Acura RL Maintenance and Repair

helloacura · July 2005

How do you do the "three finger salute" in 2005 RL?
thanks.

steveinindy · July 2005

If you hold down the map/guide, menu, and cancel buttons all at the same time, you'll be taken to a diagnostic menu. Choose the XM HIP menu item. You will then see another acura menu. Choose diagnostic messages. Choose keyless remote message. Choose delete--and repeat for all of the keyless messages that exist.
Let me know if you have difficulties, and I'll provide a more detailed step by step guide--but it definitely works! Good Luck. Steve

bodble2 · July 2005

And if that doesn't work, then just give it the one-finger salute! :P

frisconick · July 2005

LOL

I have been reading this forum a lot lately, and it seems that the Acura dealers can't figure out much.

bodble2 · July 2005

That trait runs common with most dealers, of any brand. As we all know, the 3 most often heard statements from a dealer are: "We've never seen that problem before", "We could not duplicate the problem", and the ultimate, "It's performing within specs"! :mad:

:sick:

sgl1 · July 2005

I just purchased my RL last week and drove at night for the first time yesterday. Seems my headlights don't shine up the road very far. The high-beams are fine and seem bright, but the xenon low-beams are apparently aimed low, apparently to avoid blinding on coming traffic or something. None of my other cars have such a short distance on their low beams. . . Any one else notice this??? Is this due to the auto-balancing feature of the head lights? :confuse:

frisconick · July 2005

The TL has the same problem, and even Consumer Reports says this is a problem, and the high beams are ok. I would rather have non-xenon front lights, and not have to use high beams all the time, blinding everyone in front of me. Of course, I use the high beams as little as possible, however, I live in San Francisco and most of the driving is in well-lit areas.

frisconick · July 2005

I must say, Toyota of Walnut Creek has an excellent service department and don't charge an arm and a leg. They are honest, I know, my brother has his own repair shop, and I called him to ask if I was over priced.

enr · July 2005

My 2005 rl has 3,000 miles and I was told by the dealer that the "brake chatter" was caused by the "brake pad shifting in the upper bracket assembly". They said Acura is aware of the problem and is working on it. I would not have bought this car if the dealer told me about this huge annoyance before hand. If Acura cannot come up with a solution I will seek a full refund.

enr · July 2005

I was told the"brake chatter" on my new RL was caused by a"brake pad that is shifting in the upper bracket assembly" and that Acura is working on the problem but does not have a solution yet. Any thoughts ?

enr · July 2005

Same with me, my dealer said the cause was "brake pad shifting in upper bracket assembly" , does not sound as if Acura is close to solving this. What is the solution ?

dano4 · July 2005

I believe the problem is two-fold. First, the fit of the brake pad on its mounting pins is sloppy. Second, the backs of the brake pads have no insulating shims or other type of noise-deadening material.

After no help from the dealer, I did two things myself. I applied silicone disc brake adhesive (stops vibration and chatter) to the backs of the front brake pads. Also, I applied a high temerature brake lubricant to the mounting pins and the retaining springs. This requires removing the front brake pads from the caliper, but is easily accomplished by a brake shop, the dealer, or a car owner if mechanically inclined.

I also reported this to Acura over a month ago and have had no help to date. My fix has worked to date and makes my RL sound like a new car. I suppose the only downside is a small possibility of the dust seal on the brake caliper piston sticking to the brake adhesive and tearing, or dislodging the seal, as the pads wear and move further away from the seal. It's a small risk to have for the quiet. The rattle was driving me nuts! This is very definitely a brake pad/caliper design issue and the poor Acura/dealer response will weigh heavily in my next car purchase. I do not like spending nearly $50K and having to fix my problems myself! Good luck!

dano4 · July 2005

I should make it clear that my problem was a rattle over bumps that radiated through the front suspension. If your problem is brake squeal, which I continue to have first thing in the day, that is a different, but related problem.

