Couple of odd sounds I'd like to diagnose

[Kuang]

I was wondering if these might ring bells with anyone:

I bled my clutch after the firm pedal/low bite issues I mentioned earlier and it's better but still not right - the bite is a higher now and there's tons of grip, but you still seem to have to bury the pedal sometimes to notch it into first and second. That's a big range, and it makes no sense; it's almost as if the spring plate has play on it as well as feeling too stiff. I still have the occasional buzz on taking off that sounds like the release bearing, but I also noticed that there's a strong 'rustling' sound under drive that vanishes the moment you dip the clutch. It disappears even if you hold the throttle steady whilst doing so, so it's not the engine. I'm wondering if it's also likely to be that bearing or something else in the transmission? I wouldn't think it's in the gearbox as there'd be enough momentum for the noise to fade quickly instead of stopping immediately.

Secondly, when I start in the mornings I get a slight whine from around the serpentine belt which sounds a bit like it might be the alternator. This stops after about half a mile. My friend's Civic Type-r has similar but not as loud, so I wondered if it was just how these were when under a strong load? There's plenty of charge and I'm not getting dimming lights, etc so I presume it's doing the job. This also coincides with a slight whirr from the belt itself that lasts for about the first ten minutes of a drive but then vanishes completely. I've checked and the belt is visually fine with the indicator sittingly comfortably within the wear marker.

 

[jayok]

I was wondering if these might ring bells with anyone...

Well, if it's any consoliation I have both these features on my car.

I've never really noticed the amount of dip in the clutch, but occassionally I get that going into 1st or 2nd a notchy feeling. Now, I also get the release bearing noise (it sounds like a bark to me). So what have I done about it? TBH, the release bearing doesn't bother me so much, it'll happen once on a drive and then it's over. It's a grease problem and will eventually fail, but I'd imaging the clutch will go first - so I'll replace it all then.

For the notchiness, I couldn't fathom it either, but my gears were getting sticky, so I flushed the MTF with Honda's MTF3 - massive difference for me. I still get the odd notchy feeling, but it's probably 1 in 200 gear-shifts in 1/2 so much less. Upon flushing, I couldn't believe the amount of gunk that came out with the fluid! So, if you haven't done the MTF yet I'd recommend it.

For the whistling, I replaced the drive belt thinking that would replace it, but nope. The whistle was still there. I lubricated all bearing I could get to and the problem remained. It seems to be quiet common on Honda's even so much that its in the manual not to worry if it goes away after the car's warmed up. So I've learned to live with it. FWIW it's much worse on a cold than warm day.