2012 Wind noise driver side defect? test drove 3 vans

minivannewbie

Hey guys, I have a 2012 Touring I picke up last week. Starting at 55mph, and progressively worse, (I cruise at about 75-80) the wind in the cabin gets pretty loud. It's like driving on a windy highway where you get the gushes of wind that sound like it's going across the car.

However the worst part is on the driver side window at the top left corner the wind sound is very obvious. So much that if you simply put a small rag into the corner the sound clearly goes away. So thinking I had something defective I took it into the dealer today. Technician drove with me and agreed it was loud and could be muffled with a rag. Later that day he drove another 2012 touring and said it was obvious in that one as well. (Right side passenger does not have this problem btw)

I then went back to the dealer, we drove a 3rd car and that one too could easily be heard on the driver side, with and without the rag.

He didn't know how to fix it since they haven't seen many 2012 Odyssey's in yet. I contacted Honda thru twitter @hondacustsvc and they assigned me a case manager who's looking into it.

I searched the boards and dont' see many people complaining about this. Given there were 3 2012 Odyssey's that had this were they all a bad batch? Are we crazy? Is this only on the touring?

Anyone else notice this? please let me know as I'm a bit frustrated on this. The other car we drove btw sounded quieter to me in regards to front windshield wind noise. I'm hoping it's easily fixable and that I don't have a lemon.

If you read this review from Edmunds http://www.edmunds.com/honda/odyssey/2012/
"On the inside, the 2012 Honda Odyssey is as quiet as a premium luxury sedan. Road and wind noise are almost completely absent, as is noise from the drivetrain. Honda's continuing use of active noise-cancelling technology contributes to the impressively peaceful cabin by emitting counter-phase sound through the speakers to eliminate much of the drone that passengers would otherwise hear."

I was hoping for this quiet minivan, instead it's a pretty windy one

svdz1

I too have a 2012 Odyssey, but it's a EXL with RES.

Wind noise at drivers door is horrible from 50miles/hr and up. Passenger side doesn't seem to do it. Haven't tried rags but by just rubbing hand up around top window area doesn't seem to affect anything.

I've taken back to dealer who also noted the noise. They also test drove another 2012 that was still new on the lot and I was told it also had issue so they wouldn't attempt to warranty any door seals.

We test drove a 2011 and didn't notice any wind noise prior to buying the 2012, but haven't been back to test drive the '11 again.

Seems to be a Honda defect but they've already got my 35k and don't seem to care about resolving at this point.

ph1551

I just bought a 2012 odyssey EXL and have similar problem. I have wind noise on passenger side coming from the windshield or small window in front of door. Only occurs at hight speed 70 and above. Only had the car for one month and haven't taken it back to the dealer. I had a 2008 EXL and it was problem free for and after my trip I wish I had kept it. I was expecting it to be quiet compared to the 2008.

cjasis

Our 2012 Touring Elite has the same wind intrusion sound around the top of the driver's door at freeway speeds. I haven't yet had a chance to take the car in but it's def. not right since the passenger side is very quiet.

hijbjb

Count me in. I get thesame noise on the drivers side. Copassengers comPlain that i am shouting in the car to get my voice heard. And they dont need to shout so that means they dont feel the noise as much as i do. I think i should take it to the dealer. T is pretty obvious that the wind noise is more at higger speeds since the van pretty quite on city local traffic.

I will try the rag but i am not sure where to put the rag. Should it be all along the window or just at a particular spot. Any kind of advise is appreciated.

blucas4

me too, me too....we have a 2012 touring elite...the wind noise is so bad that we are thinking of trading it in with 2,000 miles on it.....terrible...obviously Honda has a problem here...sounds like I am in a rocket ship driving down the highway and it interferes with the voice technology...the car can't understand voice commands cause it is sooooooo loud inside the cabin....

rbmarsee10

My husband and I purchased a 2012 Touring Elite in October 2011. (Traded in our 2008 Odyssey). We had an issue with the wind noise in our 2008 and found a tsb regarding the issue. We brought it to the attention of our local Honda dealer and they corrected the problem immediately by placing a "foam strip" on the internal components of the door. Now that we have our 2012, we have found the same "wind noise" issue to be present. We were actually just at the dealership this morning in an attempt to get the problem resolved. We were informed that because the structure of the door (body style) had changed, the foam seal would not be able to be inserted in the same way as with our 2008. The dealership even called Honda's manufacturer to see if there had been any reported issues concerning this. None were found. It was decided that we would return to the dealership in 90 days in order to give Honda time to see if any other issues are coming in regarding wind noise and to come up with a solution. I strongly encourage each of you having issues to contact Honda. If there are enough of us bringing the wind noise to their attention, they will come up with a solution to benefit each of us! Thanks for taking time to read my post. God bless!

cruise14

I cannot believe I just found this thread! I bought a 2012 Honda Odyssey Touring Elite last week and I am so so upset. The wind noise which sounds like it's coming from the driver window or the new tiny triangular-shaped window next to sideview mirror-- it's unbelievable. Additionally, the air vent is being reflected in the sideview mirror, no matter how I turn it!! On top of this-- it was a mildly windy day yesterday, and as I drove on the highway, the Odyssey literally was sliding on the road to the point that I almost felt I should pull over.