Try several hard stops, or alternatively, drive in reverse at a speed of 20mph or so, and do several hard stops. This should help deglaze the brake pads. Obviously, either of these should be done with great caution in a safe area with no traffic, such as an empty parking lot.

dano4 · July 2005

I want to emphasize that the repair method I used should only be done by a qualified mechanic. Acura may also claim that it voids the warranty on this area of the car. As I said, it worked for me, but owners do it at their own risk.

enr · July 2005

Thanks so much, great information !!

frisconick · July 2005

Great information!!! I am likely not going to buy an RL for this reason.

getakey · July 2005

anybody care to comment on the climate control experience? mine seems very inconsistent. I need to set much different in the morning than in the afternoon.

steve95008 · July 2005

In that case, then the problem is relatively minor. There must be a defeat switch for the inside trunk release. Just defeat it so you won't inadvertently use it.

Unfortunately, it's not that simple... The defeat switch also disables the key fob and exterior trunk latch. At that point, the only way to open the trunk is via a manual handle accessible via the rear seat passthru or re-enable the defeat switch.

dano4 · July 2005

Had a nice conversation with Acura customer service. Acura is still working on a fix for this problem. I'm guessing this may not be a high priority.

dano4 · July 2005

I can understand your feelings. Aside from the frustration I dealt with over the rattling brake issue, the RL has been a good choice. I have about 8500 miles on my car. Handling, power, and high tech features are very good. Now that there are huge discounts off the sticker, you still may want to consider the RL.
Should add I am not high on car dealers in general. They want to shove the iron out the door, but I have not found many service departments willing to spend a lot of time on customer issues. To date, Lexus has been the best. And, I will not buy another car until the end of its first model year!

dano4 · July 2005

I've found I need to change the temp as I drive, although this is mainly in the winter. The A/C seems to hold a constant temp better than the heat. I have not gone to the dealer with this as it seems fairly minor. Most other cars I've owned with automatic systems seemed no better.

seamusnh · July 2005

Are there any aftermarket shocks for my 1996 Acura RL? I definately need them for the front and the dealer is expensive. I got 192k on the RL (a great car, the best I've ever owned) so I really don't want to spend a whole lot.....

socalrl · July 2005

HELP! I also had the same problem. I did the 3 finger salute, erased the message regarding the keyless remote. Now my MESSAGES option on the info display is greyed out. How do I get it back?

atlantic1 · July 2005

The reason it is greyed out is because you have NO MESSAGES!! Try leaving the car on and walk out with the remote (don't forget to shut the door), and you will see that the MESSAGES option will reappear in the info display.

socalrl · July 2005

Doh! Tried it - you are dead on. Thanks!

hereicome · July 2005

aok:
Did jmatthe resolve your problem? Could you tell me what year is your Acura? I have the same problem you have mentioned on this Feb. Want to know jmatthe's suggested trick work for you since then.
Last night I was working on this issue till 3am this morning. I took the battery to Autozone for free checking and came home with my healthy battery and a good brass battery terminal. I replaced the negative connection and reconnet my old battery. It did not work and I have to jump start the car. I drove around and stop and start and it gave the same old moody behavior.
I knew someone should have this problem posted on the internet and happy to see your posted question. The first time with jmatthe's trick, the car was started without assistance since last night, it make a lot of noise, then I found out a glove as caught by the hood and hitting the fan. As I pop the hood and the noise was mitigated. During the 2nd start with the same trick, the engine start ok but I cannot turn off the engine, I heard the starter was clicking with a moderate noise while the engine is running. I turned the key a few time to on and off and it finally the engine was off. Then I used jmatthe's trick a few times and it works. The last 2 times I did not use jmatthe's trick and it works also.
I guessed I was as puzzle as what you experienced.
I gathered that there is a short somewhere in the switch ???? I used to have a 97 Honda and it has ignition switch problem. That was really serious for one time it killed the engine while my wife was driving with our children on the highway. She stopped in the middle lane of a major highway and helicopter come etc. What a drama. I gathered the same company make Acura may foul up again?

blindlemon · July 2005

Just got back from dealer's service. I purchased my RL one month ago. I took it in this morning for a "sit in" appointment for the wiper. The driver side wiper is squeeking (louder when the windshield is wet). They replaced the blade but same problem. They washed windshield with solvent but same problem. They asked me if I wanted to wait while they replaced the entire assembly but same problem. (they thought the angle of the current blades to the windshield might be out of spec causing the vibration).

