I was wondering if you guys are issuing the same problem as i am...

The other day i was on the highway, driving around 80 mph.. and when i tried to brake my steering wheel started to shake really bad, and the car started to shake also... The stock tires are brand new... i bought the car used with 10 k miles on it.. Would this be a tire problem? Allignment? or suspension problem? i need some input.. i mean all my past previous car never had this problem...

thanks in advance.

 

Initially I'd say you experienced a warped rotor problem. Do you feel a shimmy in the wheel every time you brake?

 

well i don't know what do you mean by shimmy, sorry.

but the brakes are pissing me off... i would have to start braking from a far distance slowly "very slowly" so i will not feel the car, and steering wheel shaking, and i am not very satisfied with that at all...

 

LOL. That IS a "shimmy" when you are braking. Take it to the dealer and see if they will replace your rotors under warranty.

 

Sorry, by shimmy I mean a vibration, like a high frequency tugging in one direction (tug, release, tug, release, etc. but at a high rate). If the rotors are warped then when you apply the brakes the brake pad does not make smooth, continuous, contact with the rotor. The warped part of the rotor makes contact with the pad which feels like a tugging on the steering wheel. The harder you brake the harder the tugging. How many miles do you have?

 

right now i have 12k miles.. i drove less than 2 k miles since i had the car.. i bought it certified... hopefully dealer would not say i didn't something wrong.. because strongly i haven't did anything myself to harm the car.. work, home, work home..

Problems like this really makes me unsatisfied..

and yes i do feel a shimmy... So it's not tires or any allignment problem then eh?

 

Most likely its the rotors. I'd take it back to the dealer. 12K miles on the original rotors is very little and Acura should take care of it under warranty. 2K miles on a certified used car is all the more reason the dealer should fix it.

If its any consolation, you're not the only one. There are at least a couple of threads on warped rotors. In fact, dom (one of our moderators) I believe had it happen 2 (maybe 3) times.

check out these threads:
https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19823
https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2050

 

jeez.. this sucks... no suspension mod on the car and this happens think about with mods i probably won't get anything under warranty.. i don't know makes me kinda regret, but i love the car.. it's just not something i wish never happened.. but i guess no car is perfect.

 

A couple of threads on the "warped rotor" topic:

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2050

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19823

 

TSXBoy,

While the TSX does seem to have some rotor problems (so I jave read here), I think drivers can make them worse by driving through enough water on the road to wet the rotors IF THEY ARE HOT. If you have done some hard braking, then go through moderate puddles and repeat often, I think this can accellerate rotor warping. If I am wrong, I am sure someone will be kind enough to point this out.

I am not making ANY statements about your driving style, since this seems to be a TSX issue, but if you have ever seen those people who "zoom" down the road, then brake hard before the puddle, drive through, and repeat over and over, you will know what I mean.

 

Overall the TSX is a very good automobile. Yes, no car is perfect. On the positive side, the rotor warping problem was taken care of under warranty for those who had it.

 

before totalling my IS300 with i believe 39k miles on it the brakes was still good, i never replaced the pads, or rotors, or had any braking problems.

And trust me i drove that IS300 much more harder than the tsx, from braking hard, drifting, anything you can think of still no problems.

But then again o well i'll bring it to the dealer since it's still under warranty anyways and try to get it fixed. Hopefully if the rotors are warped they will give me a loaner. I do not need to miss anymore days or hours of work!

 

It's somewhat got to do with your driving style. It's definitely a warped rotor and they can grind it down even for you free of charge. It happens.

 

well even if it's a driving style.. why would the rotor warp so quik? there's should be no excuses for a driver when such issue comes up.. most definitly i love the car, i just don't understand why people say this issue has to do with driving style. especially nobody knows the way i drive and i haven't explained the way i drive..

there should be no excuse whatsoever. i will just bring it back to the dealer and get it fix. thanks for all the input.

 

Well you are not sure how the person before you drove the car. See if you can get service details on the car like how many times the rotors were turned.

Another possibility of the shimmy when braking is uneven rotor surface resulting from improper bedding of the brake pads. Either way you should be covered by warranty.

I personally haven't experienced any problems with my brakes (knock on wood) but if I did have a problem I would probably replace the rotors with an aftermarket one or even consider a big brake kit upgrade.

 

dealer should have checked this out. i have seen instances where people have bought cars certified and ran into the problem. take it back to the dealer and make them fix it free.

 

you have warped rotors as others have pointed out.

i use to get that a lot but have found the following to help prevent it.

when you are at a light or stopped.... after some moderate braking. try not to hold the brake pedal firmly down. what happens is the brake pads takes away heat from the rotor at a different rate then the side not in contact with the pads. by barely pressing the brake (enough for you to stop rolling) you lessen the rate at which the temperature changes on the rotor.

 

I'm on my 3rd set of Rotors and these ones have the same problem.

