jeich182

Someone mentioned this within another thread (don't remember which) but now that there are a few of us who have experienced this I figured I'd start one.

After coming to a complete stop the car will rock back and forth a few times as if it's only on springs and not shocks. I'm wondering whether the initial travel/engagement of the amplitude reactive dampers is too soft or not engaged/preloaded enough to stop this sensation from happening. I suppose it's something I'll get used to (it can be mitigated by paying close attention to feathering off the brake as you stop but it takes cognizant effort to do this) but I can imagine a scenario where this will make passengers like my wife car sick when creeping along in stop-and-go traffic.

I'm quite happy with the car as a whole and think it's a great effort but it would be nice if Acura addressed this, esp. as more of us notice it.

CheeseyPoofs McNut

I've only had this happen to me once in the 900+ miles I've put on the car so it's a non-issue for me - however it was an odd feeling when it happened.

jeich182

Happens on mine much more often than that. The slower I stop from the more I notice it. Which is what brings me to think the shocks aren't preloaded properly or something like that. It's an annoyance for sure at this point.

9SpeedTran

My recollection from the other thread is that someone was told by their dealership that it resulted from PAWS. Kind of a "feature".

jeich182

BS (to whoever said that). I've encountered some seriously ignorant staff at my Acura dealer and this sounds like no exception for the guy who this was told to.

Again this happens after the car stops. P-AWS is inactive that that point and has nothing to do with weight transferring front to back.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

just thinking out loud here...

springs compress vertically, shocks also compress and rebound vertically.
I think you would be looking for something else other than springs, if the car is rocking back and fourth.

4WDrift

I think what's being described is akin to 'porpoising' or 'seesawing' where the ends are bobbing up/down. It can happen at faster or slower speeds depending on oscillation resonance frequencies. I'm going to check one out for the various aforementioned issues.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

again just thinking out loud.

Wouldnt it be more pronounced at speed and not slower speeds, if indeed shocks?

jeich182

No it's the opposite as best I can tell. If they aren't preloaded sufficiently or the initial .25" (or whatever) of their travel doesn't cause fluid transfer in the shock then the car is essentially on the springs. Remember there is no speed, the car has come to a stop when the bobbing/rocking starts. It's most prone to happen when the car is moving slowly or barely moving (like when you're creeping up at a traffic light). But I suspect it's less pronounced when stopping from a higher speed because the shocks are compressed more therefore damping more as they rebound.

Coronado111

I have never noticed it in 800 miles.

Don

CheeseyPoofs McNut

Interesting - the only time I noticed it was after coming around a sweeping offramp at about 45 mph then leaning on the brakes a bit to stop. Just as I came to a stop the car kind of bobbed forward then back.

Quandry

I only noticed after seeing a report about it, and the first time was after I came to a stop and turned off the engine.

While it is a strange sensation (not a technical problem), I consider it a cute feature (embrace what you have and give in to what you cannot change). I am sitting here on my leather chair and ottoman footrest that rocks back and forth. I have to exert a little pressure on these while the car does it automatically.

Colin

Motor mounts!

Rocketsfan

It happens to me all the time when driving in city traffic. The worst it's been felt has been 2 times as I drove into a parking spot. Once I parked the car and let go of the brake, it was like I was on a bucking bronco. I swear you would've thought I'd sudden-braked or something, but nope ... just parked the car and let go of the brakes. In normal traffic, I notice it, but it wasn't quite as pronounced.

weather

This is an interesting problem...I must confess that I did not experience this in the test drive of the I4 I took a few weeks ago. Neither on my test drive of the SH-AWD 2 evenings ago...

kongx7

I noticed it on a SHAWD test drive, but it was probably an instinctive thought because I've been reading these forums. Anyway, it seems apparent on all trim levels. Fast speed to sudden stop is felt on every car, no doubt. But on the TLX at slow speeds to a full stop it is noticeable.

9SpeedTran

Has anyone experiencing this demonstrated the phenomenon to a dealer? If so, what was the response?

Tonyware

Yes, I was thinking of that too... Maybe they filled up the second chamber of the front mount with tequila ? Lol

Davinci547Acura

I'm that guy. Believe what you wish. This information came from service department where I have purchased Acura's for last 15 years. I revisited the issue and to be specific the rocking motion Jell-O effect apparently is caused by the current TLX strut design which is part of the overall PAWS concept. Service departments are aware of the issue because customers are complaining. You think Acura wasn't already aware as cars were leaving the production line? Let's see if a fix is issued.

Take your cars in to service department and have the issue written up on a service order even though nothing can be done at this point in time. More official customer complaints, quicker response.

tlxsteve

Wow! I don't have this rock feature and have not seen it in the 1,400 miles I have driven so far. I drive at or near sea level. No mountains.

