Suspension Rattle Anyone? - RLX
 

My RLX/Tech (19 inch wheels), since brand new, has a suspension rattle induced by even small bumps, mostly seemingly from the front end. (The rear bolt recall has been done on the car.) The rattle noise is most often induced with small, abrupt changes (manhole covers, small potholes, etc.)


On non-jarring, undulating roads, all is well however.


The dealer, says they couldn't find anything and all is normal.
I've done some checking but cant find anything yet. Worn parts often cause this, but not on a car with 1000 miles or so.
I know the 19's can be stiff and be 'louder' on road impacts, but this is a distinct rattle.


Anyone else hear the same thing?
I am continuing checking parts, and checked the sway bar end links and bushings - they appear tight. Next , I'm looking in to the brake calipers as a culprit, but would be very interested to hear if anyone else notices this, and better yet, found a 'cure'.


And of course, it is going back to the dealer too in case they can find something, but they insist all is normal so far.


VERY annoying - I rented a $20k base model Altima recently - it was sooo absent of rattles over bumps compared to the RLX.


Though, otherwise, I do like the car quite a bit - but it has a serious flaw to get rid of.

I'm new to the RLX party, but just a thought ... could it be something besides suspension parts? I mean, maybe something like a loose heat shield or maybe a fluid line or one of the plastic shroud pieces?

Since the dealer has inspected the suspension and pronounced it to be okay, maybe it's time to look at some other things that could rattle on impacts.

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I'm betting brakes. The pads on my 2005 RL would rattle over bumps at low speed. Could really only hear it with windows down

Brakes, too - had the same issue on my 2006 & 2010 RL

rlx rattles
 

Have 2014 RLX with Advance and have same rattle issues.
Service manager says they have gotten many complaints and Acura is aware but has no fix. It's so bad I want to return car.
Noise is loudest underneath passenger door. Not a pleasure to drive at all.

Have the same issues. Told there is nothing wrong with the car. The sounds are the Unique Characteristics. Basically, we screwed up so you have to live with it.

Where did you get car? Got mine from Curry Acura. send e-mail to
acr@ahm.acura.com. If enough people complain, it will get attention.
It's not over, I am prepared to go all the way to attny general.

This is letter I sent to acr@ahm.acura.com

Dear Sir/Madam:

I am writing this letter to express my extreme dissatisfaction with you latest product mentioned above.
I was expecting much more from a car in this price range and from what I consider to be a terrific brand;
Until now. The ride quality is absolutely horrendous with loud rattles coming from what I believe to be
the suspension on slightly uneven or rough road pavement. Hit a larger bump and the car sounds like
it is falling apart and actually seems to jar either left or right. The service manager at the dealership says
he has gotten complaints but Acura told him they have no fix. When the dealership told the representative
in this area, Mr. Robert Dabb, his first reaction was that he knew what I was talking about because he has been
driving an 2014 RLX for a while. I met with Mr. Dabb and took him for a ride and his tune completely changed.
He said that this was a design feature and just the way the car is. To which I replied that Acura actually incorporated
rattles into the design of the car? Mr. Dabb also informed me that I was the only complaint that has been received to
date. I told him he should check the blogs(attached is one) out there as he must be misinformed.

Either this major problem is fixed or I want out of this vehicle. I would like to resolve this as amicably
as possible but will pursue all avenues to protect my rights.

i feel the same way if i would known that the car was going to ride this rough i would have kept my 2009 especially with the snowstorms everyday. The awd drive would have come in handy very disappointed to say the least

Here are the e-mails for top two guys at Honda in Torrence, CA.
Send emails. Tetsuo_Iwamura@ahm.honda.com,john_mendel@ahm.honda.com
Let them know and we may get somewhere. I am waiting to hear from them. Next stop
state attorney general.

Sigh, first year issues. I hope this problem is resolved to your satisfaction. One would think that Acura would be jumping on this to improve sales of the RLX.

Rattles a "normal characteristic"? Um, OK.

Hey guys, looks like my e-mail made it to the President of Honda. Just got call from head of customer relations. They spoke to the dealer I purchased car from and will run a host of tests along with Acura Tech dept. and hopefully will find out what the problem is. I can be reached at 914-255-3672 if anyone would like to talk about this.

Thanks for being diligent apsuozzo

definitely interested to see/hear what the end results are. I have to say I'm on the fence about the overall "suspension" quality of the RLX. At times it does seems like the car should handle rough roads / bumps much quieter, especially for the cost of this car. But other times it seems to handle well and I go over bumps, etc. with a real solid and controlled "thud".

what I will say is this: my 2006 TL was not as sensitive as my RLX is and I never recalled taking notice to how the car handled. It just always handled bumps, rough roads, etc in a smooth and consistent manner.

