stevenr

I have 13K miles on my 04 6-sp, VIN 15XXX. I do have the PVC EL42s.

I have experienced the vibration, that I believe is the tires because it will go away after 5-10 miles. It definitely is worse on cold mornings. I had the Service Mgr ride with me, but of course the vibration went away due to the dealer being 10 miles from my house.

I have an appt scheduled to leave the car overnight, I hope it is cold. The strange thing is that the vibration is the worst in 5TH gear 50-60MPH under a load. If I let off the throttle, the vibration is significantly reduced. This concerns me because these characteristics tell me that it is not the tires, but something in the driveline. Once warmed up, however, the vibration will not return unless the car is turned off for at least a couple of hours.

It really does not make sense to me. These characteristics seem to contradict one another.

GTFISH

It is not in the driveline. Service rep told me it was in the subframe and a fix was not retrofitable at a reasonable cost, that is why they are buying back TL's.

lroche

Can you provide us with more information regarding your prior post?

Thanks

C5Racer

Just got back from my latest visit to service regarding the vibration issue. I was loaned an '05 TL for my visit. The '05 was considerably smoother in the 50-60MPH range especially when both cars are cold. My '04 shakes violently when it is cold and moderatly when it has had sufficient drive time. I got the standard response "characteristic of the car no repairs made". There is no regional rep in the Columbus area, therefore I have no one else to hear my case. I have called the general manager and he said he would try to get a rep from another area. Today I plan on sending a request for car replacement or refund to the BBB listed in the warranty manual. If that does not get any results, I will probably get a lawyer. By the way, don't even bother with Client Services they are completely worthless.

cM3go

I still have some driveline vibration, but it was drastically reduced when I got rid of my EL42s and replaced them with Pirelli PZero Nero M+S tires

PARK EX

GTFISH- I am experiencing the same problem with mine since day one. I've had the car for 4 months now, and going through with the lemon policy. Have you experienced it as well, or do you know of anyone who has gotten the buy back? This is really frustrating for me and im betting with every owner.

GTFISH

They are trading me out of the car, hopefully. It is in arbitration currently and should hear back in a week or so. There are a couple others in my area that are going through this procedure as well.

Roleez

A characteristic of every Honda product I've owned (since 1990) or rode in. The seats are mounted firmly to the floor, however it seems the pivotal points (seatback up and down) appear to have a little play in them which is noticeable only at speed. I wouldn't worry about it. I haven't had a passenger seat fall apart from the shaking.

PARK EX

hopefully it works out for you. how long have you been waiting for this process? do you have the a-spec wheels on it or just the stock 17"?

JMan

I've got the vibration too between 50 and 60 MPH. I have 600 miles on my '04TL VIN 72XXX. Got the tires rebalanced and the vibration still exists. Don't know what to do about this.

PARK EX

if they are the 17s it could be the tires, like everyone else is talking about. If they are the 18in A-specs, you are running into the same problem like me. It could be the wheels, tires, or like GTfish said the frame is defective. keep taking it back until they can fix it. trust me, i drive on i95 everyday to work to Christiana from philly and it sucks with the vibration and shaking. hoping my lemon case gets done fast, so i can get out this piece of shit. i wish i wasnt saying this, but whatcha gonna do? didnt spend almost 35k on garbage

fuque

Would you mind detailing the procedure you've gone through to get to this point? How many times did you take it to your dealer for repair? Did they try to tell you it's "normal?" How did you escalate it to the point where they are going to take your car back?

I'm about to head down this road myself, and I would like to know what I'm in for.

hondajeff

Reading through this thread makes me now believe that I'm not crazy. I test drove the 04 Tl at the dealer the other day and noticed a few things to me that seemed very "cheapy" or "half-assed" for a $34k car. Problems that a $15k hyundai or kia doesn't have. The first thing I noticed and didn't care for was the electronically controlled throttle,that causes a slight hesitation. Then there was the awful vibration while cruising at and steady speed but,stopped when I was back on the throttle. As for as the interior,seat belt and pillar in the way of shoulder room, not much leg room and little rattles here and there. The inner door frame must not be braced properly or just poor design because when I rolled the windows up the door twisted enough to push the door panels right up against the dash. Definately changed mind about the car and decided to keep my accord which doesn't have any problems.

