Awesome news! Just spoke to my local service manager this morning (before I saw the TSB) to set it up to bring in next Thursday, so I'll definitely print this out and bring it in with me so there's no confusion as to what should be done.

 

Frustrated new member here. Back in March 2009 I purchased a TSX and all was fine till around 800 km when I started hearing a faint flutter/rattle/pinging metallic sound coming from the engine. I took it in to service only to be told that they could not find anything wrong and that the engine sounded like every other 2009 TSX. In July, I went in for an oil change and again had them look into what was and still is a much more pronounced sound. Again I was told the same (company line).

I then contacted Acura Customer Relations (Canada) only to be told they could not record my complaint seeing as the service dealer reported no mechanical problem with my vehicle. Some Customer Relations, unless the dealer files a problem report, they don’t care what the customers has to say.

Now that American Honda Motor Co. has confirmed that the symptom is indeed engine pings during moderate to heavy acceleration and have released a Service Bulletin for a fix, I contacted Acura Customer Relations (Canada) yesterday to see if we have also have a TSB.

Well, not only do we not have a TSB but the service representative incredibly told me that Acura Canada still has not received any problem reports about pinging engines. Of course they haven’t if all the dealers are like mine and tell the customers that it’s a normal engine characteristic and don’t file a problem report.

Surely Acura/Honda Canada cannot kept covering up this problem now that US arm of Honda have released a TBS to fix the pinging problem. Or can they?

 

My money's on trickle down noise correction.

Customer care couldn't find their azz with both hands. Even if it's a very common issue, they won't acknowledge it for fear of creating a larger problem for themselves.

It appears like Australia got a fix first, now U.S., it will be rectified for you soon enough.

 

At first, the US users were getting the same lines from the dealers. Progress seems to have been made after US owners started to go over ACS and started e-mailing Acura Mgt directly. I would suggest trying to send your concerns to mgt at Acura Canada.

 

well its official: 2010's have engine knock too. i experienced it for sure last night. as long as it doesnt harm the engine i really dont care.

its just funny to me how the k24 has been around since like 2001 and honda managed to fuck up the latest and greatest version of it. oh well... fail.

 

I made an appointment for monday...sounded like the guy was trying too give me the run around..he said they have to diagnose and recreate the problem...wtf. are they gonna bitch about my eibach springs for warranty issues? i own the car.

 

Well, I've been a long-time stalker of this thread so I figure it's time to finally make a post. I have much respect and sympathy for all my fellow pingers on this board.

I've had my TSX since June of 08..first noticed the pinging in July, mentioned it to the dealer at 2,000 miles. I drive 150 miles a day...I now have 57,000 miles on the car and the pinging noise has gotten much worse (in addition to FOUR! new navigation systems, two HandsFreeLink units, new radio, at least five speakers, etc). My dealer cringes every time I walk in the door. Obviously I've been to the dealer literally more than ten times in the past year and have mentioned it EVERY TIME, and taken numerous tech rides to no avail. I hear the pinging noise constantly at 2000-3000rpm like most of you but I REALLY hear it as the car shifts (i have an A/T) at 4000-5000. Like most of you, changing gas doesn't help, although ironically the noise lessens a bit with ethanol-free gas. Octane boost also seems to help a little.

Anyway, I purchased an extended Acura Care warranty when I bought the car because I knew I'd be racking up miles fast. I found the TSB on this thread Friday, called Monday afternoon to the dealer (of course they "didn't have a clue" what I was talking about, but upon further research decided it was legitimate) who told me since it's a TSB, I wouldn't be eligible for the fix because my car has more than 50,000 miles. I don't remember seeing that ANYWHERE in the extended warranty agreement...I'll have to go back and look yet again. An exception is now pending a decision from some district bureaucrat. Hopefully they'll approve it and all will be well, but if not I'm prepared to sue them to fix this car. As it is, there's no way I could sell it--the deal would be broken the first time we accelerated from a stop light on a test drive. I have half a mind to just chuck the thing after the fix is applied and get the car I had my eye on before I bought the TSX.

Honestly this car is a good fit for me, as I get 33-34mpg routinely...but if I wanted to know my service advisor as well as I do, I'd have bought a Land Rover.

