3 interesting albeit annoying issues

1. In the morning when cold I get a vibration when I drive for the first few miles (in drivers seat). It occured on summer and winter tires that were new. It goes away after 5 mins of driving. More pronounced when cold outside. In the past I have seen this on crappy off brand tires but not the case here.

2. Harsh downshifts at times.

3. When the eng rpm is low (slowing down) and the gear is high (4-5) and I put my foot into it to get going I get a distinct rattling noise under the car. Not a heat shield, it's not tinny. In older standard vehicles I've had I would get this when the car was traveling slow and I put it into a higher gear and hit the gas - it lagged. The same noise I had then seems present now (except this sh awd is auto). Sounds like tranny rattling. It's an auto.

Last dealer visit was Nff (no fault found).

It goes in again tmrw. Just curious if anyone experienced this. Good news tho, the oil burning seems to have slowed dramatically (seemed to burn a liter every 5000 Kms from 0-12000 km - has 14000 Kms now).

 

How cold did it get in the morning where you live ? Did you park your car outside ?

What happens is that when the car has been sitting out in very cold temperature for a period of time, the fluid inside the shocks will get thicker in viscosity.

So the ride can become rough (causing vibrations) during the 1st couple miles of driving. Once the fluid temp goes up due to the continuous movement of the shocks, fluid viscosity comes back down and the ride will become normal again.

 

Interesting, never thought of that potential. To me it was always a tire issue in he past so I wondered at this point if it was something more. Mornings in Toronto this time of year are 4-6 C. Warmer mornings have been less of an issue. I'll check that out.

 

^^^^^

If possible, park the car inside the garage overnight, and give it another try.

 

As suspected dealer found no fault. I think it's the standard answer for these guys.

 

Take it to another dealer.