Recent creaking / popping noise from the front suspension on an '04 TSX 6spd. It happens almost exclusively when moving forward from a stop. Occasionally it'll happen when backing out of the ramped portion of the driveway.

Here's a video:

If you situate your head directly in front of the center stack, it sounds as if the noise is coming directly in front of you.

Stuff that's been replaced as part of maintenance:

• New OEM compliance bushings
• New OEM inner & outer tie rods
• New OEM reman'd driver's axle
• New shocks/springs (new Flex Zs)

Stuff that's been replaced since the noise began, but made no difference:

• Front & Pass Side engine mounts (pass mount was broken)
• New OEM reman'd pass axle

Rear mount looks fine, and doesn't have play in it when a jack is placed under the oil pan. Ball joints have virtually no play in them. Maybe sway bar bushings? No idea, nearing wits end. Car drives perfectly fine otherwise, and doesn't make the noise once moving. Any suggestions?

 

Check the sway bar links and bushings. Mine were bad and made some clunking sound with starting and stopping. Replaced them and clunk went away.

 

Its likely one of your engine mounts. Try having someone turn the car on, put it in 1st, and slowly let the clutch out and work the pedal to rock the engine back and forth (brakes on) while you look under the hood.

How many miles on the car, and when did this start? Did it happen after something was installed?

BTW, how do you like the ride quality of those Flex Z's?
Is it:
A.) Awful
B.) Really awful

 

​​​​​​Well I just eliminated this from the list of possibilities by disconnecting the sway bar. Noise is still there. :-(

 

Started happening about a month ago, not following anything in particular. Passenger side mount was broken, but it's been replaced. Very little discernable rock with brakes + in gear. I've done a similar test in a car with a broken mount, it doesn't seem as bad.

C.) Average.

It's my daily, and I'm not riding on the ground. Houston road quality is f-ing terrible and I have decent rubber, so it may mask some of that.

 

Hmmm no play in suspension with front end jacked up? And no shimmy or vibration associated with the sound...

Try jacking up the front and spinning each of the front wheels with it in gear (not running). I’m wondering if its differential or tranny related.

 

Mine is my DD as well. About 13.25" from hub centre to fender lip. So...I guess its probably pretty dang low (for a 1G TSX).






Sorry for the thread jack.

Is something scraping across the trans or motor when you start going? Like a hose or wires or cables?

 

I did the 12&6, 9&3 tug, and there doesn't seem to be any play. There doesn't seem to be any motion associated with it. It happens when moving off, and as far as I can tell, nothing while moving/driving.

i tried this, no unusual sound (no clicking or grinding).

It does sometimes pop out of second while hitting a bump or going up and to the right. It makes a slight knock when engaging the clutch in first, which seems to be coming from the shift mechanism. I had an Acura mechanic buddy look at it, an he thought it was the pressure plate. I'm not sure I agree, because it really only happens in first. All trans mounts appear to be in good shape. It's done this for last year (since I bought it). The popping noise began about a month ago, and it sounds like it's coming from behind the center dash. I had planned to eventually just swap the trans with a Euro R trans.

 

What about your UCA? The torque from the axle pulls it fore/aft.

Have someone do the motor mount test...but look at the spindle

 

No worries. I've been on track twice in this car, once completely stock, with b.s. used car lot tires on it (SCCA track night), the other at a time attack with the Flexes and same Chinese tires. Tires were awful, and I ruined them. Despite being basically unmodded, the TSX feels much stiffer than the fairly well modded EG coupe I used to have. I wanted a daily I could occasionally track, and this car I think will fit the bill nicely.

Do you have a build thread? What callipers are those?

Not that I can tell. Looks clear. This is a former east coast car, but luckily there's minimal rust. I've been slowly changing all the wear items out. It's in fairly good shape for an '04, it had 109k miles when I bought it last January.

 

No build thread. Its modded a little bit. I kinda want to buy a ASP3 trans for it in summer.

The calipers are JDM legend (similar to Acura RL), with 12.8" Nissan 350Z rotors.

They're great cars. Mine has like 166K in those photos (and currently)

 

Pulling on the UCA does nothing. I'll need to try it with the car in gear. It doesn't pull under power while on the road, though.

I at first misread the earlier suggestion about the car being in the air, and "drove" the car while on jack stands, i.e. put it in gear while running in the air. There was no noise, so it only does it while on the ground. This has to be something related to the engine torquing, or an I nuts?

 

I would definitely turn my attention to shift linkage and tranny. Based on the sound it makes, that it only happens in first, and sometimes has popouts in second. Problem is the issue could be hard to diagnose without tearing into it for a rebuild or waiting until it gets worse or fails completely.

 

I checked the ball joints yet again, this time with a different pry bar, and the driver's side joint has a little "click" that can be felt when prying. Nothing audible, but it's noticeable by feel. I've got a spare new OEM one, and hopefully one of the local dealer has a second, and I'm gonna try to get them changed out tomorrow. Hopefully that's it. Even if it isn't, I've had a ball joint failure happen to me before, and I haven't taken any chance with them since.

 

The gearbox definitely has an issue that may or may not be independent of this one. Check this clip out, every click is me quickly releasing then pressing the clutch pedal. The noise sounds as if it's coming from above the cable mechanism on top of the trans:

 

the clutch master cylinders on these cars tend to creak and pop as you push/release the pedal.

Can you feel anything in your clutch foot?

Does it happen with the car off just by clutching in and out?

 

Well it wasn't the driver's side ball joint. It did have a little play though, so I might as well have changed it. I'll change the other one out tomorrow.

Edit - it seems to happen when ever I make the front raise upward quickly. Can't do it with the jack, but taking off or stopping quickly in reverse, causing the front end to lift, makes it creak.

 

There is a pop in the pedal, it goes away when greased. The transmission clank sounds like a broken mount, but it isn't one. Shifter moves a little like that's what's happening, but it isn't. It's the shifter mechanism adjustable on the transmission? The FSM makes no mention of that.

 

Shifter should move slightly with engine movement.

There isn't any adjustment that I know of. Shifter bushings exist. But at 109K, they're not likely worn. And I don't know if noise is a complaint of worn cables.

 

Update for solution - lower subframe brackets were rubbing slightly on the core support. Noise is gone. :-)