Appears Acura is going to get on this after all. Go Honda/Acura!

Certainly hope you get a satisfactory response. I didn't Was told this is characteristic of the car and it drives fine. No issues found. Obviously since there are several of us who have the issue it may just be the way they built the car.

I went to the selling dealer, while nice, they could do nothing. I asked them to buy back car they laughed. Said we can't sell the one's we have. So it's either a huge loss or live with it

That's how the dealer originally responded. I think now that Corporate in west coast is involved, east coast guys have to respond. I think they know a lot of unhappy people out there and are not talking warranty but "campaign" (code word we screwed up). I will not stop until car is either fixed or they can take back. Car is going to dealer tomorrow. Keep you posted on what comes of it.

Would love to hear their response. I've been down the road with CA to no avail.

They went to a lot of trouble making the RLX quieter than the typical Honda and Acura.

Expensive acoustic glass on the Advance, noise canceling wheel design, and the Krell Audio counters road noise even when you have the system turned off.

Having gone through all that trouble to make the 5G Legend so quiet, I do not think that they will be happy with people talking bout unusual noises and rattles, and I hope you get a resolution. I don't understand why they can't figure out where the noise is coming from.

I thought that I had a noise a couple of weeks ago. But in my case I traced it to a transmitter loose in the glovebox. I was supposed to have affixed it to the windscreen but forgot about it until it started rattling against something else in the glovebox.

My car's quite enjoyably, solidly quiet and I really hope they spend enough time with your car to figure it out.

Hate to be the damber on a lot of this since I have been going through this.

I was told the Glass is so good that any sound that comes through into the vehicle gets trapped and will sound louder than it is ???? Huh.

The Rattle saga continues - Rattles Loudly Xsessively
 

Hello to All,

So here is the update on my visit to the dealer. Verdict came back that the noise I am hearing is a "design feature" of the car and nothing they can do. LOL what a bunch of idiots. So I penned another letter to the boys out in Torrence and told them Acura may as well pack it up and they are the laughing stock of the "Luxury car" community. Oh and by the way, I'm not making another payment on the car.

Two hours later I get a call from Service Manager at dealership and he proceeds to tell me that Acura tech dept. is sending two complete front end strut assemblies and he will have them by Tuesday. Why would they do that?3

It's not over. keep the faith.

there really must be something wrong specifically with your car. I just don't hear the type of rattles that would warrant this type of issue/replacement. So I wouldn't pin it on Acura, I would pin it on the dealership that you are dealing with and their reluctance to deal with it first-hand without having to get smacked around by corp over in Torrence.

Since we purchased our RLX(A) in June we have had a few minor issues with the car but with a 12.4K and multiple trips across the country we are still enjoy every minute in it..

We will be traveling to Las Vegas in early March and then up to Idaho before returning home O/A 3/20.

We have not had the rattle problems others seem to be plagued with and we understand the 19's are a firmer footprint and provide an almost sport handling performance...refreshing to say the least!!
Hopefully the design boys out west can find out the problems and quell them...

I am curious about what this noise/rattling actually sounds like.

On the same section of rough road (think bumps), the difference in sounds between my 07 TL and the RLX is huge.

Going over this section of road, the TL almost launches me while the RLX sounds like you are crossing a relative smooth railroad crossing....more of a clunk sound vs a bang sound.

I thought the sound from the RLX was what it should sound like since it is a 4000 pound vehicle with a longer wheelbase and a much softer suspension than the TL. I don't think my car has a problem, but who knows?

It would be nice if someone who is having "Suspension Rattles", could post up an audio clip of what it sounds like... Who knows, it may even help Acura troubleshoot the problem.

The noise is so annoying, every time I go over little imperfections in the road it sounds like the car is falling apart. I've had other people comment and ask is something is loose on the car, its just so disappointing. I had one dealer tell me its a characteristic of the car and another say that's not normal at all ( but no idea how to fix).

as far as the characteristic comment... I'm sure Acura's requirements said let make the car sound like a Kia with 400,000 miles on it over slight bumps, and QA said yep sounds like crap lets ship it.

Based on the descriptions provided so far, our long-term RLX is definitely not experiencing this problem. I suspect that the problem is not widespread and might have more to do with dealers PDI procedures as opposed to something that is wrong from the factory.

Also, if a dealership tech says they do not recognize a problem, ask them to take a ride with you in the car when you behind the wheel so that you can point out the issue. Sometimes the descriptions provided on the work order are not adequate for technicians to actually understand the issue.