The service manager is going to research with Acura engineering. I told him the blade noise is unacceptable.

I have put nothing on the windshield (raindance etc) I have only cleaned with Invisible Glass cleaner

Any ideas on what may be the cause.

Mr_Shiftright · July 2005

Sounds like the wiper blade's "angle of attack". You (they) need to twist the wiper arm so that the blade hits the windshield at the proper angle. It's probably a bent arm or crooked blade or something.

atlantic1 · July 2005

To all of you who have this problem, I got a call from Acura yesterday and there is a Technical Service Bulletin that has been posted with a fix.

Mine is going in to get fixed on 8/2.

dano4 · July 2005

Atlantic1:
Thanks for the reply. After the fix, would you mind posting the details on the repair? My RL continues to be OK after my repairs, but I am interested to see what the repair entails to see if I should take mine back to the dealer.

atlantic1 · July 2005

No problem, I will get you the exact parts and the exact fix. I will let you know next week.

steven9179 · July 2005

!. ever since my first service call, the "auto door lock" sound repeats every 5 10 minutes after I put the car in drive and the doors lock. Does anyone know the fix??

Also, the LCD screen has a delay in the change on readout after the present singer/song ends--anyone know a fix?

Finally, the right side mirror doesn't always return to the preset after I backup and then put the car in drive--- anyone know a fix???

I truly love the car and believe these are issues that occur with every new production--but, I would like , sooner or later, to resolve these issues

many thanks,

Steve

steveinindy · July 2005

For the door lock problem, please see message #54 on this board, which actually refers you to other messages that suggest you disconnect the negative battery cable for one minute, then reconnect it and the door lock problem will be gone (you will need to enter the NAV and radio codes to reset them after the battery is reconnected). This works well--I did it myself and the problem was fixed. With respect to the LCD screen delay, many people on this board report the same problem after the recall fix from the dealer--including me. There is no reported fix yet. I am not familiar with the mirror problem, so perhaps you'll have to visit the dealer. By the way, my dealer was not aware of the door lock fix that was reported on this board. Steve.

getakey · August 2005

There was a thread here a while back talking about the alarm that goes off when you exit the cat with lights on "auto". At the time I read it, I thought that it was a bit triveal. However, I just had an experience that I now think that this is a more serious design flaw. I have my lights on auto all the time. Thus, everytime I exit the car, the alarm goes off. Normally, an alarm is there to alert you to something. In this case, it has no merit. You have the lights on auto so you do not have to think about turning them off (or on). Thus, very quickly I became immune to that alarm. However, driving this past weekend, I was on a road that had one of those daylight test sections to turn on your lights, so I changed from auto to full on. So guess what, when I got to detination, I did not remember that I had switched from auto to on and left lights on all day. this issue is more than annoying, it is a mistake in the design.

The other issue with the fuel warning and range is more annoying, but still a design mistake. The range indicator on my RL shows zero range when I have at least 3 gallons left. Thus, the range is zero about when the low fuel warning comes on. I appreciate the need to have some conservative estimate of the range, but as is it is virtually useless. That is, once the range hits zero, now all I know is that I have 3 gallons left and somewhere in the range of 60 miles left. The low fuel warning already tells me that. The range should be more accurate so that when the low fuel warning comes on, I can switch to range and get a more accurate idea of how much farther I can go.

gulu · August 2005

When the headlights are on Auto and I start the car, the passenger headlight turns out and then back to straight. I notice this on the wall of the garage in the mornings. Is this normal? Anybody else see this?

shs111 · August 2005

Two things I'm trying to figure out:

1. when storing a phone number in the hands-free dialer, how can I store a "hard pause" (i.e., send a string of numbers AFTER the phone answers);

2. on my 2004 TL, when the phone was linked and working, there was a telephone icon in the display above the a/c vents. It doesn't seem as though there is any such indicator in the 2005 RL, I only know if the phone is linked when I try to make a call. Or have I missed something here?

Love this car, just trying to figure it out!

Thanks.

sgl1 · August 2005

GETAKEY -
I couldn't agree with you more. I love my new RL and all, but those are my two biggest issues too!

steven9179 · August 2005

steve, many thanks. I appreciate your advice;I've been away---but will try the battery disconnect and get back to you. I'm sure the other issues will resolve i time.