I called the dealership, they advised they could see if it was something the service dept could fix. Personally, I was looking to return the car all-together. Today I called Honda America, they advised this was between me and the dealership.

As a side-note, I'll mention that the onboard computer is a pain and not at all simple and user-friendly. It takes about 5 different button selections to do anything and if you use an iphone 4s with it, it turns the sound off on your phone if it's connected thru bluetooth. So you are not notified of text messages, etc once you are connected with the car. UGH!!!!

Needless to say, tomorrow I am getting rid of my week-old Odyssey. I am not a happy camper.

minivannewbie

There's a larger thread here on Odyclub that I have my Honda Rep following. We definitely need more people actually taking it into the dealer so that their Honda Rep can start putting in complaints so that there is a fix.
http://www.odyclub.com/forums/54-2011-odyssey/152175-wind-driver-side-all-3-odys- seys-test-driven-defect.html

danielacostaaz

Currently shopping 2012 Odyssey and found the driver's window noise problem on 3 out of 5 test driven. The two that were quiet were indeed very silent. Discovered that the three noisy ones all had a sloppy job done on aftermarket window tint on the driver's window: an uneven edge from about 2/3 of the way to the top left just enough of a gap that you can hear wind noise starting at about 50mph on up. The two quiet ones had a better job installing the tint with no ragged edge exposed. We are waiting for a new one off the truck and told the dealer to NOT install tint.

danielacostaaz

Test drove two off the truck without aftermarket tint and both were quiet; taking delivery of one of those today. See my earlier post about sloppy window tint and check yours if you have noise. Roll the window all the way up and look from the outside at the tint along the back edge of the window as it nears the top. If you see a varying gap width to the molding of tinted vs non-tinted (especially as you approach the top corner of the glass), that could be your source of wind noise, because that was the cause in all three 12 Ody's we drove that had the driver's window wind noise above 50mph.

hdrourr

Bought a 2012 Odyssey Touring to replace a 2005 Touring.... Wind noise is incredible... I am floored that Honda let this out and is not addressing it... We have Bluetooth for the phone and it is impossible to hold a conversation when on a freeway..

Hopefully they will address it soon.

rezo

Why would a dealer install an after-market tint on a brand new car from a reputable car manufacturer without anybody explicitly asking for this feature?
I really don't understand.

robr2

To add it onto the final price of the car. It costs them about $100 to do and probably retail it at $400.

danielacostaaz

Yes, tint is a common dealer add-on for extra profit. We are happy with the factory tint, and very glad we did a thorough test drive before buying. The van we brought home is very quiet. Our dealer is changing the way they install tint to avoid wind noise issues on the units they sell. So far it looks like the sloppy tint installation was the cause of the wind noise here.

robr2

Just to be clear, that's dealer installed tint - not factory tint.

svdz1

Where I live after-market tinting on the front windows is illegal. There is no tint on my front windows and above 50mph I might just as well crack the window because that what it sounds like. Maybe it's just a new "feature" Honda has given us with the new slogan "like no van before"!

kleiner

That really stinks. I think Honda really needs to get their act together. Anyways, I have a 2006 and the same thing happens BUT it's on the top right corner. Good luck with your car. Also, did the dealer offer to replace the windsheild? Hope you get many more miles.

robr2

Where I live after-market tinting on the front windows is illegal.

Mr. Sematics here - the window tint at a certain point is probably the actual law. The typical allowable level is 35%.

young898

I bought the 2012 EXL a week ago and I confirm that the wind noise is horrible once you pass 55mph on the highway.

I am disappointed at Honda for not addressing this issue.

danielacostaaz

Have you verified your noise is not caused by aftermarket window tint?

young898

My EXL has no aftermarket window tint.
The first time I drove it on the highway, I didn't know better and I said to my friend on the passenger seat, "Strong wind outside!". Guess what, I hear the same wind noise again and again even if it's not windy outside at all.

mapperone

I bought my 2012 Odyssey EX-L in mid-March. It was built in Jan. of 2012. Right away on my first, initial test-drive, I noticed a slight wind whistle on the driver's side window at just 30-35mph. Now, I've had the car a month and yesterday I took my first real trip at highway speeds. The noise from the driver's side window is still heard, and now I heard quite a bit of noise on the lower part of the windshield. It didn't matter whether I was driving with a tail wind or a head wind. I haven't taken it in for this yet, but I'm afraid the dealer is not going to fix it, based on past experiences with this problem.

