Hi this is my first post.

I currently have a 07' BMW 3 series coupe. Nice car however with a family it is really a little small.

I have been considering an RL for a while now. Local dealer has a nice 06' w/ 50k miles. Very nice car.

I was seriously considering it until it started seeing all the issues people are having with the drivetrain noise.

Wondering if the feeling that this is a highly common issue that you can almost expect, limited to some individual instances or production years. One of my reasons to go from BMW to Honda / Acura is for reliability as the car gets older and more miles.

Any suggestions appreciated

 

I think it is somewhat common, but if that car is CPO'd, then you're golden: you will wait until 80k or so and then tender your requests for replacement on the items... I did.

 

Thanks

It's not CPO'd, due to the age...they tell me.

Drivetrain warranty good to 70k or 10/2012.

 

I think it is common enough to not be surprised if it happens, but it should not be expected. Test drive it for a good amount of time and spend a lot of time between 35-40 and 60-70 mph. The issues are only noise IIRC. The are annoying, not car stoppers. Either way, they are covered under warranty.

 

I have to figure out why it's not CPO'd. It would be worth it. Looks like it could be done. Acura says under 6 yrs 80k miles.

 

I have an '06 106k miles on it now, no problems, did all recalls and maintenance.....

 

My theory is that we hear more noises because the cabin is so quiet... I have a few whines in mine but at 105k she is running flawless.

 

I'm not going to jinks myself, so I'll shut up.

 

heavy_rl - i think you're right about the quiet cabin - i noticed our '03 pilot makes a similar whine that my rl was making at 65-70, though the pilot makes it in the 40 range - i'm guessing it's the propeller shaft on the pilot, but you can barely hear it in the pilot unless you're really paying attention, but only because it's so loud in the cabin - the rl is scary quiet, you can easily talk at normal volume down the interstate and talk with people in the front and rear seats, something not possible even in a 2010 accord ex

 

89K on my 2006 and no drivetrain issues. Sweetest car I've ever owned.

 

Ditto
84 k. No problems

 

71k on our 2006 RL - heard the drivetrain whine just once when it was 15 degrees outside and I was accelerating from 30-45 mph. 3 years ago. Never heard it again. Will be keeping this car a long time.

 

I have 06 wtih 72k now (bought it 5k miles ago) and so far no problems on whine, etc

 

I have 2006 RL and I had my drive shaft replaced @ 45-46k miles because of the noise. It was covered under warranty, so no big deal. You should consider getting a Certified car or one with extended bumper to bumper warranty.

Now i have about 80k miles on the car and occasionally, i will hear some whining noises on certain roar surfaces(i think) so it could be tire noise or something else. Or it could be the drive shaft again! I am still covered under warranty until 95k so i will wait to see if it gets worse. If the noise becomes more obvious on all road surfaces, then i will take to the dealer and hope that they fix it.

Other than that - the car has been great. Very reliable, very solid, well built, quiet, with great electronics and high comfort. With the A-spec suspension installed, it is fun to drive too, even thought, it is NOT a hard core sports sedan.

I would recommend that you look into 2007+ model under warranty or low miles 2006 with extended Acura warranty. You will be very happy.

Good luck!

 

The drivetrain 'whine' that some hear is nothing to stop you from buying the car -- when I have the radio off, I can faintly hear a whine in the drivetrain, but it's nothing that bothers me terribly. I think you should test drive a car and see what you think, but remember every model has its quirks. This is a very minor issue that definitely would not stop me from buying the car. Heck, I have the radio on all the time anyway.

Chris

 

Chris,
The whine I had from my car would have stopped me from buying it had I heard it at the time I purchased it - it was quite loud and drove me crazy everytime I heard it. It could be heard over loud music as well... not cool...

 

I would disagree that drive-train is a common issue - it is often but imagine how many people just simply do not visit websites and forums... simply if it works why go to forums; and RL actually is a car that is driven mostly by people over 35-40.

Us on another hand - we re different ...

I think as long as you think about any type of warranty it would be good; no warranty is pretty much not worth more than 16500 imho.

 

I have put 45,000 miles on our '06 in the last 18 months and it has been trouble free and no noises. I couldn't be a more happy owner.

 

Gotta say the car spoils you. After a while you jump into your friends/relatives Honda/Toyota/Hyundai and you feel like you just entered a third world country.

Even with a little money spent fixing an issue or two its gotta be cheaper than what will break on a Bimmer or Benz.

 

We have an 06 RL, only problem we ever had was with the windshield, it made a constant rattle noise on the right lower portion, finallay they fixed it with some inserts from a window company at all for corners, that's it, the car is quite and never had a driveline issue and when I drive it I put it through it's paces, it's mywife's car and she is very tempermental about noise, been a very good vehicle, great build quality, to be honest we have never heard of this driveline noise issue.

 

I'll one more for today, went to the auto show over the weekend, after my wife and I viewed a new E Class and driving it, when we got back to her RL her first word was, I'm keeping this car, to be honest I was not impress with the new E Class, felt cheap inside and did not drive any better than the RL, in fact it had more cabin noise.

 

My 2006 RL has 76,000 miles on it and the propeller shaft bearing just went. I had it at the dealer a couple of times prior to the powertrain warranty expiring, but they were unable to reproduce the issue. Now it's definitely gone. The dealer is going to try to get some goodwill from Acura on it. I guess we'll see what happens.

 

I wonder if the cold has anything to do with the bearing failing? I put a cheap Chinese bearing in a center support once on an Alfa and it cost me twice to fix it with a good quality bearing from somewhere else. When it was really cold outside it screeched like a banshee until it warmed up. You would think a bearing is a bearing...guess again. There is a huge difference in quality.

 

The cold definitely played a part - when it started last week it was in the teens and twenties here in MA. That said, I had a four day stretch last summer where I got the same noise from the driveshaft bearing, but of course it stopped by the time I got it into the dealer.

 

I have heard this same review at least 5 times from different people in the past 13 months if not more. I can say without a doubt that I never get tired of reading it.

 

My propeller shaft was replaced today. Acura covered half the cost as a goodwill gesture. I forgot how quiet this car can be. I guess I got used to the 75 mph whine over the past couple of years. It's gone....for now.