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Honda’s updated response to consumer reported 2015 Honda CR-V vibration

Because Honda cares as much about our CR-V readers as we do...
Honda_CR-V_Vibration

With 134,660, 2015 Honda CR-Vs sold this year to date, despite a spattering of consumer reported 'at idle' vibration events, CR-V remains the best selling compact SUV in North America; and that’s no small feat with Ford, Hyundai, Nissan and Toyota nipping at your proverbial heels.

Torque News has driven the competition in a side by side fair comparison under exacting field conditions. We, like the majority of auto journalist polled, vote 2015 Honda CR-V overall winner in the segment, based on construction quality, interior ergonomics, overall ride and handling characteristics, advanced styling and last but not least, fuel efficiency. We further acknowledge what we believe to be the best engine, CVT combination in the class.

With that said, what’s with the reported vibration issue…

As earlier reported by American Honda Motors and expanded on by Torque News and others, a small percentage of 2015 Honda CR-V buyers have experienced what they perceive as an unacceptable level of interior vibration when CR-V sits at idle engaged in “Drive-mode.” Honda has acknowledged the issue and as promised earlier in this video, to explore the cause and effect of the video, and, address an appropriate remedy.

This is where ‘things” get a bit tricky in a world where automotive engineering and a company's intent to serve the end user often collide; at times the individual customer’s perception comes into play.

In short

The cause and effect of a reported problem, short of an obviously defective component, is more often that not difficult to identify, much less replace within a “chapped” customer’s timeline. What one consumer views as a blaring nuisance, or defect may be an unknown or an acceptable condition to another; none the less, bothersome just the same to the unsatisfied new or used car owner.

What does Honda have to say about this and what does the future hold for 2015 CR-V owners?

Honda’s comment

When asked to comment on the issue at hand, Honda points to the use of an identical Earth Dreams ™ direct injected 4 cylinder i-VTEC engine and CVT transmission in the very popular 2015 Accord without incident of excessive vibration. This points to a (possible) “harmonics” vibration transmitted through the CR-V ACE structure or attached frame member.

Note: Although the pin-pointed source of vibration has not been divulged to Torque News, Honda assures us and CR-V owners that the acknowledged vibration presents no danger of present or future component failure, and, that the company is working diligently on an acceptable fix. On a personal note, Torque News did not experience unusual vibration when initially test driving 2015 CR-V. we will revisit CR-V this week.

According to Honda spokesperson Chris Martin, “we're working to come up with solutions that will address several different customer perceptions of the vibration at idle. While it
is annoying to some, it is not noticed by most, and it does not represent a
detriment to the safety or reliability of the vehicle," states Chris.

Base on past dealership experience and subsequent product recall time line: Our advice to Torque News readers that currently experience an ongoing (slight) vibration issue with Honda CR-V is to report it to your dealer and patiently wait for a notification of recall from American Honda Motors. CR-V is the best selling SUV in North America. And, Honda will do all that is necessary to preserve the overall quality reputation of CR-V while serving the customer.

Update and disclosure

Honda-Torque News is an independent automotive news and review site dedicated to reporting world-wide, regional Honda Motors, and Acura Division news and developments. Although a long-time consumer, owner and fan of all things Honda, that's where the connection to Honda begins and ends.

Torque news is not directly affiliated with Honda, nor does Honda compensate Torque News directly or indirectly for company related news reports. You may read our latest unbiased, seat of the pants review of 2015 Honda CR-V AWD here.

Automotive News
Honda

Comments

Kent (not verified)    July 26, 2015 - 9:31AM

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Thanks for the response Parks. I find it hard to believe the big drop in numbers has to do with regional inventory. All the cars listed on the website had stock numbers. How could they be advertised, but not on the lot? This dealership is definitely part of a larger group, but I suspect something else is going on that caused the drop. (or, did another dealer from this group just get them transfered there?)