stonge101

Our 2012 EX purchased 29 Feb, is all but impossible to drive over 50mph because it sounds like a dental tool is drilling away on the left side of your head. There is a high pitch whistle from the driver side triangle window that is distracting to the point of requiring earplugs. This is clearly caused by wind, as it changes pitch with speed and on windy days. (There is a thing about non-EOM window tint: this van does not have second party window tint.) There are a few tech bulletins out there about similar issues of wind noise and seals. Additionally, the forums show that 2011-2012 windows can provide an undesirable level of wind noise. However, I agree with post # 23, our experience at the dealer has been the same.

TSB 12-021 - Engine or Wind Noise From the Left Front Quarter Glass
TSB 12-030 - Wind Noise From the Front Door Glass

ryusunki

I purchased 2012 Honda Odyssey and experienced excessive wind noise. I couldn't talk to family members in the vehicle while driving on highway speed. I previous Honda Accord and Civic, never had this problem, but this is unexpected quality delivered.

I contacted Honda Corporate office, there is known wind noise issue at between driver and windshield glass. From my experience it is more than just one place. I also have experienced too much wind noise while I'm sitting on rear seat. It is worse than driver side.

Waiting for a call from Honda Case Manager. Hopefully, they could isolate the issue without much of traveling the dealership back and forth.

cruise14

I am still having this problem-- my car was purchased in November 2011 (it's a 2012 touring --highest model they make etc.) and it is so loud inside, it's ridiculous! Will you please update this board with their answer to you. I contacted Honda Corp back in November and they were completely unhelpful.
Thanks!

mapperone

I'm mapperone. I wrote #23 above. It's now 8/13/2012. My EX-L now has 7300 miles. At 985 miles, the dealer replaced the front drivers side window channel. (top part) They wrote on the ticket, "Retest Drove Good with no Noise." I beg to disagree. Their work eliminated the single wind whistle heard at speeds down to 30, but there's still wind noise on the drivers side window and somewhere around the little triangular window in front of the side window. I think there's some noise coming through the base of the front windshield too. The service manager hinted that the van would need a re-sealing of the windshield. But when I followed up on that a couple weeks later, he seemed to dig in his heals and didn't want to do any more work on the windows. Later, I went on a 4800 mile vacation trip. Along the way, I was driving alongside a golf course. An errant golf ball struck the windshield hard and put 2 long cracks in it. After I got home, I had the windshield replaced. How was the wind noise then? Well, the first few days, I noticed a significant improvement. But after that, there was still wind noise on the side. Some days I can hear wind noise even at 35 mph. But the noise through the windshield was noticeably less. (maybe 40% less) So I'm making slow progress. I believe what's wrong with the weatherstripping is a design defect. New ones will have to be designed and manufactured. I think this will take a little time.

ryusunki

Made two visits to Honda dealer, advised me that the technician agreed that it is excessive noise, but if he pulled out any other cars, it would do the same. He had another customer complaint the same previous, there were nothing they could get done. No luck!

x5sav

I just purchased mine (2012 EX) 2 weeks ago and pay very close attention on this wind noise issue. I am happy to report that there is no wind noise issue. The cabin is quiet, so I guess HONDA must have fixed the issue.

jmess

I bought a 2012 touring last month and it has the wind noise. My VAN came off the line in mid July. It will be interesting to see if there are any subtle mirror or glass changes for 2013

anmaysj

Hey guys, I bought 2012 EXL last July 2012. I have noted the wind noise since I purchased but I thought it was normal until I read this thread. The van is now has 4000 miles. I bought it back to the dealer 3 times. The applied the Bulletins TSB 12-021 and 12-030 and some adjustments they they had from American Honda Tech Support lines. However, the noise is still there or even worse. The service tech did a test drive with my on a 2013 Touring model and he agreed with my that the 2013 is very quiet while he also agreed that there is something wrong with my car. The worse part is even with all the windows are up and sunroof closed, when I stop at the red light, I still hear the people taking clearly while they wait for their green light at the crosswalk. Driving it on the freeways is terrible, it sounds like I am driving an airplane.

After the third time visiting the dealer, what I have from the service dept was that "you are unlucky to have a bad year model. There is nothing we can do. Hopefully American Honda can do something about your car." I am very disappointed and frustrated. I am wondering if I should drive this $35K van for the rest of its life. I am a fan of Honda but I guess I have to start thinking about different brand now

minivannewbie

Has anyone had any luck w/ Honda fixing it? I finally have time to drop off my odyssey to the dealer for more than a few days. That's the worse part. With kids it's really a burden to drop off the car more than a few days to get fixed.

Just wondering if there's a service bulletin I can refer to?