 

[quote=PA-46-500TP;11320101]Well, I've been a long-time stalker of this thread so I figure it's time to finally make a post. I have much respect and sympathy for all my fellow pingers on this board.quote]


PA-46-500TP, what dealer do you use? Is the pinging issue documented on all or some of your work invoices from prior visits? If so, goodwill should be automatic.

 

That's fecked. Do you have any documentation where you complained about it from when it was new?

I can be a little OCD, thank the Lord I didn't have this noise or I'd be a raging kook.

 

I wasn't aware that ANY company invalidated TSBs for cars out of the original factory warranty (but covered under additional manufacturer warranty).[1] I've had work done on my Jeep 10 years after purchase.

Maybe I'm confusing TSBs with "recalls." But SHAME ON ACURA for treating a customer this way. Another nail in the coffin of my Acura patronage.

[1] And Gee, when I reviewed my Acura Extended Warranty brochure before buying CPO, IIRC it said it "extended the original factory warranty." Not "covers some items." I think I have it on my HDD still (though the dealer snuck in their own warranty with a falsified Acura brochure at the sale)....

 

Yeah, I had the finance guy try the same thing with me and tried to pull a switch-a-rooney with the JM Family warranty.

I said;

"Phuc ewe, I paid for Acura extended, not Jim Moran extended, switch it back, now"

Dealerships have separate business units and their own cost centers. Used cars, new cars, parts, service and finance are all responsible for profit notwithstanding the other arms of the business.

JM Family (Jim Moran, RIP) is the SE Toyota importer but has their own warranty division that they sell to dealers and I'm pretty sure there's more profit in one of those than the HMC warranty.

 

Hey TSXding, I've been using Bill Gatton Acura in Johnson City, TN. Thankfully I've saved every work invoice I've had, documenting where I've mentioned it, so I'm hoping this "goodwill consideration" pans out. I'm a little worried because my SA said it'd take "about a day" to hear back and it's now been three, but I guess we'll see. My dealer's slower than molasses with everything they do, and they always get "too busy" (forget) to call me back, so I called them yesterday to get them going back in the right direction. I also filed a complaint with Acura Client Services when I was still in the "original" warranty period so the folks in Torrance should know about my problems as well.

I can about guarantee you this will be the last Honda/Acura product I buy. Along with my family, I've been loyal to them. I've had two Civics and this TSX. I can also guarantee you I've soured everyone else I know on Acura too. I don't even need to tell them my story--they know something's up every time they see the Bill Gatton Acura loaner car in the parking lot. I even had my company looking at a $5M HondaJet six or seven years down the road. No more!

Right now, I think I'm the most angry that my extended warranty, Acura Care purchased at the dealer on the day of purchase, won't cover this. I can't find where it won't. I knew better to believe the slimeball salesman saying it covered exactly what the basic warranty covered, but never did I dream up this little scenario...

 

Hey, wait a minute, isn't the drivetrain warranty 6/70 anyway?

 

sorry to hear about your crappy experience. what car did you have your eye on before the TSX?

 

PA-46-500TP

Like heavyduty, not sure if I am missing something here. The wording of the TSB is such that I take it to mean that the repairs will be covered under warranty (e.g. "to avoid an incorrect repair that would not be covered under warranty..."). At 57K, I don't understand how you could be beyond the basic powertrain warranty that came free with your car.

Could it be that your dealer is telling you that it won't be covered under your extended warranty, but will be covered under the basic warranty instead?

 

As stated in the TSB:

NOTE: This condition does not cause internal engine
damage. Some engine ping is a desired characteristic
for optimal performance and fuel economy.


so....does that mean the ping actually helps our cars performance and fuel economy? and if we do get it fixed..then our cars won't run optimally?

 

Well, I just talked to a SA again (the original SA i usually deal with is on vacation, of course). He told me the powertrain warranty only covers lubricated components of the engine and transmission. I am pissed beyond belief.

He told me a slightly different story today. He told me they had a call in to the DPSM (I think that's the acronym he used) to see whether or not they would cover the repair. He also told me that "goodwill consideration" is a one-time thing, and that once I use it I can never use it again. He didn't give a clear differentiation whether or not consideration of this repair constituted "goodwill consideration" though.

What really has me ticked off right now is that he said I have to bring the car back in for ANOTHER tech ride. The second time I reported the problem (I think last September) I took the technician for a ride and he said "Yes, that's spark knock." They took the car in, "didn't find anything wrong" and apparently wrote it up as unable to duplicate! And they've done that more than once, which is going to make this case a whole lot more difficult I'm sure. Turns out they didn't even document it when I said "the pinging noise is still there, have you heard anything, please keep me apprised" every time I brought the car in. At this point I let loose on the SA, calling them "incompetent"--and the SA chuckled at me. I about blew a gasket.