I rode with the shop foreman, noise was clear to both of us... but they had no idea how to fix it. He thought it might be interior related, they never found a fix for it and said it would come and go.

I wonder if there is a trend that exists with those vehicles that are experiencing the problem. Perhaps a batch of some component that could be damaged during the PDI process?

I was going to say the same thing. Definitely not having issues to this degree.

The only real "rattle" I get when going over bumps is what I'm pretty sure I narrowed down to the rear window sun-visor shades rattling against their holster when stowed away. If you notice they are fairly lose within their holster and are not very secure, making them very prone to vibrations when going over bumps or on less than smooth road conditions. This was one of the suggestions I made in several of the customer surveys I received from Acura on the RLX. Seems like it would be something easy to fix by adding additional rubber moldings, grommets, or cushioning to the holster area to better secure the sun-visor shades when stowed away and to dampen the rattling effect.

Definitely not a sun visor. Car cannot take the slightest rough patch on a road. Acura knows something or they would not be replacing both front-end strut assemblies.

I too have a rattle that is noticeable only when driving over rough roads, but it sounds as though it is coming from the base of the steering column. Has anyone else noticed this?

Did they do this repair? Did it make a difference? not sure why they would replace the front struts but would love to know if it works.

Three sections to strut assembly. 2 parts backordered for a few weeks. Once repair is done will update.

Thought the car was stolen today and i wasn't the least bit upset. The only thing i was upset about was that my cd collection was in the car and i would have had to start my whole collection all over again. This car is great but something really has to be done about the suspension. i almost hate driving it at this point

Rattles getting worse
 

Just wondering. Do you have your car or is it at the dealer.?

I keep getting pushed off on this repair and beginning to get suspect.

Thanks (

Following Up... Anyone get a resolution?

I have been doing quite a bit of troubleshooting and looking on the 'net for ideas to get past the rattle. I keep thinking the sound is like a loose shock. I pretty much ruled out brakes because the rattle persists even when doing braking while going over bumps.
I checked the brakes anyway, the exhaust, etc and so far haven't found any pieces parts that seem too close that might contact and rattle.
And the rattle only seems to happen when the suspension needs to react quickly - gently undulating surfaces result in no rattle noises.


But, ,I ran in to a Volvo user web site this evening and on some of their models a complaint is that the top shock nut bottoms before the top rubber bushings are properly compressed - resulting in the kind of rattle I think I hear. The site suggests adding some washers under that top nut to allow the bushings to compress a bit more. They suggest that the torque spec for that nut is met because the nut bottoms where the shock rod threads end, not because the bushings are fully compressed.


I haven't had the chance to try this yet - but will by next week - remove a front shock nut (either driver or passenger side - the central one that is under the black rubber grommet cover on the wheel well), place about 3-5 washers under the nut and re-tighten to gently compress the rubber bushing under the nut, or to specified torque if someone knows what that value should be. Of course, use the allen wrench in the top of the shock rod to keep it from rotating while doing this.
This should allow a bit more preload on those top bushings before the nut bottoms on the shock rod threads.
Perhaps measuring the amount of thread exposed at the top of the shock rod before you start, and then afterwards to assure that the bushings are a bit more compressed with the additional washers?


Then, if that side of the suspension gets quiet when going over manhole covers, small potholes, etc, then this idea is on the right track.


If not, merely removing the washers and re-tightening the nut restores all back to stock.


If anyone else would like to try, let me know if this has any effect. I'll update as soon as I get a chance to try myself in the next few days.

Hi. I wanted to chime in on this since I was having the same issue on my new RLX Advance that I purchased. It sounds like a worn out macpherson strut on a 80's chevy citation honestly or possibly a loose sway bar link. Mine was the 3,431 model that went down the assembly line. I wonder if there is a bad batch of struts.


It is only small manholes and road imperfections usually at speeds under 35mph.

Sent an email to Acura n.a. The response was a standard response with no indication that the root cause of the problem has been identified, nor the permanent corrective action. The dealer responded to my email asking me to bring it in tomorrow, drive it with the tech and leave the car. I asked whether they have any indication of a technical service bulletin or possible recall from Acura. He said they have heard nothing.
The rattle is not subtle and does not require any effort to hear. Reminds me of riding in an old Plymouth yellow cab with 200k miles in D.C.back in the 80s.

I lowered the tire pressure on all 4 tires to 32psi from 35psi and it did not change anything so it might be the cold climate we are in here in Michigan contributing to the passenger side rattle over small bumps.