Car Owners Facing Mysterious Mechanical Issues
17 posts in the last 90 days, all from r/MechanicAdvice.
“Been chasing a coolant loss issue on my 2017 Civic 1.5T for about two months. Losing roughly half a quart every three weeks. No puddles under the car, no milky residue on the oil cap, no white smoke from the exhaust that I can actually see. The reservoir just keeps slowly…”
“I have a 2006 Honda civic LX. It's been overheating frequently and losing coolant over time but no liquid leaking onto the ground. There is smoking from the engine around the valve cover or head area. I took out the dipstick and there was smoke coming from the dipstick port too…”
“2008 Toyota Highlander, Limited V6. I'm on a long road trip. I'm traveling across multiple states to move to a new one and I noticed a slight humming noise when the gas pedal was applied and when cruise control was on. It's starting to get louder. Recently the car has undergone…”
Owners are experiencing frustrating and unexplained issues with their vehicles, including coolant loss, gas pedal vibrations, woodpecker noises behind the dash, brake caliper problems, and more. Diagnosing these problems is proving difficult, leading to frustration and uncertainty among owners.
SOURCES (24)
“I have a 2006 Honda civic LX. It's been overheating frequently and losing coolant over time but no liquid leaking onto the ground. There is smoking from the engine around the valve cover or head area. I took out the dipstick and there was smoke…”
“08 Honda Civic EX Anyone have any insight on this? the lower portion of the gauge turns off and the top portion lights up coolant levels good Thanks submitted by /u/derp_country [link] [comments]”
“2008 Toyota Highlander, Limited V6. I'm on a long road trip. I'm traveling across multiple states to move to a new one and I noticed a slight humming noise when the gas pedal was applied and when cruise control was on. It's starting to get louder. Recently the car has undergone repairs. The back struts and other parts have been replaced as well as the clock spring to fix a now defunked cruise control. There is a slight shake when the car is started, and there is rattling on the passe”
“I took my car in for a routine transmission fluid change and I got a call saying the transmission fill cap was open when they got the car The mechanic didn't say anything felt wrong with the transmission but I asked for a sample of the old fluid anyways After letting it settle for a day I noticed a white substance at the bottom of the bottle Is this normal and if not what could it be and what should I ask a shop to check? submitted by /u/Yoyodespin1 [link] [comments]”
“2010 Honda Civic 1.8L automatic. I recently finished repairing the front end after an accident, and now I’m hearing this rhythmic “dun dun dun” / deep plastic tapping noise from the passenger side of the engine bay (serpentine belt area). Happens at idle Speeds up with RPM Doesn’t change when A/C is turned on/off Cooling fans aren’t running when the noise happens Doesn’t sound like a rod knock Nothing obvious is rubbing against the belt Engine mount has already been replaced Belt itself isn’t sq”
“K24a8 Honda element 2006. Oil fresh and full, no leaks. submitted by /u/yanimal [link] [comments]”
“Hi! Just recently changed the oil and transmission fluid on 2022 Honda Civic EX 1.5T. Now, when the car is running and in park. When I press on the brakes it makes this clicking/thumping noise. Did we do something wrong. It only reproduce able when parked with the car running submitted by /u/throwaway-01621 [link] [comments]”
“So I've been having issues with my Wife's car for a while. It's been persisting for over 2 years now. The car hesitates when you accelerate. Particularly when you press the pedal hard. It's the worst from a stop position since that's when you hit the pedal hardest to accelerate. It happens when getting on an on-ramp to get the highway speeds. Not only does it hesitate but it also stutters. Like I rapidly gains and losses power until it eventually accelerates normally. Almost”
“2013 Civic LX, 1.8L R18, auto, 170k. Cold start flutter most mornings. Took it to a mechanic 6 weeks ago for this. They replaced the serpentine belt, both front and rear motor mounts, and did an oil change saying the oil was degraded. Thinking that would solve it. The stutter stopped and the noise got quieter, but it never left. The mechanic told me he’d replaced everything he could and that I’d need a new engine. I’ve asked multiple other experts they all say different things, Reddit is my last”
“Hii everyone, My 2015 Honda civic 1.8L Engine started making this noise yesterday in the engine bay, only hear it when I'm pressing the gas. I would really appreciate any help on this thankss:) submitted by /u/MyCatNeedsHelp207 [link] [comments]”
“So this is a general question based on all the vehicles ive been in (riding or driving). Is it common that in older cars you feel the engine vibrations even after swapping mounts? Ive only ever had older cars myself and it seems that it translates the engine vibrations in to the cabin even after mounts are swapped out. But newer cars, 10 or so years old at most, never have this feeling unless something is wrong. submitted by /u/Kind_Let_1986 [link] [comments]”
