2007 CRV 4WD EX Rear End Problem

[anastos]

I recently leased a 2007 CRV 4WD EX and have experienced the rear end problems that others have described.

After just 50 to 80 miles, the rear end started vibrating slightly and making noise when turning left or right. Every 5 to 10 miles of driving after that point, the vibration and noise have progressivley become worse. The VSA system doesn't seem to have any relation to this problem. The problem is present whether the car is cold or warmed up, and whether the temperature outside in 10 degrees or 55 degress. The problem is most noticable during slow speed turning, such as in a parking lot. As the problem has become worse, it seem to now also be causing the rear end to make noise and grinding sounds when the brakes are applied. Other forum users have mentioned that this problem seems to be related to vehicles manufactured in Japan versus Ohio. My vehicle was manufactured in Japan according to the door sticker.

My scheduled service call is happening today, I will keep everyone posted on what the dealers does or reports back.

On a separate note, the tire pressure monitoring system or low pressure indicator is useless. Under 30 to 35 degress the low tire pressure light comes on in my dash and stays on. The tire pressure is not low, so this is annoying.

Some final unrelated observations overall, from a first time Honda buyer (leaser):

* The gas mileage has been poor: 11 mpg to 18 mpg average in the city. I have owned 4.6 liter 290 hp V8 Cadillac's that have achieved better gas mileage. I don't understand why the mileage is so low on the V4. I was really expecting to benefit from economics of the smaller engine which was one of the reasons why I leased this CRV.

* The front seats are fairly uncomfortable.

* The gear shifter for the transmission does not show you what gear you have selected. Your eyes have to wander on the cluttered dash to verify the gear.

* The tachometer on the dash seems to have a more predominant size and position that the speedometer, which I find a little odd. Also, the numbering on the speedometer only displays even numbers 20, 40, 60, etc., so if you mostly drive 30 or 55 you have to always guesstimate your speed.

[sleeksilver]

Why on earth did you lease the car if you don't like that much about it???? :roll:

Gas milage gets better as the engine breaks in, this is the same even with GM's Northstar which you had in your Caddy. It is an inline 4, not a V4. The tach and the speedo are the SAME SIZE. If the speedometer goes by 10s (10,20,30, etc) why is it so hard to determine how fast you are going, halfway between 50 and 60 is 55?????

Sorry for the rant, your problem will be taken care of. If not return the Honda and go back to GM which is billions of dollars in debt, and financial credibility has earned their stocks/bonds a "junk" status. (Thanks Dr. deGraff :lol: )

EDIT: One of my final projects was a 20 page study on GM's financial status, and let me tell you they are NOT doing well... I will post the whole document if someone wants to read it.

[Cadd]

If you post, I'll read about GM.

I get about 18 - 20MPG in the city with mine 30k miles on the clock.

Also, your GM is horrible. You only get between 12 - 18mpg in the city? I have a 300HP V8 Toyota motor that gets consistent 18 - 20mpg in the city. So sad that GM has a larger motor, makes less HP and gets less mpg. No wonder they'll eventually be doomed financially.

[vexdan]

Actually the problem with GM has nothing to do with their vehicles but everything to do with the fact that their labor costs are significantly higher than any Japanese company. They have assembly line workers starting out at $40/hour. That's ridiculous, especially so when their quality isn't all that great. Further, they pay lifetime health benefits to all their employees and retirees. That's insane, considering the rising costs of health care. Their unions screwed them over pretty bad. If I were them, I would go into bankruptcy and break those retarded contracts. It must be the only private company in America that pays for their non-working, non-executive employees to have health care. Insane. Absolutely insane.

[anastos]

[quote="sleeksilver"]Why on earth did you lease the car if you don't like that much about it???? :roll:

I didn't say I didn't like the car overall, I am just reporting on a few minor items that I will get used to. They don't let you test drive a car for a few weeks to decide if you like everything about it. Some things become apparent after a few days or weeks of driving.

The post is about the rear end issue, which hopefully with the replacement of torque control differential, will permanently solve the one real problem I have experienced with the CRV.

[anastos]

If you post, I'll read about GM.

I get about 18 - 20MPG in the city with mine 30k miles on the clock.

Also, your GM is horrible. You only get between 12 - 18mpg in the city? I have a 300HP V8 Toyota motor that gets consistent 18 - 20mpg in the city. So sad that GM has a larger motor, makes less HP and gets less mpg. No wonder they'll eventually be doomed financially.


My post states that I have gotten *better* mileage than what the CRV is currently doing, and this was with a used car. When the car was in its prime, it could get 18 to 20 mpg in the city and close to 30 mpg on the highway.

What the CRV has going for it is that it takes 87 octane fuel, instead of the GM car requiring premium fuel, and the CRV is an ultra-low emissions vehicle, whereas as the GM car most definitely was not. I am defintely for a more eco-friendly car.

Hopefully with the back end fixed and the engine broken in, things will improve considerably in the mileahe department.

[anastos]

I promised a follow-up, so here it is:

The dealer said the Torque Control Differential needed replacing. It was about a one week wait to get the parts in and schedule a service appointment. The cars was drivable during this time period, so it wasn't a big deal. The repair was done in 1 day, in at 7:00 am and out by 3:30 pm.

I haven't experienced any problems with the rear end of the vehicle since the Torque Control Differential was replaced.

One service rep. said that they had worked on one or two other CRVs with the same problem and said it was some type of factory defect. Another service rep., at a later time, said it was an extremely rare problem originating from the factory and that the parts replacement would take care of the issue permanently.

Hopefully, that is the last issue I will have with the differential. They did say it would be a good idea to get the rear end serviced at 15,000 miles and have the fluid changed.