 

thanks for all the input, i made a appointment with the dealer for thursday already, hopefully this issue can be resolve and not come up again in the future.. and if it does comes up again i might as well get some aftermarket... I guess we can say the previous owner of the vehicle messed it up but who knows.. i thought once a car gets certified it should have been tested out in every aspect.. Well i guess i am wrong, but i do appreciate everyones input.

 

Yikes... perhaps it's not the rotors causing the problem?

 

lets keep it that way.. no need to scare me a new tsx newbie!. lol

 

i just had my rotors machined and brakes replaced today at my acura dealership. They did that, adjusted my headlights, and checked/filled fluids for free under waranty. My problems are fixed, no more shimmying when im braking, or noise coming from my brakes. They said the brakes deffinatly needed replacing and the rotors were warped. My car has now 10,500 miles on it now.

 

i guess this issue is very common... 10 k miles? i mean how easy or hard were you on braking while driving? sorry i just want to determine if this was a drivers problem or just the car itself... but just 10k miles i don't care how hard you use the brakes shouldn't have a problem... that's to little miles to see that kind of problem. even civic's don't have that kind of problem but then again civics are much lighter....

 

I'm an agressive driver but i dont use my brakes that hard. I use sportshift 99% of my driving time and down shift to slow down so i dont slam on my brakes all of the time. I have had a couple close calls before on highways on the way back and forth to college, a few times i can remember hitting the brakes as hard as i could, which is where i first heard the griding noise.

 

I have this problem as well. Currently @ 18k miles but have tried to ignore it for a while. This does not make me happy.

 

If your still under warranty, take it in the acura whenever you please. They will do it in a day all for free.

 

I took my car in and got it all fix, actually the dealer gave me really good service. I called in and they said they wouldn't give me a loaner so i complained to my salemans and he gave me a rsx for a loaner... and they fixed my tsx within 3 hours. Now the car brakes so much better everything feels much more tighter.

Thanks guys.

 

What did they do? Did they give you new rotors or just turn the old ones?

 

The same thing happens to me when I top out the car (i.e. around 120mph) the car shakes, through the wheel and seats... Is that unusual at those speeds?

 

For me, I don't believe its warped rotors. My brakes have been absolutely great for 18k miles. I recently sold my SSR wheels, put the OEM wheels back on and got an alignment (which wasn't very good in the front) and now my wheel slightly shakes at braking from 40mph, and slighty shakes at 65mph and above.

I'm positive my rotors aren't warped, so I'm going to get the front end realigned again. Just my , its possible its something other than the rotors.

 

I stand corrected. I thought I had the same problem as I didn't think my braking was very smooth but on the way to the dealer on Saturday morning I took it up to 160km/hr and broke hard and the car and brakes were smooth no vibration whatsoever which really surprised me.

 

Its DEFINITELY the rotors. Try testing the brakes again, but heat them up first. Once the rotors get hot, you will be able to feel the pulsation much more. Do several quick hard stops (not so hard that the ABS kicks in).

If your front rotors are warped, you will feel it in both the steering wheel and brake pedal. More so the steering wheel.

If its your rear rotors, you'll feel in more in your seat and back.

 

Never let the dealer talk you into turning rotors when they are warped.
THey will only warp again the in the same spots.
When you turn a rotor, you make it thinner. As a result they can't dissipate heat as quickly and will warp quicker. Not only that, the first time it warped it created hotspots, the rotors will quickly warp again in those same spots.
Turning/machining rotors is only for when you've replaced your brake pads. That's the only time it's recommended.

If your rotors warp insist on replacement!

 

I have encountered this shake too, when I pull 80+ on the highway I feel a shaking from the wheel... I'll bring it in and see what my dealer says. I'll let everyone know the outcome of my dealer visit ASAP...

 

^^^^^It used to be at high speeds like 100-120+, but now it happens almost always on the highway...

 

120+? I hope that this is on the autobahn.

 

I have a 2004 with about 28,000 miles on it. Recently, vibration during braking at highway speeds has become more noticeable. If I brake at speeds above 60 mph, I usually feel some vibration through the steering wheel. I'm not sure if it's something I should be concerned about, but I will probably mention it to the dealer the next time I bring it in.

 

20,000 miles and I am on my third set. Dealer replaced them every time under warranty. After 2 years, when the warranty runs out, I will replace them with aftermarket rotors and pads.

 

I would have to say 99% chance it is the rotors. I had this issue with my previous car. The good news, the dealer should take care of the problem, and if not it is relatively cheap to have the rotors machined down.
One piece of advice for anyone who has had the wheels removed from their car for any reason is to make sure the wheel lugs are progressively tourqed down in a criss-cross pattern. It is possible that at some point a front wheel was removed, and the first lug was overtightened. It is a common issue that happens when using an impact wrench to tighten the lugs. If the first lug is tightened down to far, it can actually twist the wheel, and in turn the rotor, pulling it out of true causing it to wear unevenly and eventually producing the vibration you now feel. One would expect that an Acura dealer would be conscious of this, but you never know.