My 04 6MT also has this problem I am now at 55k I got the car at 47k brought to dealer at 48k for this issue, they said they couldn't replicate and found no issues. I called again at 49k and 51k because it still does it. At first it was maybe a few times a week now it's at least a few times any time I drive. I also thought maybe it was when the A/C was on or only is 1st, but it does it easily without A/C and now I can do it in 2nd as well. If you hold the clutch in and don't release all the way I can get it to make the sound longer. My local mechanic non dealer told me it sounded like the release bearing. He said it may not be bad and may last 100,000 miles, but could have gotten a bit wet from a big puddle or lots of rain which could have dried part of it and it now is not lubricated properly. When I called the dealership back at 49k they told me that part is not under warranty because it is made to wear out. Big bunch of B/S. I haven't noticed any performance issues thus far, but sure is annoying and embarrassing.
I think eventually when the clutch wears out I will replace the clutch, flywheel etc with after market which will also give me a new throw out bearing. Got to make that break down worth it.

 

2005 TSX 6MT 17 Kmiles (Black on Black)

At about 10Kmiles, my 2005 TSX started making the dreaded "groaning transmission" noise, when starting up in 1st gear, particularly when cold or maybe when turning.

At first, it was only once a week or so, usually first thing in the morning but, recently, with age and/or cold weather, it increased to about 10 times/day. I tired all sorts of experiments, releasing the clutch in neutral (no noise), in reverse (no noise), starting in 2nd (sometimes), turning and not turning (irrelevant). Finally, after listening carefully for many months, I convinced myself that it must be the throwout bearing "chattering" on the transmission input shaft, as if either the shaft was ungreased or there was a tolerance problem.

My dealer is Acura of Boston (Bernardi). I bought the car from them and they have exclusively serviced it since new. I have only had great experiences with them, particularly their fantastic service department, and recommend them highly to anyone considering an Acura in the greater Boston area.

I brought them my TSX this week and explained the noise. it wouldn't do it right away but they kept it overnight and it did it for them in the morning. They called the Acura "central support" service line and were instructed to remove the transmission and check the input shaft lubrication. They pulled the engine/transmission and, sure enough, found that the input shaft was "dry." They lubed the shaft (and gave me a new clutch/plate/bearing while they were at it). Now the clutch is smoother than ever and no noise (so far). They did all of this under warranty and the only cost to me was 3 days without my car.

My feelings: Obviously, this is a known problem. The "central support" line knew exactly what it was. My guess is that, for some period of time, they screwed up at the factory and forgot to grease the transmission input shaft. If it were allowed to go on for too long, it would probably chew up the shaft and lead to a much more costly fix. They should issue a TSB.

I'm disappointed in Acura. I bought the TSX (over Volvo, Audi, or Infiniti) largely because of Acura's legendary reliability. You should not have to pull the engine/transmission from a car at 17Kmiles! Now every hose, wire, and bolt has been cycled and will likely lead to other problems in the future.

While I was picking up the car, I stopped in and purchased an extended warranty. It wasn't cheap and shouldn't have been necessary, but now I'm scared. Under the circumstances, I hoped they would offer me a good deal but they didn't. I will write a letter to Acura and hope that they will decide to subsidize the extended warranty.

 

Did the paperwork you got indicate the cost or number of hours spent on this work? My 04 does something that I think is like this but my dealer refuses to even acknowledge that it happens, claims it is because of how I drive, or says it is normal. It's been happening since around 18K and I'm at 43K now. Just waiting for a UPS truck to total it...

 

Alas, my paperwork lists each item as "N/C Warranty" so I can't figure out what it would have cost. I would imagine that it is the cost of a clutch replacement. Greasing the transmission input shaft is a routine part of that job. I've done it several times myself on previous cars. Also, since labor is the bulk of the job, you might as well replace the wearout parts while you're at it.

I've never had a clutch replaced on a front-wheel-drive car. On RWD it was usually about $200-$300 for parts and 4-5 hours of labor. I imagine FWD is almost twice the labor since you have to pull the engine.

Maybe someone on this board can tell us what a clutch replacement typically costs on a FWD Acura.

 

My '04 TSX makes this groaning noise and it is really annoying. It makes me feel like I have a beater when I hear the noise. It happens mostly right after I start up the car but it doesn't matter what the weather is like and it does it every so often after a long trip. To combat the issue, I have adjusted my footwork when balancing the clutch/gas and even then it happens 4 or 5 times a week. It started at about 58k and I have 66k on it now. If I replace the clutch with an aftermarket one...would that resolve the issue?