I know this has been beaten to death, but mine may be slightly different. I have an 06 with ~113,000 miles. I heard the whine at around 40mph this morning for a small stretch of road then it was gone. This is the third time in about 1.5 years that I have heard this for a few seconds then gone.

Is this considered a major problem or should I just shrug it off until I hear it every time I reach 40mph?

 

Yours is no different. When the car is cold, it whines. Once it warms up, it goes away. No one has documented a propeller shaft failure here. Alfadoctor claimed his u-joint was about to give, but that wasn't causing his whine.

 

Thanks oo7spy. So if I understand this correctly, nobody has this on a daily basis when it's cold, they all have or had this sporadically on cold days? This was the second coldest winter on record here in NH and this was the first time since last winter that I heard the whine.

 

this noise is like the mother in law... some of us tune out her frequency and only rarely hear it... where others cant stop hearing it.

 

Some people definitely have it on a daily basis. It's those people that also can't tune it out who end up replacing it.

 

If in doubt, take it to someone to diagnose on the rack. Weather can wreak havoc on ujoints and bearings. I didn't know mine was going bad as I was chasing an issue someplace else (hub bearins) so the rear u joints could have failed on me and that most likely would have been at an inopportune time.

 

YES: I HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM. MY TECHNICIAN SAID IT'S THE DRIVE SHAFT. SOMETHING ABOUT THE CENTER PORT...

 

My 06 has a noticeable whine in the front from 50-60mph. Quiet otherwise. This car is starting to irritate me. Only 87k on it. Never wrecked, all records, one owner. I thought Acura was a good brand. Why is this thing seeming like a POS?

 

One issue makes it a POS? Was your last car a 1997 Carolla with manual windows and locks?

 

I have a 2002 Z06 and a 2002 WS6 Trans Am. Both run 10's in the 1/4 mile. Easy to work on and diagnose issues. I bought the RL a couple months ago for a DD. If you have a diagnosis or answer to the problem, that'll be great.

 

In the front is a little too vague to diagnose. Transmission/transfer case fluid, axels, wheel bearings, torque converter...

 

Thanks. I'm running away from this car like the plague. Trading in tomorrow.

 

It's the center bearing and front drive shaft.

 

I sold cars a long time ago. Some customers can be your worst nightmare, they are so picky they will find fault with anything. It doesn't matter what brand they buy they are never satistied, so they swap cars like linen. White-rider didn't even give the car a chance to sort out to find out what we know to be a very nice automobile. One of the best things about the RL is that I don't owe my bank account to the dealer or know the mechanic on a first name basis, because I don't have to take it into the shop very often. I want to think that the previous owner decided to unload the car so they wouldn't have to put a new driveshaft in the car.

 

Also '06 with 115k miles here
I get a bit of a while noise when it's cold outside around 28-30mph speeds, and it is really short and goes away after 5-10 minutes car is warmed up / driven.

I had this for a second winter and observed no issues whatsoever. I even took it to dealer to claim the warranty and they could not replicate the issue (of course, nothing new there)...

So in my opinion and so far experience, it seems not to hurt the car, but if you are certified, warrantied and dealer can replicate the issue, I believe it can be replaced.

 

Cool story bro?

 

To the OP, you should understand what you are buying and price accordingly. There are some very common issues with the RL, and most are very pricey, including driveshaft bearing. AFS system has issues, as does AC, mirrors, headlights, torque converter and a few other things. Once these are addressed, the car is very reliable when maintained. Most of us have had these issues fixed under warranty (I bought extended under CPO program) as they tend to show up within 60-80k miles or so. If I were in your shoes and didn't have receipts for any of this work, I'd run too. In 15k, you'll need your timing belt changed for another $800.

 

The OP bought his RL a while ago.

 

Does this apply to all years???

 

I'm scared. Just bought 2007 RL with 59k miles on the clock....

 

Most of those issues affected 2005 and bled into 2006. There are more RLs out there with no issues than with them. Enjoy your ride.

 

007spy is right on. 2005 and early 2006's had most of the issues. On my 2005, I had the packed bearings on right wheel go out, driver's side door handle, module behind the shift leaver go out, cooling system blowing hot air, both xenon headlight ballast units replaced... Most unreliable Japanese car i've owned, BUT by far the most refined, AWESOME seats, fantastic ride (w/o A-Spec suspension, but with A-Spec rims) and power was linear across the entire rpm range. If I could have gotten the same deal on my 2005 for a 2009 model, I'd have jumped on it.

 

Thx guys, I'm enjoying the car a lot .