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Acura TSX Brakes

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Comments

  • yoon1yoon1 Member Posts: 3
    i have a 2009 ACura TSX with about 19,000 miles. as i'm driving, there is a very LOUD grinding metal noise coming from (it think) my rear tires..... mind you, it doesn't necessarily make that loud grinding noise when i'm actually breaking, but while i'm driving or cruising... I called the dealer and they told me that it's most likely due to the wearing of the break pads. Is this true? at 19,000 miles? another other possible causes? the dealer also quoted me $170 to replace the rear brake pads and $340 for the front brake pads... are these prices reasonable?
  • nj2pa2ncnj2pa2nc Member Posts: 811
    could be the brakes or calipers are dirty and need to be cleaned. Yes, 19,000 is not a lot of mileage but if you do lots of braking it could happen.
  • yoon1yoon1 Member Posts: 3
    took the car into the dealership yesterday.... got a call this morning saying that the grinding metal noise was due to my back brake pads being at 10%. $170 total to replace them. Good deal?

    in any case, they did tell me that the rear brake pads are thinner than the front pads to begin with (i think someone else mentioned that before). according to the dealership, although the car is a front wheel drive, when you brake on the acura tsx, all four brakes brake; sort of like a four-wheel drive... if that's the case, then why are the rear brake pads thinner than the front? so annoyed.
  • jlmincjlminc Member Posts: 1
    Same deal for me... took it in and found out that the manufacturer has installed the parking brake too tight causing the rear brakes to wear prematurely. Acura repaired mine for free. When I complaned that resurfacing the rotors was due to their issue, not mine, they agreed to replace the rotors and pads.

    Problem solved. Stand your ground. Make them replace the rotors that now have prematurely shortened life caused by manufacturing problem!!!
  • yoon1yoon1 Member Posts: 3
    the dealership called and said the rear brake pads were worned down to 10%... when i asked about my front brake pads, they said they were good... at 70%... is that possible? mind you, my car has only 19,000 miles... front pads are the original... i thought the front pads were suppose to wear down alot sooner than the rear...???

    parking brake being too tight might be the cause... but the dealership said everything was in proper working order.... ???

    i did call acura headquarters and they said that they will inquire with the dealership to get to the bottom of the problem. hopefully, they can resolve this issue for me.... the discrepancies between the front and rear pads seem too high... if it is the parking brake, i'll definitely have to ask them to replace the rotors too... like you suggested... thanks...
  • sandraider0sandraider0 Member Posts: 3
    first time using a forum. I just had to see if anyone else has been having problems with there rear brake pads. i found it weird that my wife car is on its second set of rear brake pads. her friend also has the 2009 tsx and has the same issue. the dealer ship mechanic told her friend this is common problem and to expect to change them every 25000-30000 miles. be sure to get lifetime warranty on your pads if you do them your self. you'll need it.
  • nj2pa2ncnj2pa2nc Member Posts: 811
    Guess i must be one of the lucky ones- My 06 tsx still has the original brake pads (both front and back) with lots of life left after 96,000+ miles. It helps that most of it is highway driving.
  • sandraider0sandraider0 Member Posts: 3
    i would say so. never seen this kind of wear this fast on any other car that i have owned or worked on.
  • nj2pa2ncnj2pa2nc Member Posts: 811
    my father when he was alive would go thru brakes rapidly. He would race up to red lights and jam on the brakes. When I approach red lights I ease up on the gas pedal and have manual transmission helps.
  • fabflfabfl Member Posts: 2
    I too was told I need rear brake pads at 21,000 miles. I questioned my dealer as to why they had worn out so quickly and was told that this was happening on the TSX. I have since done some research and see that you got Acura to replace yours for free. I tried calling Acura Client Service to get reimbursed but was told that Acura does not have a known service issue with the brakes at this time. After reading all the posts it is hard to belief that this is the case. Any help you can offer for us other TSX owners to get Acura to cover something they should be responsible for would be greatly appreciated.
  • nj2pa2ncnj2pa2nc Member Posts: 811
    I would not rely on Acura Client service-try to get the dealer to do as a goodwill. If you have a good dealer they will probably do it.
  • jeff138jeff138 Member Posts: 4
    Just thought I would add to the unhappy folks out there. Got my 09 TSX tech manual new in late Jan 09, brought it in for a routines service last week and was told that my rear brake pads needed to be replaced. ($290 with parts and labor)

