Waetherman

I used a strappy bike carrier over the summer for a couple of weeks. It weighed less than 10 lbs. I left the rack on while doing the normal activities like shopping, going to the beach etc. The hatch did not like that; it would refuse to stay open, not shut properly and generally beep and misbehave. All of these problems resolved when I finally removed the rack. But I’m left with a lingering problem; the hatch creaks when closing, I think from the right side.

I’m wondering if there’s a fix, or is this something I need to raise with the dealer? Is this something that I should be claiming as a defect or is it “my fault” for using this bike carrier?

JB in AZ

I would think if it is making noise, and there is no bike carrier attached, then a trip to the dealer for warranty work would be appropriate. JMHO

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

is it a hinge creak? if so, throw some lube on the hinges....

in any case, I would leave out the part where you used the carrier. and play dumb with dealers. "idunno, it just started making a creaking noise"

DriverOne

This, btw, is why I always side with dealers when people are complaining about their terrible mistreatment. People always act like customers are these honest and virtuous people who are all truth-tellers and they're getting abused and robbed by dealers. Meanwhile, the customers are working their hardest at lying and ripping off the dealers and trying to get it over on them, then acting astonished and insulted when the dealers don't go along with it.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

well, yeah...if the dealer doesnt go along with it, one cant act surprised or astonished.

the hatch is known to be poorly adjusted. perhaps one can also play that card.

Waetherman

My hatch already suffers from the cold-weather pop, so I guess there are multiple issues to bring up.

@justnspace I don't think it's a matter of lube but I can squirt some on it to see if that fixes it. I'm thinking it's more likely that it got tweaked out of position or something.

I get where you're coming from, but I do think there's a legitimate reason not to necessarily tell the whole truth. Dealers seem to look for excuses not to cover things (well it's not just dealers, I've had my fair share of tech companies do the same) and if you give them any reason, they'll use it against you. Using a bike rack surely must be something that the engineers at Acura would take into account, and using one in a normal fashion shouldn't cause problems. But I'm sure if I raise it with the dealer, they'll say that it's my fault because either the bikes I put on were too heavy, or I should take the bike rack off every time I want to open the hatch...

I'm an honest guy, and I will probably tell the dealer that it started after I used a bike rack. But if the dealer asked me "Did you do anything that would have caused that" I'd say no, because using a bike rack shouldn't cause that problem.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

right, it's NOT trying to get one over on the dealer.
you're just trying to get the creak fixed lol

fiatlux

To play Devil's Avocado, in my experience dealerships will try to use any and all excuses to get out of warranty work, even if it has no relevance on the problem at hand. For instance, I had an issue where my keyfob stopped working. I had thought maybe it was out of battery, so I popped in a new one and when it still didn't work I brought it in to get replaced. The service advisor had the audacity to suggest that maybe I broke it while changing out the battery because these keys are very complicated and delicate inside (what?), and since I can't prove that I never dropped it, they wouldn't be able to replace it under warranty. Guilty until proven innocent. I had to go to a different dealership to get it replaced, and to be safe didn't mention that I already changed the battery. Withholding some information is just leveling the playing field. It's like when talking to the cops; anything you say can and will be used against you.

DriverOne

I would say that dealers definitely try to get out of covering things and rip off people. But on the other hand, I look at the big picture. I actually didn't care if my dealer ripped me off when I went there because I buy cars infrequently. Basically, I never see my dealer. Like if he charges me $60 for an oil change (or whatever he charges me, I really don't even look) and people are having strokes about that, it really doesn't bother me. But from the dealer point of view, every customer they have is outrageously lying to them to try to beat them. Even if you go to buy a car, people will lie and say "another dealer offered me this car for $25,000, so can you beat that?" And then he has to somehow politely tell you that you're a liar. Anyone who has to interact with the general public at large at their jobs hates the general public at large for this reason. I've seen people do and say some really outrageous things at customer service desks.

Wander

Sounds like you're up Sh*t Creak!

Wander

3rd-gen RDX doesn't really have hatch hinges. I has a cantilevered lift mechanism on the top of each side of the hatch. The motors are above the headliner, and sadly, the bulges for the things cut into rearward visibility. Why this is considered superior to top hinges and side-mounted motorized struts, I don't have a clue.

And you wouldn't believe how much of the cargo area trim has to come out to get access to the space above the headliner. It's major surgery. Look at the instructions for installation of the accessory remote start, if you want to satisfy your morbid curiosity. ( The receiver module mounts between the aforementioned motors, above the back of the headliner ).

http://www.urvi.net/forumfiles/SB/BII11735-02.PDF

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

Ahhh, thank you!!!

fiatlux

Today I learned that Acura poached Audi's engine engineers to design the rear hatch.

Geeze what in the world were they thinking with that? That is the most un-Honda design that I have ever seen. I know people criticize Acura for being too much of a Honda, but geeze this is taking it a bit too far.

DJA123

This seemed like a run-of-the-mill, low-grade moral dilemma at first glance. But, after seeing the full cluster disassembly required to get near those hatch arms, it's a doozy. I'm surprised they don't drop the transmission in the deal.

You can never know how they'll react, but if you go in there and say the hatch is boogered up -- and it's your fault -- there may be confetti cannons and a balloon drop. You may even be crowned Jackpot of the Week.

This is a moral dilemma for me to even respond to this question. I've always been pretty straightforward, and even more so the older I get. So it's difficult for me to advise anything that's not "according to Hoyle". But I don't know what to say.here.

Perhaps they'll hear your story, be understanding, and still fix it under warranty. But, then again, you might want to bring some noisemakers to join in the celebration.

Seriously, good luck. I hope it all works out.

motif88

I have a 2020 RDX and without any bike rack, had a right rear hinge creak. WD40 solved the problem as getting to the dealer during the shutdown was not an option. By the time the dealer was open for business again, and I went for my first service, the WD40 worked.

Dereileak

DO NOT TELL them the bike rack was used, just simply go in, say it creaks and you want it fixed, there is no moral issue with doing that, they don’t need to know that info, and you most likely would of ended up with the creak anyways.

Don’t feel bad about it, you used the car in a normal way, and it’s making bad noises, they should have to fix that, if you give them more info then they need then your going to end up in shit creek. They are not going to even ask if you used anything like that, it’s an issue many others have had themselves.

its one thing to do something that’s abusive and not meant for the car and then try to have them fix it, this is not one of those cases, and if you tell them you used a bike rack, they will use that as an excuse to not cover it under warranty, then your going to be paying $$$ yourself. Unfortunately these dealers ships are greedy snakes and they will find ANYWAY possible to not do warranty work, I have experienced plenty of pushback myself for legit problems. sadly this is the way it works