04SSMTLCanada

I brought my 04 TL for oil change on Friday and reported the vibration. The service rep said that Acura Canada is aware of the problem and a fix has not been issued. A sales reps said there is a good chance it will be fixed as there were issues with MDX and others that were fixed.

rwp1223

I just dropped off my eleven month old '04 5 speed automatic TL for the 6th or 7th time for vibration issues. I noticed the problem within a couple of weeks of delivery and called my dealer immediately. Since I was one of the first '04 TL owners to notice the vibration (shimmy, shake, shudder) he put me at the top of the list when Acura made reformulated EL42s available. One set went on in April. It didn't help (but the early morning flat-spotting seemed to go away). They installed a second set of reformulated EL42s in May. The vibration in the steering wheel and the floor pan still occurred. My car exhibits the problem approaching 50 MPH and becomes worse at 56-58 MPH, whether accelerating or de-cellerating regardless of gear selection/RPM. It rides smoothly at speeds over 65 MPH. One month ago my dealer installed Michelins on my car hoping to eliminate the problem. It didn't. I will either have to pursue the lemon law approach or work out a deal to swap my '04 for a '05.
Does anyone know for sure if the '05's are "cured" of this problem?
Has anyone successfully swapped their car with their dealer?
Has anyone gone the Lemon Law route?
Any input (mechanical or legal/financial) would be greatly appreciated.
Bob in NJ

GTFISH

Talk to the service manager at your dealer. (I am assuming they have looked at your car at least once for tire or balance issues) Tell them about your problem and that you know it is not "normal" and that Acura has a defect in the 04 TL's in regard to the subframe and you want to talk with the regional (district) service manager. Set up an appt with him/her and request they buyback or trade your car due to the vibration issue.

My regional service rep didn't drive the car but took the service manager and techs word on what my problem was, so it will pay to be nice to those guys!

There will not be a fix for this issue, actually the fix is to get into an 05 model!

GTFISH

A friend of mine in the car business said that Acura and all Japanese car makers will fight lemon law claims with all they can. American companies are much easier to deal with in that regard.

I am (shortly) trading my car out for a RSX and then selling that to get into something else. I don't trust that all is well with the 05's. I didn't go the lemon law route as they are dealing with me in a respectful manner.

GUMP

Gt, I'm having the same problem.. bought my car at montgomeryville on 309. The vibration started at approx 4k. I work in Reading , so I used their service dept. They are very friendly and helpful, but they haven't "fixed" the problem. They replaced all tires about 1 month ago...still vibrated. I brought it back and they said 3 of the 4 tires were out of balance. Tomorrow I'm bringing it back to Mont'ville. I stopped there before my second visit to Reading and they test drove it. They said it did vibrate a little and that Reading should be able to fix it. But bring it back if they can't . I memtioned this website to the service guy and he said don't bother reading these boards. That tells me that they must be having others with the same problem. If I get the car back this time with it not corrected, and it probably won't be, I'm getting a Lemon lawyer in Philly. I'll go the diplomatic route first, but I'm so disgusted with this car, I hate getting in it in the morning. Now that it's getting colder , the vibration is getting worst! Add to that, there is now a vibration in the dash, probably due to the vibration in the car. It sounds like a screw fell off behind the radio. GT, what dealer are you working with in case I need to mention it to my service guy? Thanks

U8INIT

I Don't Know What Happened, But My Car Doesn't Vibrate Anymore And It Stopped Pulling To The Right. Now It Drives Smooth And Linear. I Kind Of Feel Bad About The Lemon Law I Put Into Affect. Btw My Car Has 19,000 Miles And Vin Is 14xxx. Now If Only My Rattles Would Go Away On There Own, And The Lights On My Steering Wheel Can Stay Illuminated.

GTFISH

Gump,
Send me a PM and I will tell you where I am, since my deal isn't done I don't want to tip Acura off to who I am (in case that would matter).

My district service rep didn't discount the internet discussion on this problem.

ArcticFormula

Have the driveline vibration 55-65. Started noticing it after about 5,000 miles.

willz822

Does this apply only to the 5AT or does it include the 6MT as well? I have a combination of the droning noise and a minor vibration felt thru the steering wheel. It can be felt when the car is stopped as well as when the car is moving. It does not shake violently like some have experienced. More like an annoying feeling. When I take my hands off the steering wheel, I can barely feel the vibration, but I definitely can hear the droning sound. I'm not sure if this is the same vibration everyone is talking about. This and the annoying rattle coming from the center console storage bins are the only complaints I have. Other that that, no complaints.

GUMP

just got back from my dealer..he said he did all he can do and there's not a fix. tires all replaced, rebalanced, etc. he said i must set up an appt with the cust rep who i hear only comes around so often. i went into the showroom and spoke to a few sales guys. one did tip me off that his demo does the same thing. so, i'll try the cust rep guy but i'm also contacting my lawyer. what a shame. it's a great looking car, but rides like shit. they were able to fix the rattle in the dash (which was probably a loose screw due to you know what). My vibrating started around 4.5k . i can put up with the droning noise at 1500 rpm..i just give it more gas.