“Been chasing a coolant loss issue on my 2017 Civic 1.5T for about two months. Losing roughly half a quart every three weeks. No puddles under the car, no milky residue on the oil cap, no white smoke from the exhaust that I can actually see. The reservoir just keeps slowly dropping. Had a shop pressure test the system and they said it held fine. They thought I was overfilling the reservoir and it was pushing out through the overflow, but I started marking the level on the tank and it genuinely go”
“me and a friend of mine went to do a regular oil change to my 2019 Honda civic sport car. after finishing the oil change, I left it for a couple minutes and went to test it out. for some reason it would not accelerate at all, like I would push the pedal and nothing happened. the engine was working fine but it felt like there was nothing making us want to move forward. I asked for some quick advice from another friend and he said it could be that something is going on with the motor. any advice i”
2009 Honda civic automatic submitted by /u/Toorrq [link] [comments]
“Hi, I have a 2016 Honda civic Touring with a 1.5 L Turbo engine. I got it two months ago and it just started to make noise when I start the car and it gets a little shaky whenever i drive but not all the time. I am including a video of how it sounds when i start it. I went to one mechanic and they told me it might be the motor but I wanted to get more opinions. submitted by /u/strawberryyy1701 [link] [comments]”
“First time underneath my 2024 Accord 1.5T with CVT, 12k miles. When I removed the splash guard, I noticed oil residue along the seam of what I think is the transmission. I'm not sure if this is normal or something that needs to get fixed. I hope the photos are sufficient. Should I wipe it up and monitor or take it in to the dealership? submitted by /u/cujo195 [link] [comments]”
“Took my 2018 Honda Civic 1.5T in because I kept having to top off the coolant every few weeks. No puddles under the car, no white smoke from the exhaust, temp gauge stays normal, oil looks clean on the dipstick. Shop is saying head gasket and quoted me around $1,800. Thing is, I always heard head gasket failures on this engine come with more obvious signs like milky oil or white smoke. None of that is happening. The coolant just slowly disappears. I asked how they confirmed it and they mentioned”
“I can feel it strongly from the brake pedal and I can hear it over the ac noise. Noticed it for the first time a couple weeks ago. Only happens when the air is all the way up, and only for a couple mins. It turns on and off randomly while I’m driving. If it’s relevant, it’s over 90F right now so my car is very hot. Any tips would be appreciated. submitted by /u/zootzootzootzootzoo [link] [comments]”
“Honda city 2012 When the car is in normal temperature i feel there’s a sound coming from the radiator as if it has a air leak or something but no visible coolant leak submitted by /u/0coder0 [link] [comments]”
“Here is what I have already checked. No milky or chocolatey oil on the dipstick or under the oil cap, so I am not seeing the head gasket mixing signs everyone talks about. No puddles under the car when parked overnight. No white smoke from the exhaust that I can notice. The temperature gauge stays totally normal and the car does not overheat. I pressure tested the system with a hand pump tester and held pressure for about 20 minutes without dropping. I also visually inspected the hoses, clamps,”
“Hi everyone, I have a 2014 Outback with 220k miles on it, and when I'm accelerating the car from 20 to 25 mph, I can feel the gas pedal vibrating every single time, not the steering wheel or anything else really, just the gas pedal. It's a vibration like a buzz, no pulsing or anything. Does anyone have a clue as to what it could be or what tests I can perform to diagnose it? Thank you in advance! submitted by /u/maam95 [link] [comments]”
“I’ve got a weird one that I haven’t run into before. My girlfriend’s 2008 Ford Mustang Convertible, 4.0L V6, automatic , has about 69,934 miles . When you turn the key to the ON position (before starting the engine), there’s a short burst of rapid, loud tapping/thumping that comes from somewhere behind the dashboard . It only lasts 3 seconds and then stops. After that, the car starts and seems to run and drive normally. I’ve attached a video so you can hear it. It honestly sounds like someone hi”
“Hello all, I have done a number of brakes, one of the very few things I’m comfortable doing on cars. The brakes on my 2021 F-150 have been squealing and whining despite having plenty of pad left so I decided to replace both rotors and pads just to start fresh. I started on the rear and noticed the caliper wouldn’t compress. After a google search, unfortunately the first thing that showed was rotating the piston as you compress so I did and it went down fairly smoothly with not that much pressure”