NEW 2009 Euro Luxury Auto Pinging

[SteveH]

Hi,

Thanks for the replies. I would love to get the euro lux auto but I justify in purchasing one, that in the back of my mind that I am into a lucky dip. There will be a chance that I might get one with the problem???

Thanks.

K3nnis, I was in the same boat as you, tossing up between the Mazda and the Honda. I felt that the presentation of the Euro, particularly the interior, was miles ahead of he Mazda, plus you got more standard equipment with the Euro.

My car is a manual and has 4,000k's on it and I don't think it has the pinging noise. The reason I say I don't think it has the issue is because a passenger the other day asked what the rattling noise was. They only heard it once, so I don't know if it was an isolated thing

[OranparkAddict]

G'day, to other Euro enthusiasts.
I'm 16 and just got my L's (Hell Yea).My parents purchased a Euro Luxury in July/August last year. It now has 20000k's on clock and pings its ass off! It is an auto, like most others with problems. And it is definitely pinging and gives out a very unattractive sound. You can hear it mostly under load but also at differing rpm at different times. It is most prominent around 60kph or 2000rpm. If you rev it harder, which you kind of have to in a 4 cylinder, you do not seem to be able to hear it. I think the sound is still there it's just that the engine is louder and consequently you cannot hear it. Apart from this major problem, the experience hasn't been all that good. A new handbrake is required as it rattles from left to right when not in application. A rattle from the front central cup holders is also prominent, only when open. Last but not least, there are various rattles from the parcel shelf in the rear; I think this is the same issue as experienced by others on the forum. You can hear it if from the boot if you turn the radio up.
The dealer we purchased the car from is Narellan Honda in Sydney and it was and still is a rather 'lets not go there' experience. First of all a month or so after purchase they sold us the 'oh it’s the fuel your using change to a higher octane or different brand’. They were notified about the handbrake on the 1000km service and have just rung us to tell us the part is in. Their defence is that they had to order a handbrake assembly from Japan, which I think is a bit farfetched and may just be laziness on their part due to a timeframe which took 6 months for a somewhat basic part.

With the pinging issue how can there not be damage being caused, eventually it will come out and bite Honda in the buttocks. Something needs to be done on these cars before the warranty runs out.

Apart from all this I think the car is incredibly well finished and engineered. This is displayed in top level aesthetics, brilliant interior and lovely quality material usage.

[k3nnis]

Does the CL9 Accord euro auto have these problems? It seems like the CL9 was more reliable to start with?

[tony1234]

Does the CL9 Accord euro auto have these problems? It seems like the CL9 was more reliable to start with?

No it doesn't.06+models are the best of the CL9 series.

[chris41]

Ive been following this issue closely and was speaking to an ex-mechanic
last week who had worked at a Chrysler/Hyundai dealership several years back. He mentioned that customers brought cars in with suspect pinging noises which turned out to be, hard to believe at first but water hammer in the heater pipes in the 2-3k rpm zone, rectified by foam wrapping and cable ties. From whats already been aknowledged by Honda Australia's technical dept, the CU2 problem is not as easy as that.

[OranparkAddict]

The CU2 problem is very strange considering how many engines honda make, and in almost the same form ie. euro engine. It probably has something to do with the high compression ratio or something, but in saying that the s2000's compression is the same. Lets not hold our breath waiting. Considering no formal announcement about the drama has been made by Honda and the general attitude regarding a major engine problem, The general vibe is worringly bad and getting worse. The more they sell without telling customers of the problem is creating more of a sh it fight and it will only get worse.

[HVF00T]

Maybe if Honda stopped detuning the engines for Australia and kept the Japanese engine maps, we wouldn't be having these problems. I bet these issues are not happening in Japan. We have 98 octane fuel and Caltex even claim a sulphur content of only 50ppm so why detune?

[HVF00T]

Maybe if Honda stopped detuning the engines for Australia and kept the Japanese engine maps, we wouldn't be having these problems. I bet these issues are not happening in Japan. We have 98 octane fuel and Caltex even claim a sulphur content of only 50ppm so why detune?

I just found this. Looks like sulphur has been limited to 50ppm in petrol in Australia since 2008 (page 3 - search for sulphur).
http://www.abare.gov.au/publications...1_Biofuels.pdf

[chris41]

Its a shame we don't have 100 octane fuel in WA.
I even rang Shell after reading about their V-Power fuels and
after being transfered around several times
head office here were baffled and knew nothing, great.
WA = Wait Awhile

[primetimex]

Its a shame we don't have 100 octane fuel in WA.
I even rang Shell after reading about their V-Power fuels and
after being transfered around several times
head office here were baffled and knew nothing, great.
WA = Wait Awhile

Don't bother with Shell re: high octane fuels here in Perth - I only use almost exclusively BP 98 Octane with my 09 Euro and at a pinch if I can't get it I use Vortex 98, been fine running ever since.

[chris41]

Yes, BP Ultimate98 is my primary choice.

[bk212]

My car has 19,500 km on it, pinging all the way. I agree with the posts here about the superior aesthetics, interior etc of the Euro but in all honesty, if I knew last July what I know now about the pinging, I would have bought a Mazda 6. And that's saying a lot because at the time I didn't think the Mazda 6 could hold a candle to the Euro. My brother in law bought a Mazda 6 recently and although I prefer most things about the Euro, it is lovely sitting in his car and hearing the engine purr with no ping.