SWO

Had minor, but annoying vibration, at around 55 mph, but got new tires (same EL 42s) and seemed to cure 90% of the vibration. VIN 26XXX.

tommyy2

bump

rwp1223

Sounds like you're living my life.... I've had two re-formulated EL42's put on my TL and then the dealership put Michelin Pilot's on to try to eliminate the vibration. I still have the 50 to 58 mph shimmy (especially noticeable on smooth blacktop). I met with the district rep the other day and he told me that Acura only authorized the dealership to replace the EL42's once. He told me that anything else that the dealer did was on his own. I couldn't believe that he told me that the dealership was out of line trying to eliminate my problem. Then he took a brief test drive and told me that the car rode fine. I'm calling the dealership next week to find out if they will try to work out a deal with me. I'm also going to an Infiniti dealership and looking at the G35 AWD. I'm not so sure I want an '05 TL that has the same inferior ride. I've been told that the TL is very road sensitive and that I (and anyone else who complains) must be overly sensitive. This just plain sucks. Over thirty years of car ownership and driving and now I find out that the problem is ME!!! Paid sticker for the car when it first came out and have been vibrating for over a year in spite of 7 service visits and 3 sets of tires. What a waste of my time, money and energy. Please let me know how your district rep treats you and I'll keep you posted on my mis-adventures. I'm hoping that GTFISH gets a fair deal and out of his TL.
Bob in NJ

rwp1223

Can anyone that has actually swapped their TL (or know someone that has) please contact me?
If you've gone the Lemon Law route please let me know how that went. The district rep. told me that Acura will fight any Lemon Law actions and insist that the judge or a court rep. drive the car. He felt that if it wasn't a safety issue it wouldn't result in a payout. I think that paying over $30K for a car means that you get a good car with a good ride. Jeez, I could've spent less and been happier.
Please email, or post a reply.... Many thanks

Bob in NJ

GUMP

I Filed With A Lemon Law Lawyer On Thursday And They Are Serving Acura With Papers Shortly. Same Commets Here Too...there's Nothing Wrong With The Car And I'll Have To Get Used To It. That's Bullshit. Pm Me If You Want More Info..

1FasTL

Lots of theories and explanations as to why the dirveline vibration occurs. Mine is very subtle and also only when cold (not the tires, I've changed those out).

Has anyone had the vibration and actually had it FIXED??? As in no more vibrations ever at any speed or at any time? I've read posts from those who have had engine mounts replaced, engines and trannys "aligned", this that an the other but no one that I know of has posted that their problem was actually CURED!!! Or did I just miss this post???

KidKarna

Switching to another topic, I just bought the comptech supercharger brand new and I need to get rid of it. a friend of mine told me he could fabricate me a custom exhaust for a turbo. anyways I'm tryin to sell it for $3800 whoever buys it would have to pay for the shipping. email me if you're interested: Pimping_Rides@Hotmail.com

Ron A

Switching to another topic, I just bought the comptech supercharger brand new and I need to get rid of it. a friend of mine told me he could fabricate me a custom exhaust for a turbo. anyways I'm tryin to sell it for $3800 whoever buys it would have to pay for the shipping. email me if you're interested: Pimping_Rides@Hotmail.com

GTFISH

No you didn't miss a "fixed" post because there is no fix, at least not yet.

My dealership has traded me out of my car and offered me money to make up almost all the difference between what I paid (including taxes) and what the dealership offered. Only issue is that I had to take another Acura. I took a base RSX and will use that for a commuter car for a while and probably sell it. They were reasonable to me so I didn't go the Lemon Law route. If your DSR is not being fair then I would go that route but be prepared for a fight.

jwloy

[/B]


I hope you are right!

I am visiting the dealership for the third time time in the 1.5 months that I have had the car. I have allready had the tires and brakes replaced. My car shakes terribly at 75+....it shakes so badly that my car sounds like it has been driven on a road full of potholes for about 20k miles. The breaks are still acting up.

This is my first acura/honda product, and I must say I am astonished with all of the problems. The car is what I have always looked for; 6sp with some good quicks, navi, hands free phone, good stereo, great lines. Too bad Acura didn't execute! This thing is worse than my 02 300m!!!

There is not a day that I dont travel at 75+mph, as I am a traveling sales rep in the southeast US. I cant live with the shaking and rattling for the next 100,000 miles.

I hope Acura is fair, and atleast buys the car back or puts me in an 05....

wish me luck....I'm thinking I'll need it

A-TLvic882

How about EL-42 vibration? Some ppl can make mistake TIRE or driveline vibration?


I have tire vibration (it's new reformuleted set). Where are should I put my vibration?

rets

I know, this is possible. If members couldn't figure out where it comes from and members are always bothered by multiple vibration sources, they should not vote.



Btw, any 05TL'r here???? I doubt Acura has fixed this issue completely as being said.

jag123

yup I got 05 TL MT dynamic it has this vibration too, you feel it in the steering wheel and the floor board. I swapped to aftermarket rims and rubber and its still there at speeds of 60 miles and up.