in. I asked my friend who's an airplane mechanic for advice. First he says it sounds like I bent my shifter. Then I asked him to test drive it. He says he didn't notice the problem at all. He says it's all in my head or I need to work out more or something. Obviously I need a second opinion. Another friend who drives a GTO, I asked him to drive it. He didn't notice it either. I start obsessing over this. Am I just overthinking this? I drive my s2k every day and I'm beginning to get very sensitive to when something changes. Now I regret not following my gut instinct because the more I tried to ignore the problem the worse it got. Today, shifting has become a chore and I'm seriously worried something is damaged. It's not just when I'm driving the car either. It's happening when I'm downshifting to a red light or pulling away. There's occasionally a thud when shifting, but there's no smell. My clutch pedal has a little free play but I can't tell if it's enough to prevent shifting. It feels better on a warm day, but it feels really..."dry", which is weird because I swear I just had the fluid changed. Please assist, thank you!

 

My advice will be..... timing is the key. You can use the tachometer or your instinct. What I normally do is I let the shifter shift.

Shifting from 1st to 2nd, I push in clutch all the way and give enough pressure on the shifter right up to the gate and let the shifter gets sucked in to 2nd gear when the timing is right. Downshifting need one more step for rev match - throttle blip or heel and toe.

Keep an eye on your clutch fluid reservoir. Keep it at the maximum level and with clean fluid.

 

I do keep a clean reservoir. I should also mention shifting feels bad from neutral to 1st gear so I don't think it's timing.

 

" Clutch fluid reservoir drained for some unknown reason. "

Better check the master for leakage. Floor mat wet?

 

Quote
My clutch pedal has a little free play but I can't tell if it's enough to prevent shifting..

Ended up adjusting my pushrod few mm to take up a little play, my car has around 100k miles,
never looked back its a dream shifting now compared to nightmare crunching before.

Billman also does this were needed,

Caution also needed not to overdue as it Will fcuk it up

as above if your still loosing fluid best sort that first...

 

The loss of clutch fluid could be part of it, keep the fluid and reservoir clean going forward and make sure you don't see any dripping inside the vehicle under dash where the clutch rod comes through the firewall - inspect with a bright light under dash.

Double check the clutch rod freeplay, too much or too little ?

It would be next to impossible to bend the shifter, so it is not a bent shifter.

There is a procedure to lubricate the shifter, not sure what year s2000 you have but there was a TSB on this as some models were getting water in the shifter housing from a leaky seal. Nonetheless, lubricating the shifter makes a huge difference in shift quality. There is also a small chance you have a cracked shifter bushing on the bottom of the shifter, they are made of nylon, it is rare but it can happen. If you are interested I have a shifter with a brand new bushing on it that I was keeping as a spare part, I'd be willing to sell it, but I'm not pushing it as I have kept it as a spare. I would definitely plan to have the shifter lubed and inspect the lower housing for water/rust. There is a DIY on this somewhere on this site and a TSB from Honda.

You might also consider a tranny fluid change if the fluid is more than 2 years old.

 

I topped off the clutch and brake reservoirs this morning on my drive to work. Transitioning between gears feels a little smoother but getting it into the gears takes effort. I'm planning to bring it to my Honda dealer tomorrow for a clutch fluid flush. Maybe I'll ask them to inspect the cylinders adjust the clutch pedal while I'm there. Tranny fluid should be fine, but I don't know.

 

A couple of things come to mind immediatly......

1) Did you try bleeding the clutch lines.
2) Have you changed the transmission fluid. You are focussing on the clutch, and it seems that there is an issue there, but maybe the tranny fluid is also causing the shifting problem.

Just my thoughts......

 

Not for several months. I only siphoned out the reservoir and filled with new fluid. I know I had the transmission fluid replaced about a year ago.

 

If you're losing clutch fluid over time then your CMC is leaking. Replace it and then bleed the system. Shifting will get progressively worse as your clutch fluid level gets lower to the point where the car won't go into gear anymore when it gets too low. Keep a bottle of brake fluid in your car until you replace the CMC and keep checking the level and keep it topped off. Check the inside of your car near the clutch pedal for wet spots, keep the clutch fluid inside off the metal / paint as it'll eat it away.