Steve

enr · August 2005

I took mine in Monday after this alert, dealer replaced two springs and viola !, no rattling anymore !

enr · August 2005

Got a call from the dealer who said Acura has a solution to the ratlling. I brought it in , they replaced two springs and the car has been quiet ever since ! Hope this continues. Thanks.

scottjohnson · August 2005

Yes, that's how it is supposed to work, mine does it to. The car is checking out the AFS when it swings the headlight.

hwmovado · August 2005

press the AC button but dont press the knob down for ac.that usually works for me

getakey · August 2005

what is your experience with the operation of the traffic info on your nav system. Mine is very unreliable - first, the traffic indicators only show up on the nav 75% of the time. Second, when it does, its often wrong. I'm in the SF Bay area.

hwmovado · August 2005

yes, I too brought my car in for repairs today and the car sounds and performs like new.

flyaway123 · August 2005

Does or have anyone had a problem with any window in their 05 RL not lowering? My RL has this problem. The car is in service now and the service manager told me he has two other cars with the same problem but different windows. I would love to pass on a solution. I want my car back! Anyone?

randyl712 · August 2005

I'm trying to find information as to whether the full, complete, entire warranty transfers to new owners. I know that several of the "10 year" warranties revert to 3 / 5 year warranties for subsequent owners.

birdbird · August 2005

Anybody out there notice how hard it is to fasten the seat belt on the drivers side? Hardly any room around the receptacle to get your hand in there to lock the seat belt in. There was lots of room on previous RLs and the TL has room for your hand to get down there to push it in. Apparently the width of the box between driver and passenger seats is wider.

Anybody know how that could be fixed to make it more accessible to fasten seat belt on driver side. It's kind of a struggle to do it, don't ya think? I also notice that the shift is closer to the dash than the older model (knuckles almost hit the dash when putting it in park?

I wondering if this is what Consumer Guide meant when they referred to lacking in accessability, inaccessable, or whatever it was they or somebody I heard said about this car?

shs111 · August 2005

I have found the first problem with my 2005 RL (which I love, and even this issue won't diminish how I feel about this outstanding car). The "pause" command does not work. I am able to enter a phone number into the address book and include pause -- in fact multiple pauses -- but when I dial the entry, the pause just doesn't work. I took it back to the dealer today and they confirmed that this has been an issue in the RL. Disappointing, but I can live with it. Has anyone else experienced this?

Also, a design issue: in the 2004 TL, when the phone was successfully paired, you'd see the telephone icon in the display to confirm. In the 2005 RL, no such icon. You only know if it's paired when you go to make a call and it works or doesn't work. Too bad they didn't include that icon, I always found it helpful.

cstiles · August 2005

I have no issue with my seatbelts, and the distance between the shift knob and the dash seems fine. My windows all work fine. My battery has never gone dead in 6,000 miles and 6 months of ownership, and I've parked the car for up to a week at the airport on 5 occasions. I've yet to lose any of my XM presets. I've programmed at least 30 destinations into the NAV system and it has always gotten me to where I needed to go. The voice commands sometimes have trouble distinguishing restaurant requests with internal ambient temperature, but overall it seems to work. My front brakes do not rattle. My seat heaters have never fired up on their own volition, and the door locks are not possessed by the ghost of Vigors Past. Agree the backseat isn't the roomiest, but I have had over 10 different adult passengers back there without complaints. I'm 6' 3" with 36 inch inseams. The area around my tailpipes do get a little soot buildup (my car is white), but it cleans off easily with just about any cleaner. I do wish the car had better tires, which are easily remedied IMO. The xenons are aimed parallel to the car but they deliver enough visibility for my driving needs. Compared to my other 2 cars (w/o xenons), the headlights are excellent.

So far, this car has been extremely reliable and a joy to own. Looking forward to hammering it through a Midwestern winter storm. Actually, maybe not, since I hate the winters here.

honda_salesman · August 2005

Wanting to know if anyone experianced any problems with their older RLs. How was the gas mileage? comfort( i'm 5ft 11)? Anything that you can think of would really help! Was the trade-in value good or bad?

Acura RL Maintenance and Repair

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