NO MORE Acura for me after this mess.

 

I know you don't want to hear this, but the behind the scenes stuff plays out like this;

If they document it is a problem and they are unable to rectify it, then they've handed you the bullets for your gun to kill them with a Lemon Law claim.

Culpable deniability is the order of the day from any manufacturer as they scramble to find a solution without acknowledging there's a problem.

So. Acura Customer Care needs to be contacted and will open a file with your name on it. Ask them if 'luricated components' is all that's covered in the 6/70.

If you've ever trashed the SA in a survey, they will go out of their way to *not* help you until their hand is forced by Acura in hopes you never come back.

Not to be blunt, it's just the way it works. You may want to consider another dealer.

This TSB should be a *non-issue* for you or any of us here.

 

I don't understand why you haven't tried another dealer, and also call Acura's customer service line. If your current dealer isn't helping you, go somewhere else!

 

Yikes, I probably shouldn't have had given a bad survey when my headlight was replaced due to oil haze inside the lens. They installed a new headlight assembly but didnt aim the headlight. I drove home that night blinding everyone. I was able to re-aim it up and down but not left and right. I got a call from the SA and told me to bring the car back in to get everything taken care of. They also told me they weren't able to replicate the driver door lock screeching or brake clunk as discussed in other threads...

 

Their jobs are held in the balance of a QA Survey. Anything less than "Excellent" brings down their average and they can be terminated. I told my SA when I bought the car I'll always give him an "Excellent" even if he screws up, but I hav to know he'll take care of me.

My door lock is still screeching, on backorder, but...I'd rather wait until the New Old Stock is depleted until getting it replaced with the revised or corrected part.

Techs are put in a position of doing the absolute minimum on warranty work because they get hosed (shorted) on their billable hours (book time) for doing it. If they spent the necessary time to do all their work 100%, they'd starve.

Again, it is what it is.

 

Thanks for the insight, I might have to chat with the SA sometime. I also brought up the TSB and he was like "Oh yea? I think there's something coming down the pipeline and we should have the TSB as soon as its released" and then I him that it was released Sept. 11 offered to give him the TSB # and in a different tone of voice he said "I'll look it up"

Looks like I'm getting on his bad side

 

Yeah, I understand. The SA's are also under a lot of pressure to "not attempt a diagnosis in the service lane" and instead write the complaint and let the techs deal with it. They kinda have to play stupid unless they know you're in the business, even then, their responses are thinly veiled out of professional courtesy.

It's my personal opinion that forums like this, seemingly confirmed innocuous problems and the bad QA surveys that were returned as a result is part of the reason Acura stopped selling the Integra (RSX) here.

 

My service dealership knew about this TSB and this morning's experience was awesome.

Acura of Valley Stream .
Are you close to Acura of Valley Stream? I highly recommend them. At first I asked the tech if I needed to re-create the pinging for him and he laughed at me (in a nice way) saying it wasn't necessary whatsoever.

 

I received a call from ACS a couple weeks ago confirming my servicing dealer. Earlier this week, my SA called to let me know they have a part for me and I made the appointment for today.

Acura sent the part to the Service Manager last week along with my case #. They said that I would be their "test dummy" because I was the first that they have had with the pinging issue. About an hour and 15 minutes later, my car was ready and I only hear a SLIGHT ping. So slight that I wonder if I inagine it. But anyway, looks like the problem is solved!

BTW, my dealer and service is awesome. I bought my 06 TSX in 2006 and my 09 TSX back in February 09. Same salesperson and same SA. Its odd (and a shame) that some dealers are not as helpful and friendly as others.

 

i was gonna go too open road acura in east brunswick...the guy was trying too give me some story over the phone that I have to re-create it and all this nonsense....I may just cancel and go to valley stream acura...who do you know over there?

 

I know Norman Ryder, the Service Manager. Check your PM's.
I will most likely be my dealer's first 09 tsx fix as well.

Do you guys also get pinging at the 4k-5k RPM range when going WOT? Will this TSB fix that as well? I hope so.

