I have a 2009 Acura TL SH-AWD with 44000 miles and still under warranty. I noticed yesterday while driving with the windows up and music off at around 50 mph and above a annoying whining whislting noise. When I drive under 45 mph it goes away. I thought it had something to do with the belts on the car. I researched other threads on this forum on this issue and read that it could be the propeller shaft. I am taking my car in tonight for them to troubleshoot this issue. Even before researching on Acurazine. I called my service advisor at my local Acura dealer and he stated it could have something to do with the AWD system and the shaft. My only concern is the fact that I have some aftermarket parts on my TL. I have a Takeda short ram intake, XLR8 jpipe, and test pipe. Do you think they will try to void my warranty and not fix the issue because of my aftermarket parts? Thanks in advance.

 

Yes, they could blame the whining whistling noise to be caused by the aftermarket intake. In fact, aftermarket intakes will also create whistling noise.

 

I really dont think this whining noise is coming from the intake. Because it only does it at 45 mph and over and the sound is still there even if I let off the gas. I know most intakes have whistling noises. But this sound is more distinct and comes from the right bottom side of the car. And its actually more of a winding noise more that whistling.

 

Try convincing the dealership's service guy, then you'll be in good shape for warranty repairs.

 

Im pretty sure its the propeller shaft. We will see when I drop her off.

 

Jatdm98-
I am also having the same problem. Apparently its the propeller/drive shaft and it needs to be replaced. I am going to acura tom to bring my car in, its annoying the ish outta me.

Check this post out for reference: https://acurazine.com/forums/4g-tl-problems-fixes-297/whistling-sound-front-car-765546/

 

Already being discussed....

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=765546

 

I have a subtle whining noise that starts at 20 mph and continues at same decible level right up through 60mph. Tried lightly applying brakes to see if any difference but no. Tried putting in neutral at any speed, still whining. Think it is something rotational from rear end or bearings. 2010 tl awd has 15k. This just started this week. Have appt Monday at dealer.

 

Mine seems like rt bottom of car also but hard to tell as sound is so subtle.

 

Update: Got my car back from the dealership yesterday. Service advisor said it was the propeller shaft making the whining noise. Replaced under warranty. No whining noise anymore.

 

It's the Propeller Shaft. I had mine changed in my 2010 TL at about 25,000 KM.

 

Glad you got it fixed! What exactly did the sound sound like? Did it happen all the time or only when pressing the accelerator? Finally, did it change tone or loudness or was it constant? Thanks!

 

My noise was mostly at about 70-80km/hr. And it was constant. You could hear it very slightly at about 45km then the faster you go, the more distinct it got at about 75km/h. It sounded like a hissing sound, mixed with like a paper rubing sound. Hard to explain. But the best we to replicate the sound, is take a piece of paper, rub your hand back and forth on the surface as if you were sanding something. That's how it sounded.

 

I had the same problem with my 2012 TL SH-AWD at 3500 miles. A soft whistling that began at 40 MPH and increased in pitch, not volume, until 65 MPH where it remained constant. Sounded like a teapot. Acura service was able to confirm it during a test drive. They located the source of the problem using a stethoscope - a propeller shaft bearing. They replaced the propeller shaft - p/n 40100-TK5-A02. The whistling is gone.

 

Since I have a 2012, I started thinking it wasn't likely my noise was the propeller shaft, but now I see it is possible. Was your noise only when pressing the accelerator? Like the second you release the accelerator the noise goes away? Thanks for the post and info, looks like I'll have to get this taken care of.

 

The noise was always there at speeds above 40 MPH. It did not go away when I lifted my foot off of the accelerato unless my speed dropped below 40 MPH. It was more noticable during acceleration - perhaps because of the change in pitch. My dealer told me this was a common problem with earlier TL's and RL's but the design had changed. He was suprised to see this on my car with 3500 miles. It is best to have the problem taken care of. I was told it would only get worse with time. I wonder how long the replacement will last. Good luck.