Timmy18

I wonder if it's visible on video? Like drive up next to a camera, put it in park and see if it's rocking afterwards.

jeich182

As I've been driving the car more I've been able to fine-tune how I feather off the brakes as the car is coming to a complete stop to mitigate the issue somewhat. I'm debating whether to report the issue or not, regardless of whether I do I don't think the car should behave like that and referring to it as a "feature" is silly.

jeich182

Not sure what that would have to do with it. I live at the NJ shore.

Davinci547Acura

I began really noticing it on my car at about 2,000 miles (V6 Tech). Dealers are receiving complaints and corporate is very aware of the problem. This will be a wait and see of how issue is addressed and/or resolved since they knew of this issue as the cars were coming off the line from day one.

Be sure and have your dealer write up service department warranty ticket complaint even though they can't do anything at this time.

BookemDanole

My wife's 2009 MDX does this too. It is much more noticeable, but never bothered me. Figured it's just a big heavy car that physics will have an impact on.

narnia

I've got about 750 miles on my car so far and haven't had this happen. It only seems to be happening to some cars, and on both I4 and V6 models.

Praj Prasai

I have noticed the same feeling. Took it to service dept but they have no fix and there is no service bulletins.I called the Acura client relations and notified them about my experience and they gave me a claim number. People who have problem with the TLX need to call Acura client number and complain so that they will hopefully come out with solution soon.

Davinci547Acura

The effect is not vertical it is horizontal front to back and can be quite pronounced.

Davinci547Acura

Mine didn't start till around 2,000 miles and appears to be getting worse now at 3,300. I filed a warranty complaint yesterday. These issues need to be documented with the dealer.

Cmyoung

Mine just started about 15 minutes ago on during my lunch. I came to stop light and applied brakes and this weird sensation I could feel the car rock back and forth a couple times. It did it again when I approached the next stop light. Car has 1058 miles on it and Im sure this is not normal. It didn't happen on my 13 tsx or the 2014 TL we have. Calling Acura right now to place my official complaint.

MedX172

Wow, I've never experienced this yet. How noticeable is this when it happens? So, it's like a 'see-saw' effect?

Davinci547Acura

It's very noticeable and becoming a complaint across almost entire fleet, dealers and corporate already aware.

Horizontal Jell-O effect, not vertical. You can even be stopped and literally let the car move forward a foot and stop again. It will Jell-O.

tlxsteve

Just informational.

Guess I will wait till 2,000 miles to see if I am affected.

NJToyMan

When I am shutting the car down in my parking spot, the car will rock back and forth when I finally release the foot brake as it "settles in".

But so do many other cars I observe. Last night, while I was getting gas- a BMW SUV pulled up next to me and stopped at the pump. It too, rocked back and forth. This morning, as I looked out my office window into the parking lot- I saw a Mercedes, Toyota, and VW rock back and forth when they parked.

I'm sure that it is subjective as to what is a "normal" amount of rocking, and what is unacceptable. To me, the effect is not that pronounced or intolerable in my V6 Tech. I have nearly 3,000 miles on it.

cruiserchuck

In Road & Track's review of the TLX, they state that the PAWS system turns the wheels inward when stopping. If that is true, maybe it is the PAWS system that is causing the rocking. I am not sure why turning the wheels inward would cause rocking. However, since turned in wheels is not normal for other cars, maybe that is causing a different feel when the car stops.

tlxsteve

That is wild. I will have to watch the parking lot.

My TLX doesn't rock. I am not sure if that is good or bad, if everybody else's TLX is doing it.

9SpeedTran

As I said in the other thread, both our 2014 MDX and our 2007 TL Type S rock when you take your foot off the brake after stopping. It's like the brakes pin the car in a certain position and then it rebounds to some sort of default when you let go.

I also leaned up against the rear bumper of the MDX when I was unloading the back and it moved forward in a very "jello-like" way. I was most surprised by this, it was kind of fun to play with. :-)

Tonyware

A thought crossed my mind.... can someone report the gasoline level in their car when it rocks, jel-o or whatever? Lets see if we can find, or not, a correlation between level of gas in the tank and the effect.

nhester

My TLX V6-Tech is just 2 weeks in service and currently shows ~500 miles. I was immediately struck by this front-back jolt at the moment of achieving a full stop. It felt like my back was being slapped! It was quite apparent the first few days… but I think I've since "learned" how to ameliorate this final jerk by fine-tuning my foot on the brake pedal.

I hope an easy solution will soon be found and corrected for this minor(?) annoyance!

ostrich

Just got my SH-AWD Elite today and immediately, I noticed this. I don't feel this when I brake at the traffic lights. However, if I brake to come to a complete stop, turn off the car and then take my foot off of the brake pedal, I feel this right away. There are even some rhythmic knocking sounds that would last for a few seconds afterwards as if there is a pendulum swinging back and forth at the back of the car!!! Hmm.... what a strange feeling.