 

That makes two of us. Which sucks because Open Road is the closest dealership to me... They wanted me to make an appointment just to have it checked out and then they would order the parts for me. If they couldn't recreate the problem, they wouldn't do anything about it. They also ran their mouth that I shouldn't have access to the TSB anyway and blah blah blah. I called Montclair Acura, where I bought the car, and they ordered the parts for me, no questions asked. Apparently the parts are coming from Cali so they should be in sometime this week.

 

For the Jersey people....Precision Acura in Princeton has served me well over the last several years with my 04. I never have a problem getting anything fixed there and I did not buy the car there.

 

Kind of off topic but one of the selling points that I heard while shopping for cars was "If you buy a car from us, we'll get you a free loaner when you bring you car back for service".

If you didnt buy your car at the dealer you're getting service at, do they still give you a free loaner if you make an appointment or do you have to actually rent the loaner?

 

+1 for Precision Acura

 

I have gotten a loaner every single time I needed one, no questions asked. They even gave me one once when I did not reserve one. I walked in for my 30k mile service appointment and was going to wait in the waiting room. Upon doing the initial paperwork on drop-off, the SA asked if I'd like a loaner to take the to mall or run errands while they work on my car, since it would be 2-3 hours. Like clockwork, he called my cell when my car was finished. They also fixed my turn signal after the dealership where I bought the car screwed it up - I called on a Saturday morning and they said to bring it in ASAP, no problem. Fixed for free with no issue (I had just purchased the car CPO from another dealership an hour away and didn't want to drive all the way back). And I've never had them tell me I need something done when I don't.

 

-1 for Precision Acura I've been there twice for issues and never been back since.

 

A little update to my story:
Well, long story short--after blessing out an insolent service advisor, meeting a genuine and extremely helpful service manager, ANOTHER tech ride where the engine didn't ping -once-, listening to a 22-year-old explain spark knock to me and why I didn't have it, and a "disappointed" letter to the Acura brass, my car is currently awaiting the fix and should be completed tomorrow. The dealership (Bill Gatton Acura) graciously offered to take care of the repair themselves and not worry about going through Acura's approval process. I, of course, groveled and thanked them profusely. I think my problems may finally be over.

Thanks for all your help!

BTW LuvMyTSX--I didn't have the luxury of a different dealer...closest Acura place besides the one I use is 75 miles in the opposite direction of work. They only do oil changes on Saturday, so I would have had to take days out of the office to make that happen--and there's no telling what would've screwed up there while I was gone. Unfortunately, making money>fully-functioning automobile...

Kinda bummed because now I don't have an excuse to get something fast and German. Ah well!

 

I have a 2009 TL AWD and have 1300 miles on it. When I shift into reverse or drive from the nutral position I hear a pinging sound. The dealership I bought it from had it for over a week. Got their techs and Acura's techs involved and they concluded that it's being researched within Acura and not much they can do. I paid $43k for a car that sounds like a clunker. We shouldn't accept this. Anyone with me?

 

Acura/Honda has TRULY come up with a fix for the pinging sound. Almost one year to the day since I first heard the noise, my TSX does not ping anymore! I had the fix done today and it now drives great and very quiet! The software upgrade took .6 hour, and the knock sensor also took .6 hour. The car was out of the shop in less than 2 hours. I can't believe it's finally fixed!!

 

I dropped my car off this evening for the dealer to "diagnose" the pinging. While they have my '09, I have a '10 and I can hear faint pinging. I checked the vin and thier '10 loaner car is affected by the TSB. The pinging is much more noticable with the resonator off. I put the resonator coupler back on last night so I guess im still used to the louder intake. I did put a post-it on the dash to help guide the tech into the gear/rpm range the pinging is most noticable.

 

Update: I pushed the '10 loaner car pretty hard this morning. There was a freight train that was blocking my usual route to the commuter train so I had to hightail it through the side streets to cross a bridge that goes over the tracks. Anyways, the pinging is ALOT more noticable on the '10 than I previously thought. Much more noticable than my '09. I'll have to bring it up to the service advisor when I pick up my '09, hopefully with the updated sensor, ecu, and trans software.

 

My 10 TSX falls within the VIN range, but I don't hear the ping.
Do I request the fix anyway thinking it may show up later after warranty is past?
BTW - I'll be out of warranty in about two years, driving 25000 mi/yr.

 

The powertrain warranty is 70k miles. How many miles do you have now?