    Called acura client services to see if they would cover, they would hear none of it.

    I've had Fords and Hondas before, and I have NEVER seen brake pads last under 30K miles before. To have to replace them on my first Acura at 17,800 miles (11 months!) is truly disappointing. And for the record, while I may drive slightly harder than the average bear, in no way do I drive like a formula 1 driver, and I drive this car no differently than I drove any other car I've ever had.
  • cdnpinheadcdnpinhead Member Posts: 5,506
    . . .brought it in for a routines service last week and was told that my rear brake pads needed to be replaced.

    This is when it's time to ask some questions. How much pad material is on them when they're new? How much is on them now -- right vs. left, BTW (it matters)?

    If you bend over and let these people treat you this way, it'll continue. If you ask and they give you real answers that make sense, it could turn out that you're using your brakes harder than some others do.

    The dealerships will take you to the cleaners all day long, so long as they can get away with it. :shades:
    '08 Acura TSX, '17 Subaru Forester
  • jeff138jeff138 Member Posts: 4
    fair enough point, I did ask some questions, but unless you know how to check your brake pads yourself, at some point you're just taking their word for it...

    But, for completeness sake, wear on each was symmetric, both were 2/32" left, was told they were borderline and could go another 1-2 months at most.

    Again, I'm willing to concede that I may drive harder than some others, but again, this is not my first (or second, or third) car, and I have NEVER had brake pads wear this much at 17K miles or 11 months.

    Seems others on this forum have had this issue, too.
  • fedlawmanfedlawman Member Posts: 3,118
    " How much pad material is on them when they're new?"

    That's a good question. I would go the parts dept and ask to look at a new set of rear pads. Then I'd go here...

    autopartswarehouse.com - they sell PBR rear pads for the 2009+ TSX for $40/set.

    http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/sku/Acura/TSX/PBR/Brake_Pad_Set/2009/Base/4_Cy- l_2-dot-4L/W0133-1827349.html?loc=Rear&tlc=Brakes%2C+Suspension+%26+Steering
  • cdnpinheadcdnpinhead Member Posts: 5,506
    I was more gung-ho, I checked my brakes regularly (even the rear drum shoes, but I digress), and kept pretty much up-to-date on wear rate. Those days are done, but I'm coming up on 30K miles on my '08 TSX, and have heard no sign of the brakes being worn out. I do have a fair amount of dust on my front wheels, so I know they're wearing, but not to what extent, and the rear wheels are clean.

    Maybe they've changed the pad formulation since '08; I don't know. In any event, you've made me curious to some extent. Whether I'm curious enough to actually inspect the pads & get back to you remains to be seen. In general, rear pads/shoes last 2 or 3X what front pads do. You could well have a defect somewhere in the system. How's your fuel mileage? With dragging rear brakes, I'd expect lower than normal, but there are so many variables at this time of the year that it'd be pretty hard to assess.

    I put carbon pads on my last car at ~40K miles & they're still on and have remaining life, at 128K miles. You may want to consider carbon or ceramic pads to: 1) slow down the wear & 2) minimize dusting on the wheels.
    '08 Acura TSX, '17 Subaru Forester
  • jeff138jeff138 Member Posts: 4
    Everything else seems fine. Car drives well, doesn't drag. Fuel economy is same/better than advertised, I'm getting 29 HWY and about 24-25 combined.