 

Ahhh, OK. Maybe mine is not that. Mine doesn't change it pitch and definitely goes away when I remove the accelerator. The dealer says it's final drive whine and it's normal. I searched and this does seem to be a characteristic newer transmissions can have that you simply can't do much about and won't hurt anything.

Glad you got your problem solved, but I am very surprised they knew about this problem for a while (all the replacements on earlier TL and RL's) and yet it's still happening. Not very inspiring.

 

I seem to be having the same problem. How loud was the sound? Was it only noticeable when the cabin is very quiet?

 

It was a soft whistling. You need a quiet cabin to point it out to a passenger. The dealer’s service advisor heard it as soon as I reached 40 MPH but he was expecting it. It’s most noticeable if you vary your speed such that the whistling comes and goes.

 

Had the same problem. Took it to the dealership and they had no clue. Told them what I had read on here and they looked into it. They had to get the shaft from LA and had it fixed before lunch. Done under warranty of course. Ive got 27K miles on mine.

 

I have a 2012 Acura tl awd and I hear the same whistling noise. I took my car to RALLEY ACURA they kept the car there for a week and are now saying that the shaft is fine! And this is normal with these cars, I even went on a test drive with the manager but they were rude and said I just have to live it, please help....

 

I have some very annoying whistling noise coming from the engine part of my TL, it only has 13k miles on it. It is annoying I hear it when I am above 60mph. I had taken the car to RALLYE ACURA and the manager there was very rude, said I am not fixing it until it brakes or gets louder!! I was so frustrated that I felt like leaving the car there. He is telling me that it's not the shaft and to stop listening to people online. What should I say to them in order to fix this annoying whistling sound... Please help....

 

mine developed @ 19K. I suggest going to another dealer

 

Just asking about the whinning whistling noise? I have a 2010 Acura TL SH-AWD. I start hearing the noise after I drive the vehicle around. It's a high pitched squealing noise, I even hear it in Park at times. I can't really hear it at high speeds, but I do hear it when I brake and you can hear the noise, like something rotational with the squeal.
From the people that experienced this, can you hear the squeal in park with the car idling as well, after the car is drive?
Does the propper shaft replacement solve this issue?

 

^^^^^

If you can even hear it in Park at times, it could be a pulley belt making the squealing noise.

 

it's not the pulley belt, its coming from underneath the car
does the proppeller shaft turn when the vehicle is in park?
I also hear the squeal high pitch noise, it sounds like a tea kettle boiling when I'm driving and stop at a red light.

anyone else have this issue?

 

There is one thing you need to eliminate first, before you start pointing fingers at the bearings or the shaft. Remove the tray in the glove box and pay attention if the soft whistling sound is coming from the fan under the cabin air filter. Turn the air conditioning fan on/off to see if the whistling is still there or goes away. Keep your hands on the wheel and try to be safe while trying to listen to that sound! Best to have someone else listen or drive.

 

Totally agree. 2008 accord had the same issue, looked under the dash, saw no compartment covere and fan housing was exposed, put an OEM cover on it and voila, no more whining. The 08 ex i4 did not come with the cover but the same year ex v6 did. Weird.

 

Does the prop shaft problem only show up after the car has been driven a few miles. I noticed this morning it was a good five miles before mine started making the noise.

 

I did notice that. It happens a few miles after you start the car, never right away. I think it has to do with lubrication or something like that, my TL started doing this after I drove it over a very deep and long couple of puddles the day before. Tha water was definetly over the shaft for a few minutes.

Did anybody got an explanation of what exactly happens to the shaft?

 

Same noise and it was the propeller shaft. Took a few trips to find it, and thanks to these posts, a big help.

 

Took a 10 mile drive with the advisor and mine wouldn't make the damn noise. First time ever it hasn't made the noise in the last month.

 

After observing the issue for a while now, I think I can re-create it if mother nature cooperates. Let me explain. On wet and very humid days, forget it. The whistling hissing noise won't appear when you put load on the engine and speed up above 60km/h. But on dry days when the humidity is low, you can hear it. So try going to the dealer on a dry day when the humidity is low to take it on the highway so that they can hear it. I am planning to do the same but it has been raining too much lately up here.

