MDXOKIE

New to the forum. Need advice. Bought a 2007 MDX Tech Pkg from a friend. Has 107K miles. Car in great condition and rides and drives great. Everything was fine for first 3 mos then began having issues with starting. Would put key in ignition and all internal systems would work in position I and II on ignition. Turn key to position III and nothing and get a :Check Starting System indicator in the info center in center of the instrument cluster. Took the vehicle to local Acura dealer and they were unable to duplicate the issue - no codes were thrown. I went ahead and had timing belt and t-bet tensioner pulley replaced as it had hit the 105K mark. Had general 30K maintenance stuff done at the same time. Drove for 2 days and while driving to parents house on the third day got the "Check Charging System" indicator light up along with battery lamp and SH AWD warning lamp on dash. Barely made it to their house and car would not start. Suspected alternator and had MDX towed back to dealership with roadside assistance - they confirmed alternator and replaced. Also had them replace the negative battery cable as they mentioned it as a possible culprit for the starting system issue. Picked up the next day, car started fine and drove around corner to restaurant. Shut of car and for giggles turned ignition key again and got the "Check Starting System" indicator again. immediately took car back to dealer. Car sat overnight and dealer replaced starter relay next day. Car started fine and ran fine for two days. Today, after driving around to a couple for destinations for a few hours, got in car and "Check Starting System" light came on as when I tried to start, there was nothing. To reiterate - nothing no cranking at all. returned key to position I and removed - after 10 seconds car started again but "Check Starting System" light came on and remains on.

Also - Check Emissions Light comes on intermittently - don't really feel any performance issues and light generally will go off again - maybe in a couple of hours or the next day - are they related?

I'm really frustrated. Can anybody help?

RDX10

I feel like this is an obvious one, and maybe you forgot to mention it. But have you changed the battery? Before reading anything, just from the title I had a feeling it was battery.

These days cars are so technologically advanced that a failing battery sends all kinds of signals to the main computer tricking it into thinking something is wrong. The no crank with a new alternator is a dead giveaway. Even if the battery tested fine, I would replace it asap.

MDXOKIE

Thanks for the advice. The no start event happened again. I was able to start only by holding the ignition swith at position 3 for 15 seconds. Then it fired right up but showed the check starting system warning again. I stopped at the closest AutoZone and had thr battery checked, it showed fully charged. Could it be the battery if it still sarts using the alternative method, holding the key like I did?

Any input would be really helpful, especially if anyone has experienced this before.

thoiboi

+1 on failing battery

Keanu's mrs. T

I'm going through similar problem with check starting system. Indy shop changed starter relays and problem persists. Recommended to go Honda dealer (no Acura here) for reprogramming of ECU. Claim it may be faulty unit that may need to be "reflashed" or changed out. Hopefully it's not a costly fix. Been scratching our heads on this one for the past weeks.

RDX10

I am willing to bet that if you were to test the battery before moving, it would fail. It is possibke it can charge on the short drive to the autozone. That battery is most likely the original or second replacement. It has been 10 years, VERY likely it is time for a change. Quite frankly, it is one of the cheapest things to replace, you should have replaced it first and then go from there.

Btw, I would go back to the Acura dealer where you had service and demand they look at it again for free. My rdx was having this weird problem occur where on tight turns at speed it would feel like the steering wheel was trying to kick back in your hands. I took it to my local Acura dealer and they told me it was a failing power steering pump. Well fast forward a couple days, they replaced it and that following night I noticed the same problem again. I went back and got my money back and replaced my tires which fixed the problem. Obviously your alternator was not the issue here, so why pay to replace it and still have the same issue?

Ed88

Hey guys,

I think i have the same problem with my 2007. I replaced the Alternator @ 161,000 and now it has 216k. I had replaced the HFL module for draining the battery around 161,000. Chain of events:
Driving and shut truck off, no restart, needed a jump..
Replaced battery...next day decided to confirm repair with Snap-on Modis Ultra Scanner.... found out that the Alternator is almost cycling on and off with the A/c and will shut off with the a/c off most of the time.
Swapped A/c cut out relay...same thing. This only can be verified with a scanner that has a "movie" mode. Will do a pin out check at the PCM tomorrow to see if readings are spec at teh Electronic Load Sensor and Alternator Control pins. If grounds and point test pass, will probably go for a faulty PCM....any suggestions?