John (not verified)    August 6, 2015 - 4:01PM

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At this point its a crap shoot. I was seriously thinking about buying a CR-V even went for a test drive and had a very good offer from the dealer. But right now, if I end up with a lemon, its going to impair the potential resale value down the road. I was pretty much set on the CR-V too, as vibration issue aside, it was the best vehicle in its class.

Gabe (not verified)    August 6, 2015 - 11:31PM

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Here's the sure-fire test: Warm up 2015 CR-V for 8 minutes, turn off headlights, heater/ A.C./ fan, put car in drive, press brake pedal, wait 2 or 3 seconds for idle to drop to around 600 rpm. Most CRVs under this test scenario will have the resonance vibration. Turn on electrical accessories that kick up the idle speed, to around 800 rpm, and the shudder diminishes. Put on the parking brake and take your foot off of the brake pedal (while in drive) and the shudder goes away (rpm goes up to 800 rpm). Put in in reverse with same test condition as above, the shuddering diminishes. This clearly involves a resonance issue.

Christy Johnson (not verified)    August 12, 2015 - 10:35AM

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I recently paid cash for the 2015 CRV. Within a few days I noticed the vibration while waiting for a traffic light. Then I was able to sense the vibration even going at a high speed on the highway. I inquired at the dealership. They said that Honda was working on a fix for the problem. IT IS AN OBVIOUS and ANNOYING PROBLEM that Honda thinks I should just accept until they decide to take the issue seriously. After all, "It is not a safety issue," they stated. I returned to the dealership and asked for a full refund. I received almost all of my money back. I do not even want to look for another car and am very disappointed the CRV did not work out.

Parks McCants    August 13, 2015 - 12:26PM

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Good morning Christy. A sad commentary to be sure. We're happy to read that your dealership did step up to the plate and refund most of your purchase $, they didn't have to. In the car-game, 'annoying' does not elude to faulty, bad, or dangerous. CR-V remains the number #1 selling SUV in North America, yet may not be the perfect vehicle for you. Best of luck to you in your new vehicle search. Take care.

Lana (not verified)    September 3, 2015 - 9:34AM

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I bought my CR-C 2015 LX on August 12, 2015. This is my third Honda and my husband drives one too. From the beginning vibration was very strong and loud. My whole body was shaken and I was nauseated. Coupe of times I was about to have an accident, waiting on red signal trying to reduce vibration. In some point changing lanes while driving became a problem, due to loud push when I pushed gas pedal. I was betrayed by Honda and dealership.They knew this issue and sold me this car. But for the test drive I was driving different CR-V with more miles on it and did not have any vibration. Right now my car on dealership. They do not know how to fix it. I wish that I would read about those issues before. I trusted Honda. I hope that I will have refund for my car or replacement. I drive dealership CR-V 2015 and rental car does not have this issue I love my rental CR-V.

Garry Jonnson (not verified)    September 3, 2015 - 1:11PM

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My 2015 CRV-EX-L began vibrating 3-4 weeks AFTER purchase. I have what Honda terms a "Mode 1" vibration problem whereby my car when in gear with foot on the brake will begin seriously vibrating and feeling almost like it will stall with the RPM's dropping to 500. This happens when I have the AC or other electrical equipment or not. The vibration is strong and the engine feel like it has no idea where it should be idling. The CRV will not do this when in park or when the engine is cold. I can make the vibration go away by giving it some gas and boosting the engine to about 1000rpm. The engine, at least for the Mode 1 problem, seems to be overly aggressive idle whereby the engine computer want to idle at the absolute lowest value in order.

Jerry Nisker (not verified)    September 4, 2015 - 10:01AM

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My wife and I have been looking at small SUV's. I had intended to look at Honda, however after reading about the vibration problems on Edmunds and the information on your site I've decided to pass on Honda and not even bother to look. Why buy a problem? You may want to pass this on to Honda...one customer lost even before looking. How many others?

