LaxTSX

Bad Idle

Hi ... I've read through all of the bad idle for ATs and was wondering if anyone has actually fixed it. Some people say that the dealer pinpointed a bad engine mount, but no other updates have been provided.

My idle vibration seems to be getting worse and worse. This morning I had to put it in nuetral to make it stop cause I couldn't stand it. This is my only real complaint about the car . Things to make a girl sad.

esr5096

"all" ??? I've only seen a couple people say this is a problem, is it really a problem for a lot of people?

LaxTSX

hi,
"all" meaning that I just read through all of the threads posted. I didn't intend it to mean there are alot of people with this problem.

jcg878

Are you having the problem that domn described?

LaxTSX

yup ... thats the exact problem, but no one ever gave an update for the engine mount issue.

LaxTSX

oopps .. replied in wrong thread, but would someone give an update on that issue

dom

I hav'nt brought the car to the dealer yet, but I did contact my sales rep and tell him I'd like to take out another Auto TSX BEFORE making a service appointment. He did mentiuon that noone else has complained about the issue, although I don't think that means much.

I have noticed that the problem does'nt come up sometimes. I can be stopped at a light in drive and the car is as smooth as silk. But the vibration comes back at the next light. I'm beggining to think it has alot to do woth the colder weather. LaxTSX where are you from?

BTW, I know exactly what yoir talking about when you say you had to throw the car in neutral because it was soo bad. Notice how bad it is first thing in the morning when yoy start the car? I can only imagine how bad it will be when it really gets cold.

LaxTSX

HI domn,
I'm from the Northern VA area and its been unusually warm for the past few days. For instance it was around 55 this morning and thats when I had to throw it into neutral.

I'm at 6K right now and probably will bring it up at my 8K oil change. For some reason I was hoping that my 5K oil change would help alleviate the problem, but it didn't. Let me know how the test drive goes cause thats waht I wanted to do just to compare the ride quality.

ostrich

It's the 3rd day that I own my TSX now. I only just noticed today that there was a lot of vibration at the steering wheel during idling. So I did a search and found this thread!!!

I wonder if it really is an uncommon problem? In any case, has anyone really got to the bottom of this at all? I read in another thread that it may be due to the climate control. The vibration does go away at neutral.

I do hope that there is nothing serious going on here... please advise! Thanks.

ImportsRhot

I have the same vibration problem at the stop light, but i figured it was common considering this is only a "near-luxury" car. My brother drives an Infiniti FX35 and his car is silky smooth at idle, but his car costs way more than mine. I wonder if other vehicles in this class have the same problem...

Shade

I have the same issue at idle. It does seem to be weather related because its been really cold the last few days, and I've noticed it more frequently.

jcg878

ImportsRhot

What does that mean?

swami

Mine does the same thing sometimes. When I turn the heater on it's more noticeable. It does seem to do it once and awhile without the heater also. I remember when I got my car, everyone remarked how smooth it idled. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't.

jcg878

It means that good cars are good cars at any price, and the "near-luxury" vs 'luxury" status doesn't explain that vibration. I'll bet that Civics are screwed together more tightly than Cadillac Escalades.

swami - your car idles more roughly with the heater on, not the AC? I notice it primarily with the AC on (climate control in auto with compressor on) - the heater hardly draws power from the engine at all.

My rough idle is completely temperature and AC related, and always goes away after driving. If I remember domn's problem, it never went away even after the car was warm.

Saintor_RENAMED

I had the same issue with my Accord and noticed that a small increase of 50-75rpm at idle makes a great difference. Perhaps you can try it with the gas pedal first and ask the dealer if it is possible to adjust the idle higher permanently.

dom

Hey guys I'm still having this problem and I just hav'nt had the time or will to go to the dealer.

But the problem is definently worse in the cold especially after the car was just started in the morning. But it seems to go away completelty half way to work or on the way home.

But I also noticed that it pops up from time to time even if the car is warm. When that happens it worries me that it could be something more severe. I'm due for an oil change soon and plan to do thsi oil change at the dealer as its too cold to do it myself.