Now, my question is. The part number hasn't changed since 2009, when the original came out. So I assume no work has been done at Honda/Acura to replace the bearings on that part so that it would trigger a part number change, as it is the case all the time with "upgraded" parts. So, even if I change that shaft, chances are it will happen again after an x number of miles? So whats the point of changing it if you get the same defective part back on the car?

 

^^^^^

My guess is that only the defective ones make the whining noise, and Acura is replacing them with the good ones.

I don't think all shafts are defective, otherwise the whole 4G TL world would be complaining, forcing Honda to issue a recall fix.

 

I think that I have the same issue on my 2009 SH AWD TL. To me the noise sounds like the droning of cicadas. It stops when I am at stop and it gets louder up to about 60 and then stays about the same. I didn't hear it when I bought the car, but not I do intermittantly. My wife also hear it and she doesn't pay attention to car issues. I was wondering if it was pully's, etc., but it makes no sense since it doesnt change really when giving it gas. It is just there. The propeller shaft makes sense. No sound at stop....

 

I have a 2009 SH-AWD RL and noticed the whining noise after a few miles of driving, once the vehicle warmed up. The noise started around 30-35 mph and increased in pitch as the speed of the vehicle increased. The noise would not go away until the car came to a full stop. The sound was very noticeable since the RL has an Active Noise Cancellation system (Active Sound Control) in addition to the noise cancelling tires which makes the RL the quietest car I have ever owned. Several colleagues have actually remarked at how quiet and smooth the ride is. This made the noise even more annoying. After reading several posts here I decided to have my local Acura Dealer look into the propeller shaft issue. During the first visit to the dealer, a tech stated he could not hear the noise and mentioned that normal road noise is typical for a SH-AWD system like the RL's. After about a week of dealing with the whine/whistle I took it into the dealer again and had another tech listen. They stated the noise was very loud an apologized for missing it the last time. They replaced the center bearing and propeller shaft (all under warranty) and now the noise is gone. Thanks Acurazine!!

 

My '10 has been making the same whistling type noise as indicated here. I've been at the dealer 2 times and they claim they cannot do anything as they cannot hear it. I know on the last appointment the car wasn't doing it as it seems to come and go which is odd as the service tech stated that it should happen all the time. Also, he stated that the noise is more noticeable on acceleration as opposed to letting off the gas and coasting if it was the propeller shaft. My car does it from 80 - 120km's and will continue to whistle until I get to 60 km/h. It isn't a loose piece of trim causing the noise as this comes and goes and it happens if it is in neutral. The fan and radio are off so I can rule out all of that stuff too. I recorded it on my phone but the dealership is discarding this until they can duplicate it.

I also had the software flash performed on my TL due to the growling noise from 1300 - 1500 rpm's. Given the price of these cars, why would they have such trivial problems??

 

Hey all....just joined the forum minutes ago, and luckily this is one of the first threads I happened to see. My '09 SH-AWD has started recently with the same exact noise, and am somewhat glad there seems to be a clear answer here. In my troubleshooting while driving the car, I did note that the noise seems to be related to vehicle speed, not engine speed. I even thought about it possibly being wind noise, but in some cases the noise would persist almost right up until a full stop....wind wouldnt cause any type of noise at that slow of a speed. I own an auto service business and have been meaning to get the car in and "drive" it while in the air to diagnose the noise. If anyone's interested, I'll post my results.

 

I have 16,000 Miles on my 2012 TL AWD MT . This noise just started a couple days ago and am going to take it in on monday I would say the noise sounds exactly like a teapot/Belt squeal above 40MPH Ill let you know what happens

 

Took the car in this morning, and they found the center support bearing for the propeller shaft bad. They didn't have one in stock, so they gave me a loaner. It will suck with this major snow coming and no AWD. They stuck me with an ILX.