    I'll have them look at the parking brake next time, but again, I haven't noticed anything.

    This car is a lease, so hopefully this is it for repairs. Just surprised because my previous car was an 06 Accord coupe that made it through its 3 year lease (32K miles) with only oil changes/tire rotations. Was expecting the same from acura, so brake pads at 11 months (<18K miles) was a surprise. To look at this forum, looks like there are a few more out there with similar rear pad problems in the 09, maybe it was a change with the new model for 09.

    Either way, I hope this is my only repair until i turn it in in 2012.
  • nj2pa2ncnj2pa2nc Member Posts: 811
    My mom owned a 98 accord, bought new, that went thru numerous brake pads in the 70,000 miles she owned it. When she bought a new accord in 08 she gave the 98 to my daughter. My daughter put an additional 20,000+miles with no brake problems. My 06 tsx, bought new 11/06, still has the original brake pads with almost 97,000 problem free miles. Just had the annual state inspection done-needed a new battery (tested low) so they replaced it under warranty. My car has had the cabin filters changed besides the normal oil changes/tire rotations.
  • noober1noober1 Member Posts: 1
    Hi guys, I am in the market to purchase a new car. I've pretty much decided to get a '10 TSX, base, with tech. But I can't stop thinking about these brake problems that I've been reading about for the past couple of weeks.

    Assuming I get the car and I run into the problem with the brake pads getting worn down quickly AND the dealership does not replace them as a warranty issue.. does anyone have a recommendation of some better brake pads that can be installed, instead of getting dealership / Acura pads that are going to wear down quickly again?
  • normanjnormanj Member Posts: 10
    I understand people saying that driving habits may cause premature brake wear, but, if this is not your first car, and you haven't had this problem before, I would look more at Honda's braking system than driver fault.

    My wife has a 2004 TSX. The rotors were replaced twice under warranty by 30,000 miles. The pads also didn't last very long. Her previous car was a 1997 VW Jetta. The pads and rotors on this car lasted a minimum of 60,000 miles. Same driver, same commute. Her previous car was a 1992 Passat that my records show had the first brake job at 80,000 miles.

    I question Hondas brakes. Either it's the pads, rotors, or venting. Still a great car.
  • nj2pa2ncnj2pa2nc Member Posts: 811
    I must be one of the lucky ones-still with the original brake pads and rotors on my 06 tsx. It now has almost 98,000 miles.
  • 1bythesea1bythesea Member Posts: 52
    Just found this...April 6, 2010

    Honda Settles Class-Action Suit Over Brakes‎ - By CHRISTOPHER JENSEN

    Type the title in google. The NY Times carried the article.

    So far so good on my TSX, but I have less than 10 K on the car. So, I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
  • cz_75cz_75 Member Posts: 7
    Honda has been reformulating (cheapening) their pad material so customers don't complain about brake dust and/or squeal, but these issues mean the brakes are far from idea for reliable daily service over a long period. The rear pads of every Honda product I've ever owned or worked on have been thinner than the fronts, but still last twice as long. My solution for better braking and wear has been to go aftermarket for the pads and rotors.
  • nj2pa2ncnj2pa2nc Member Posts: 811
    My 06 tsx, bought new 11/06, has the original brake pads and rotors with quite a bit of life left. My car has 104K miles.
  • fabflfabfl Member Posts: 2
    Guess we weren't complaining for no reason. Just heard about the class action on 2009 TSXs and some 2010 TSXs. If you haven't received the information in the mail go to www.accordsettlement.com and/or http://www.girardgibbs.com/HondaBrakes.asp. They are offering 50% of what you paid for replacements up to $125.00. Why shouldn't we be entitled to 100% of our costs. I, for one, am going to write the court that the proposed settlement is not fair.
  • nj2pa2ncnj2pa2nc Member Posts: 811
    After the lawyers got their fees-this is what is basically left
This discussion has been closed.

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