# 2008 Honda Civic Grinding Noise at Startup

**URL:** <https://community.cartalk.com/t/2008-honda-civic-grinding-noise-at-startup/91286>\
**Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\
**Created:** [September 27, 2015, 12:51am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2008-honda-civic-grinding-noise-at-startup/91286 "2015-09-27T00:51:18Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![nattypaige25](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/67e7ee/32.png) [@nattypaige25](https://community.cartalk.com/u/nattypaige25)\
**Post date:** [September 27, 2015, 12:51am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2008-honda-civic-grinding-noise-at-startup/91286/1 "2015-09-27T00:51:18Z")

</div>

When I turn my key the car makes an awful grinding noise and then starts up fine. What is this and should I have it looked at?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![insightful](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/insightful/32/2732_2.png) [@insightful](https://community.cartalk.com/u/insightful)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 5:25am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2008-honda-civic-grinding-noise-at-startup/91286/2 "2015-09-28T05:25:29Z")

</div>

Sounds like your torque converter ring gear is worn. This is the gear the starter meshes with to start the engine. It can be checked by removing the starter and inspecting the teeth while turning the crankshaft by hand.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![the\_same\_mountainbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@the\_same\_mountainbike](https://community.cartalk.com/u/the_same_mountainbike)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 5:29am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2008-honda-civic-grinding-noise-at-startup/91286/3 "2015-09-28T05:29:39Z")

</div>

Or the starter gear…

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![missileman](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/missileman/32/1366_2.png) [@missileman](https://community.cartalk.com/u/missileman)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2015, 3:41pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2008-honda-civic-grinding-noise-at-startup/91286/4 "2015-09-28T15:41:22Z")

</div>

…or both by now. You need to have an independent mechanic look at your vehicle. You are causing more damage each time you start the car.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![George\_San\_Jose1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e5b9ba/32.png) [@George\_San\_Jose1](https://community.cartalk.com/u/George_San_Jose1)\
**Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 7:40am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2008-honda-civic-grinding-noise-at-startup/91286/5 "2015-10-01T07:40:16Z")

</div>

Concur w/the above, this needs to be looked at by a pro asap. If that ring gear gets damaged enough by all the grinding during cranking, the entire transmission has to be removed to even begin to fix the problem. If you are lucky and catch it in time, there’s a good chance you’ll only need to replace the starter. No need to remove the transmission.