From a stop, if I do not creep very slowly into acceleration, the SH-AWD light comes on and all kinds of nasty sounds happen from pinging to clunking to grinding, depending on how aggressively I accelerate. Once I get moving (say 20-25 mph) it smooths out. So, as often as possible, I creep like Granny until I get to a speed where I can accelerate normally. Generally, I do not experience any issues at speeds over 30 mph. However, recently I’ve had it do the same thing mildly when I accelerated aggressively on the highway. The car has 180k miles and I’ve probably managed around this for about 10k hoping not to sink $000s in repairs. That said, I’m concerned about safety and feeling like I must be doing damage every time it does that.
One other thing. I had to the alternator replaced fairly recently and the mechanic said the SHAWD problem went away. Magically, he was right - for less than a week - then the problem came back. Thoughts? Solutions? Thanks!

 

The SH-AWD rear transfer case holds around 3 qts , has that been changed ever ?
Also , have you serviced the gear box on the transmission [ takes half Qt 75-90 gear oil ] ?

 

I have not done either. Historically I have left those kinds of services up to the suggestion of a mechanic. The mechanics (two) that I have used over the years have not suggested that. Something I can do myself? Thanks!

 

Can you jack up the RDX , do you have a half inch drive rachet and a pump ? If so it’s not that difficult, start with the fill plug before draining the rear , you don’t want to drain it if you cannot remove it .
After that remove drain plug and refill by a pump. The SH-AWD has clutches on both sides and to me it sounds like they’re not happy with the fluid or its level.

some replace the crush washer, some do not just so you know .

 

One more question: I ordered Acura All-Wheel Drive fluid for the front differential. The online picture shows no reference to 75w-85 or 80w-90. Now I’m paranoid I’ve ordered the wrong fluid. Picture below.

 

You ordered the correct fluid for the rear “differential “ . Three bottles ? The PTO on the transmission uses half Qt.of gear oil . The front differential as you called it is actually the transmission which use DW-1 .
you might consider finding another mechanic that’s up to date with Acura and Honda my man ..

 

Thanks, I’ve got it sorted out. 👍

 

Hey Owen, did you get er fixed finally ?

 

Not yet. I have to be traveling for about two weeks and plan to do it and update my thread when I get back. Thanks.

 

I was finally able to gather what I needed and find the time to do this without distraction. I was able to change all three fluids. When I test drove the car, initially, it seemed to accelerate straight ahead smoothly and normally. However, with the first turn from a stop sign it started clicking and clanging again. About a quarter of a mile later the “Check SH-AWD System” warning came on. I want to say it’s better than before when not turning but it did not fix my issue. I’m certainly grateful for the help and having all new fluids is a good thing. Thanks!

 

Did you happen to take it in and see what the mechanic says it is?

If not, is the clicking and clacking coming from the front of the vehicle? Either from the right or the left?

Clicking is usually associated with a bad CV Joint. If it is not spinning at the same speed as the other wheels. it makes sense if it triggers the AWD light

 

My mechanic is not sure what is causing it but, presumably, he thinks it may be electrical/electronic. I had to have a failed alternator replaced and he seemed to think that fixed it. In fact it did for about a week. But the problem came back again. I had a Honda Accord once that had a failed CV joint. That made a much quieter, regular clicking. This makes a variety of louder, uglier sounds that range from the sound of a stick caught in your bicycle spokes to grinding and clanging like gears not engaging. Obviously I am not an expert and could take it back to him and have him consider the CV joint. His shop has always given me good service but they seem perplexed by this issue.

 

Few things to check here. If you have a jack and 4 jack stands then hoist the car up and rotate each tire with the car in neutral. Check all the motor mounts and see if you an OBD2 code. If you are willing to drop the cash then i would buy a scanner that can do the honda OEM codes. You could also put it in drive and let it run at idle speed to ensure all the wheels are turning.

What does the readout for the wheel acceleration look like (it shows the tires and the estimated torque to each wheel).


We currently have a pilot which is biased to fwd but has awd. The rear passenger axel snapped between the CV boot and the shaft. The car runs still but we have a VTM4 failed code as a stored code (makes sense). A RDX is a proper awd car that utilizes the front and rear wheels fairly equally from what i understand.

Are the sounds coming from the front or rear of the car?


We have an RDX at 330K Kilometers ie 205k miles and have not observed this kind of failure.