Stephan (not verified)    September 8, 2015 - 1:17PM

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My wife and I started shopping for cars this past Labor Day, and we drove both the Toyota Rav4, and the Honda CRV. Both of us agreed that the RV was a much better driving car. Steering was tight and responsive, and we did not notice any vibrations during the test drive. We currently have a KIA Rondo which is 8 years old, with 130,000 miles on it. It runs a bit rough, but still a great car. Maybe this is why we didn't notice the vibration. Will definitely have to take another test drive of both vehicles again, and question our Honda salesman, and press him on this vibration issue! This forum proved very informative!

Parks McCants    September 8, 2015 - 4:42PM

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Welcome Stephan. Based the latest feedback from 2015 CR-V owners, the vibration issue may have been address by Honda in later 2015 manufactured CR-Vs. Yes, I agree with you. In our direct comparison between Ford, Nissan, Toyota and Honda, CR-V is the most refined compact SUV in the group. Good luck!

Nicole Buch (not verified)    September 15, 2015 - 11:34AM

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I bought a Honda CR-V Touring this past Thursday 9/10/15 and have experienced and increased idle the longer I sit at a red light. I researched this issue before I bought the car, and test drove this vehicle trying to feel for vibrations, but I don't think we sat at a light LONG enough for me to really feel this problem during the test drive. I did test drive a car that was HORRIBLE. It's not as bad as that one. But I have only had it for a few days, driving back and forth to work, and it already bothers me. I too hope they come up with a fix so I don't end up regretting my 34k purchase. I like to keep my cars for a LONG time, had my last Honda for 13 years. I will be going back to the dealer soon to get this documented. Not sure what constitutes an unacceptable amount of idle? How likely is it that they will really have a "fix"? Thanks.

Parks McCants    September 15, 2015 - 2:14PM

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Welcome Nicole. The intermittent vibration emanating from your vehicle at idle could be caused by fuel injection mapping. Or, it may simply be a side effect of direct injection. Either way, I do hope that Honda comes up with a fix for the issue that addresses all owner's perception of the problem. In the mean time, turn on you climate control or stereo when sitting at an idle stop, or simply increase the idle with the accelerator peddle.( just a bit) This will place a load on the engine, and raise the idle rpm just a bit, eliminating the idle oscillation and subsequent vibration 'droning' sound. Thanks for your comment.

Alex (not verified)    September 19, 2015 - 12:42PM

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I have all 3 'modes' of vibration, and seems worse in the colder weather. Some people say to turn on the rear defroster on, which raises the idle rpm, and makes the vibration less annoying. I tried it and it does help, but its ridiculous i have to resort to this gimmick...
My dealer has replicated my concern, and they dont deny this is an issue. Honda reps tell me to be patient and that they are working on a fix. This is from april. I have called them 5 times. Same runaround bs. There is no fix.

If you roll the dice and buy a 2015 crv, i wish you luck. Mine has been a nightmare.

Kent (not verified)    October 1, 2015 - 10:57AM

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Hi again Parks,
I hadn't read this blog in several weeks and returned today to see several additional negative experiences. I am curious about your comment that the vibration problem appears mostly tied to a short production period. Have you pinned down the suspected dates you think it applies to?
BTW, my car at times does idle strong while stopped at a traffic light. But it happens only intermittently, and I'd consider it to be, in my case, a minor issue.

Parks McCants    October 1, 2015 - 2:02PM

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Good day Kent. In looking to the September sales report, 2015 Honda CR-V is experiencing unprecedented record sales. On the dealership side, our network tells us that the vibration issue is one of the past. As to date of manufacturing: That's a good question. With well over 100,000 visits a month to the Honda specific column, we may be averaging 1 to 2 concerned comments per month. And I've yet achieve full disclosure as to date of manufacture from our readers. Thank you Kent.

me (not verified)    October 7, 2015 - 2:27AM

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I smell a rat. If the problem were truly as bad as some people say, they would have noticed it during the test drive.

Further, this is typical: a person perceives a problem with their own car, and somehow this makes them an expert who knows that everybody has the same problem.