BTW, for me it is not at all related to the climate control or AC. Only when the car is stopped and in drive.

LaxTSX

hi guys ,
I"m at almost 9K miles now and its still the same problem. RIght now I"m in the N. VA area and were under a slight snow storm. I find that it helps if I warm up the car before driving, but it still pops up. I've notice that once I let go of the brake and the car is moving without me stepping on the gas pedal, the idle goes away.
I remember someone bringing up the point that it may be the the dealer said it may be a warped rotor and alot of people including myself blew it off cause it seems like idle has nothing to do with it.
Do you guys think that the break is slipping just alittle and causing the car to vibrate. I'm by no means a mechanic, just a girl with a thought?

ecsw

I am at 9000km now with AT but I don't have problem at all. Hmmmm... Now whenever I drive, I always pay extra attention to see if there are rattles. But so far so good.

don diego

Hi,
I am a little late to this tread and just posted a question that fits the description for vibration at idle. My Tsx didn't do this until it got colder. My dealer claims that this is normal for the TSX>
I bought it in August and then in November it started as the the temps started to go down. I did have a leaky engine mount which was replaced and they thought that would do it but it didn't. It is especially bad at start up and continues well beyond early warm up. I think there is something wrong with the sensing system that regulates the fuel mixture upon startup. I don't think that it is responding to lower temps correctly. I will keep fighting as I frankly would not have bought a TSX if I had known about this. It is madning. I had a CL before this and was very satisfied albeit was a V6. Help?

tirebiter

I've felt some vibration at idle, but the tach needle stays steady. I'm not too worried about it. On the contrary, I find the TSX is very "readable" in how well I can feel the road conditions and the car's behavior. Especially with the recent winter storms, the ABS and VSA are very distinct, and I kinda like that.

Maybe with all things considered, the ride isn't as smooth as I'd really like, but I think I prefer it to a car that's so cloudlike that I can't tell what's happening.

503TSX

Just had a similar problem...
Problem: Low idle mostly when AC turns off in drive. Specifically in monitor mode on OBDII, it says my idle dropps down to about 475rpm. As soon as the load comes off the engine, (Compressor turns off) the idle goes back up to 650... I had the car also throw some codes up for a P0341 cam range error.

Backround... I'm a highly city driver, work graveyards, so I tend to idle a lot. My average ET(engine time) on a gas is about 13 hours for 260ish miles. that puts my average speed in the car at about 20 mph. So that being said, at 54k miles, I have roughly 2,700 hours where the engine is running. In a ratio where I would be a 'highway' driver, at ~40 mph average speed (8 hours engine time for 320 miles) I would have over 108k miles. I believe more in engine time than miles for my car...

Anyways, the engine has been having a difficult time starting for the last year, and after what I believe is a bad batch of gas, started idling poorly, and just bad throttle response.

Solution: obviously ignition, or air. So I jerked the plugs out, not bad considering. But still probably would have been good for another year or two, definitely worn, though. partsamerica has them for $10 ea so I changed htem all out. No help. Still had a rough idle, so I pulled the CAI off and checked around. Got better, but overall the same. Pulled some TB cleaner off the shelf(for fuel injected cars) and cleaned out the gook on the TB, (PITA BTW due to the Electronic Throttle) then had a buddy stop it from dying while I shot the hell out of the Throttle with the cleaner. Slapped everything back together, and the problem seems to be gone, I did get to notice before the throttle work that the car felt a bit more peppy after the plug change. Anyways, I'm throwing a bottle of F/I cleaner in the tank and hoping this problem stays gone for another 4 years/50k miles. =o)

I will throw a warning, I hear some of the newer throttle bodies have a special coating that the TB cleaners will eat up that prevents buildup, but I figure that it will just mean that i'll have to do it on a routine basis now if it becomes a problem. I don't know if this tb has that problem though...

Hope this helps someone out.

TJ_TSX

Are you using premium gas?

503TSX

yep, only use premium gas in the car...

mystic2101

Did you ever find a specific problem or solution? I am experiencing the same thing and have actually gone to the dealer 3 times, and its still not fixed.