Front end noise....REVISITED

Took mine to the dealer for the same thing. They gave the same answer.
Pads are shifting when you change directions. Honda customer service will
tell you its normal but the technician who looked at it said Honda is aware
of this and is working on a fix. The cr-v has a TSB already issued for the same problem. Maybe they are waiting to take care of the cr-v first? It is very annoying.

[quote:dc5fc6843c="pharmboy"]Took mine to the dealer for the same thing. They gave the same answer.
Pads are shifting when you change directions. Honda customer service will
tell you its normal but the technician who looked at it said Honda is aware
of this and is working on a fix. The cr-v has a TSB already issued for the same problem. Maybe they are waiting to take care of the cr-v first? It is very annoying.[/quote:dc5fc6843c]

As long as there is no damage being made when this noise happens I'll wait and see...I hardly ever press the brakes....( mostly downshift when driving...) is only when I'm parking with the windows down that i hear it....but like I said before, if I didn't bring it up, my wife would have never noticed it.... :? ....and since she is the main driver....oh well ...I'll wait and see if next time I drive it, it gets worse...then I'll be waiting for a recall notice....or else....grrr.. :x ...

When it comes to down shifting (for slowly the car down) I use my brakes ONLY...it's alot cheaper to replace the brakes as opposed to the clucth...but then again that's my driving style and my experience when it comes to doing the replacement work....I work on autos for a living....
Just my $0.02 worth

[quote:60b90e3008="djc"]When it comes to down shifting (for slowly the car down) I use my brakes ONLY...it's alot cheaper to replace the brakes as opposed to the clucth...but then again that's my driving style and my experience when it comes to doing the replacement work....I work on autos for a living....
Just my $0.02 worth [/quote:60b90e3008]

Under what circumstances is it best to use engine-braking then (with either manual or auto transmissions)? Is it only on very long downhill stretches to prevent the brakes from overheating/glazing?

-brendan

[quote:1279b8f674="brendan"][quote:1279b8f674="djc"]When it comes to down shifting (for slowly the car down) I use my brakes ONLY...it's alot cheaper to replace the brakes as opposed to the clucth...but then again that's my driving style and my experience when it comes to doing the replacement work....I work on autos for a living....
Just my $0.02 worth [/quote:1279b8f674]

Under what circumstances is it best to use engine-braking then (with either manual or auto transmissions)? Is it only on very long downhill stretches to prevent the brakes from overheating/glazing?

-brendan[/quote:1279b8f674]

let's say I'm in traffic and the person in front of me speeds up to get on the person in front's tail...then they apply the brakes...well I just downshift......and basically I'm at the right rpm range when I reach them, most times by that time they have already taking off again....and hills as you mentioned....and djc....I have had a clutch last me well over 220k miles...on a 1887 Civic Si and a 1981 Toyata Celica, both cars bought new then...so that and me having been a tractor trailer driver for many years I think shifting is like breathing to me...I don't think about it, I just do it....

One more thing, I saw my wife drive my car and I was shocked to see her shift and take off so smooth that when we decided to buy the Element a 5 speed was her choice...and I knew it was a good one....

I'm not making sexist comment, but there are few women over 40 that would choose a standard transmission over an automatic ....maybe I'm wrong...but I think not.... :wink:

The front end noise, does it sound like it comes form the suspension? But its really the brakes? When I took my Element in to the dealer and they looked it over they said that this sound is normal for the Element. They also said that they drove two other Elements on the dealers lot and they made the same noise. I have a call into American Honda to see if this is true. They said they will get back to me later this week.

My noise only occurs at low speeds and the weight of the vehicle shifts slightly. the dealer did say the verified that everything upfriont was torqued to factory specs.

Good News- They finally fixed my dash rattle after two visits!!

[quote:a9ed2ce069="BrettB"]The front end noise, does it sound like it comes form the suspension? But its really the brakes? When I took my Element in to the dealer and they looked it over they said that this sound is normal for the Element. They also said that they drove two other Elements on the dealers lot and they made the same noise. I have a call into American Honda to see if this is true. They said they will get back to me later this week.

My noise only occurs at low speeds and the weight of the vehicle shifts slightly. the dealer did say the verified that everything upfriont was torqued to factory specs.

Good News- They finally fixed my dash rattle after two visits!![/quote:a9ed2ce069]

One word.yes....same here...but somehow the noise is less now... :roll:

I have the noise too. I assumed it was the pads as well. Your dealers statement confirms my theory. Thanks, I can finally stop wondering if I was right.

I heard back from American Honda and they said that the dealer would like to take a look at the car again. They want me to take a test drive with the service manager so he can hear the noise. I will let everyone know the outcome......They probably will blame it on the brakes.

Well my 4 week old E is now fixed. After speaking with American Honda and opening a case regarding the problem the service manager took a drive with me and he heard the front end noise. He concluded that something was wrong with the suspension (duh!!!). Today they just replaced the left front strut assembly. I havent drove it yet but they said that the noise is gone. So dont always believe the dealer when they say "Oh thats the way the car sounds". The service manager actually admitted to me he thought he was going to her the brake pads moving, so it proved that they didnt hear the same sound that I was hearing...and all the other E's on the dealers lot do not make the sound my E was making, even though thats what they told me when I first took it in for the problem 3 visits ago.

Yeah..I love my E again!!!

Just posted a thread about a rubbing noise when making slow right turns. Can't really be sure I'd call me a rubbing noise. But something is
wrong......I have alot of brake dust on my rims, too! I only have 2,000mi

Have a popping noise coming out of the front end suspension. Took it to a suspension specialist and they believe it is the left front strut bearing. Have spoken to the dealer and they are suggesting the problem is because I had my E lowered. Now that I have read about others having a similiar problem I can hopefully get them to fix it instead of blaming in on the lowering.

Thanks to all in keeping each other informed.

I also have the same problem. The sound seems to be coming from
the perch at the top of the struts. It makes a rubbing sound or rattle when
I turn or have people in the E . When I'm by myself cruising it's not there.
I ended up taking my struts off and noticed the the perch was not lined up
with the strut. There is a mark that needs to be facing out to the fender. My
E was also lowered. I was able to turn the perch to the proper mark. The noise was gone but came back about a week later. I'm not to sure what the deal is here.