Nic (not verified)    October 7, 2015 - 2:11PM

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Fairly arrogant and condescending statement. When I brought my car (purchased last Thursday) back to the dealer due to issues similar to those that have been described the mechanic confirmed my concerns after driving the vehicle. A software update was tried with no change in the conditions. A call was place to a Honda technician who I was able to speak with. he confirmed that the issue exists and that Honda is actively trying to find a solution..

Parks McCants    October 7, 2015 - 5:55PM

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Nick, please note: We've had several comments posted to this forum that are very obvious Honda brand detractors, most likely placed by competing brands. And, as stated earlier in this forum, the vast majority of 2014-2015 CR-V owners have not experienced a noticeable vibration. Most states in the U.S., and dealerships for that matter, allow a vehicle returned withing 3 days of purchase or lease. In your case, if the vibration is in facet severe, I respectfully suggest that you return it to the dealership for refund or vehicle exchange. If in-fact it's an intermittent, minor 4 cylinder vibration, that''s the nature of a direct injected 4 cylinder gasoline engine. Wishing you best of luck and safe driving.

Cliff (not verified)    October 7, 2015 - 3:57PM

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I also own a 2015 CRV and have a vibration issue. You won't hear this from Honda, yet, but I'll tell you what the problem is. First on all, I have not noticed a vibration at any speed. The only time the vibration occurs is when I am in drive at a complete stop, with the brake pressed in. It doesn’t matter if I am in Drive or Reverse, or any of the lower gears, it vibrates just the same and is quite annoying. If I am going to be stopped for any length of time like a long red light or a slow Drive-thru window, I drop it into Neutral just to get rid of the vibration while waiting.
Now for the reason this is happening. To you CRV owners out there, try this test.
1) In drive at a complete stop, with the brake pressed in, feel the vibration.
2) Push in your Emergency Brake all the way.
3) Release the foot brake while leaving the Emergency Brake on.
You are now STILL at a complete stop and in drive, but the emergency brake is what is holding you there. Viola, no vibration! The ONLY difference being that the car is being held back by the Emergency Brake rather than the standard foot pedal. Leaving IMHO only 1 possibility. That is that the Power Braking system draws enough power from the engine to drop the RMP (Yes, you can see the RPM needle go BACK UP when you use the Emergency Brake). A low RMP causes a vibration no matter what vehicle you drive. My guess? Honda will do a software update to keep the RPM up when the power brakes draw power. The question is, when will they figure this out?

Cliff (not verified)    October 8, 2015 - 10:58AM

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One more thing that I want to point out.

If you try the above E-Brake test and you have either the headlights, air conditioner, or the rear defroster on, the vibration will not happen. These 3 things somehow keep the RPM up so you will not get the vibration. I haven't found any other accessory that will get rid of the vibration. I tried the seat heat, the power windows, radio, etc. It is just those 3 high draw items that somehow raise the RPM and stabalizes the engine. This is probably why they think it is an intermittent problem on only some 2015 CRVs. Any CRV owner that drives with their headlights on will always say they don't have a problem. Basically, if it is dark out, hot out, or cold out, you won't have the issue! I would love to see someone that swears they don't have the issue try this without these 3 accessories on.

AK - CRV (not verified)    October 10, 2015 - 11:42PM

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I Agreed - This is a major problem. The vibration in my 15 CR-V is not slight..it's very noticeable and very annoying! Once the car warms up it starts to shake like crazy. Completely unacceptable for a brand new vehicle. What pisses me off is the dealership hid this issue acts like they didn`t know anything. Bring this to sale they push on to service just goes in circles. Hope Honda come up with fix and at least get recalls
and make worth of our $35K plus hard earn money.

Patel (not verified)    October 15, 2015 - 3:32PM

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Guess I shouldn't move forward with buying the CRV now. There's no way in earth that I will go for a Nissan Rogue, perhaps the Rav4. I only have confident in a CRV and Rav4. Do you guys think that it will make this problem go away with the 2016 version of the CRV? Maybe not......