04 Civic Rumble

I have an 04 Civic LX 2 door coupe. 95K miles.

I have a "rumble" in the car while trying to maintain about 38 or 43 mph. It's not at the shift point. It feels like you are running over a rumble strip. If I speed up or slow down it goes away.

Anybody have any ideas?

Thanks for all your help!

Just wanted to post some more information:

If I tap the break while in the middle of the rumble, it doesn't go away.

However, if I take my foot off the gas, it will go away.

It doesn't happen at higher speeds, just during this range.

Also, if I gas it harder than a light gentle touch (which I normally do, trying to save gas), I can zoom by this danger zone with absolutely no problems or abnormalities.

Does anyone have an inkling of what this might be??

What happens if you pop it into nuetral while the problem is occuring ??

Do slight/moderate left or right turns (bend in road) while problem is occuring change anything ??

My 05 had a bad wheel bearing early on but the noise was consistent.

Just tried. Noise cuts off when I shift to neutral. I kept my foot on the gas lightly. Rpm revved as usual because of this.

I haven't tried it during a bend in the road. I try to bypass it usually, because I don't want to mess it up anymore. If I gas it more tha. Usual, the problem Does t happen, I just pass through the danger phase. However that makes it hard in 35-45 mph zones. I have to let my speed fall, then speed up quickly, fall again, etc in order to avoid the noise.

Automatic or standard transmission ??

The fact that popping out of gear effects the noise may be a helpful clue.

Automatic Transmission

edit: I just called a Honda Dealership's Service department, He said he's never heard of anything like this.

What is the history of ATF drain and refills over it's life ??

Ever gotten anything but OEM Honda fluid installed at any point ??

I just got the car in February of this year, and I haven't done a drain and refill. You think that could be the problem?

And if it is, do you think that would fix it, or has the damage already been done?

-Eddie

You should have a good look at the condition of the fluid, wipe the ATF dipstick onto white paper towel and see if it is dark in color. It should be a bright pinkish/light red color if fresh, darker color if not.

I suggest only Honda OEM fluid, you will likely have to purchase DW1 at this point.

If dark or no history available I would try a single drain and refill and see what happens.

There is a new style/part# atf dipstick that has a tighter fit as well.

If I can get my hands on it, should I get ATF-Z1 or DW1?

I'm going to check my fluid in just a minute.

I would get Z1 if you can, it pretty much has been depleated though.

DW1 will work fine.

This is crazy, so I went and checked my fluid, which I think needs to be changed, but my Dipstick wasn't even in the hole! It was placed in a little loop next to the hole, so when I popped my hood, I could see directly down into the fluid!!! Is it possible that the people who last changed my oil didn't put it in correctly when they were topping off my fluids?

If this has caused this problem, what can I do about it? I've never had that happen before!

The original dipsticks fit very poorly, not at all tight over time.

Check the fluid level and also check it's condition.

It doesn't look dark red on the papertowel (like blood), but it's a light reddish brown. I also think the quantity is a little low. I'll drive it about 10 miles for lunch and check it after that time.

Where should I get a new dipstick that fits better? is there a certain model?

Here's a Pic:

http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/4497/img9463j.jpg


It is a liiiittle more red in real life.

I think a fluid drain and refill is worth a try, "reddish brown" may indicate so.

3 qts required for the job.

A new ATF dipstick will not solve any problems other than the poor fit of the old one.
here is the # for the improved part.

removed link to part, correct # listed in later reply.

Get it at the dealer, shipping will double the cost if ordered online.

^^^ That is certainly very brown... I wonder if it has ever been done ??

Thanks man, I posted a picture of the fluid on the first page of this.

I just called the Honda dealer near here, he seemed a little clueless, because he gave me a different part number over the phone, then I told him the one I was looking at, and he said something like, "Oh yeah, with that part, they call it a Pipe."

You sound like you know much more about this, and whether this solves my rumble problem or not, I really appreciate your help!

I think something went wrong

Try this #

Sorry
http://www.hondapartsnow.com/genuine/honda~dipstick~25610-PLX-003.html

Haha, okay, thanks for the clarification!

I drained my ATF fluid today and replaced it with 3 quarts of Honda Brand DW1. I also evened out all of the air pressure in my tires. The rumble was still there occasionally, but it seemed to happen less often as I drove more. I only drove about 20 miles today. The real test will be taking it to work tomorrow. (~ 60 miles total).

I'll let you know how it turns out!

Thanks for the info, post up how it goes.

The other option would be to run it a while then do another drain and fill.

It's been about 150 miles and the problem is still there. Do you think I need to drain again and refill?

Did any of the symptoms change ??
Any noticable change occur after the drain and fill ?

If there was a change, it might be a liiittttle easier to avoid the rumble. However, I've also really focused on when it happens and have been trying to avoid it (because I don't want to cause more damage than I need to before figuring it out).

From what I can tell so far, it is only between 35 and 45 mph, and when I am attempting to maintain or sloowwly gain speed while keeping my RPM's below 2k.

Other than that, everything is the same.