My wife, who rarely notices anything wrong with cars, has told me she is hearing occasionally a screeching sound when she starts up the car, which goes away nearly immediately. I thought this was most likely some type of moisture on the belts as a consequence of the colder weather we are having on and off in Southern California. However, she said it occurred again when it was 80F outside and she had driven the car a short while before (not an early morning startup) starting it up. As the car was due for a service I had her request Honda check the belt/s and tensioner, which as expected turned up nothing. My concern is that it is something I am not familiar with and could be a precursor to something that is breaking down.
suggest using a tape recorder or phone with ext mic to record it. screeching sounds are usually pretty bad. indicates something is going to break at some point.
Starters on imports are often on a gear reduction and spin much faster than the big motor American cars. They can make a screeching sound if they are slow to disengage or spin without being engaged.
I am not familiar enough with the I2 starting system or your situation to know if this is a "starter" start situation or an IMA start situation.
Cobb, the dealer found nothing wrong with a belt. I checked it myself and it did not appear loose. Idid notice a layer of material on what appears to be the tensioner.
I expect the sound is coming from the starter motor. Probably it depends on what position the gears are in when it starts up. As I have not heard the sound myself it is hard for me to know if this is the case. As we are going on a 2 week trip up North to Oregon and I will be driving the car every day, I should get to hear it.
We will be testing out the Nokian WRG2 tires on this trip as we will be hitting snow. I will inform everyone as to how they perform.
I expect the sound is coming from the starter motor. Probably it depends on what position the gears are in when it starts up. As I have not heard the sound myself it is hard for me to know if this is the case....
You live very near Los Angeles so unless you have experienced some freaky weather with below freezing temps, the IMA motor should be always starting your car, not the typical starter motor which is really like a backup (under certain conditions when needed)....
Also, the engine should only start if it is in Park or Neutral (unless in AutoStop).
JoeCVT = Just your average CVT owner
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2004 CVT Red Insight (purchased May 2011)
Relocated outside temp sensor near mid engine
No other mods performed yet
2003 CVT Blue Insight
Modified version of MIMA_L (with foot pedal)
Automatic warm air intake (all season)
Low Speed Auto Stop (LSAS)
ABS - IMA regen enabler (allows regen during ABS)
Relocated outside temp sensor near mid engine
Cooling fans powered by 12V Solar Panel
2001 MT Blue Insight (purchased Nov 2011)
Not registered yet
Apparently after we asked Honda to look at the problem the noise did not reappear. Honda service said they could not find anything wrong. After the service we drove the car on a 2000 mile trip into Oregon and down the coast of Califonia (mostly on Highway 1). I never heard the noise. So it may be in their effort to find the source of the noise they fixed it.
By the way we had to drive the car in the massive storm that hit the West Coast on hair pin mountain roads. I saw one car flipped over. The I2 handled quite well in the high winds and dangerous flooded roads (especially at night on Highway 1). I was happy we had switched out the OEM tires for Nokian WRG2s and added the rear sway bar. I do believe the upgrades helped in keeping the car in line and improved handling.
Ok, this will blow your mind if it is it, but I had a strange screeching noise that my Honda dealer identified immediately because it is apparently common is some Honda products.
When are your door locks set to lock? If it is when you turn your key on, then consider that one of the solenoids that locks/unlocks the doors is starting to go bad. I had noticed a "screeching" sound intermittently when I put the car in gear or back into park. My first thought was "Oh crap, there goes the CVT." Turns out it was the door lock solenoid, and I just happened to have my door locks set to lock when I put the car in gear and unlock when I put it in park. So it was just a coincidence that the sound correlated with shifting the car into / out of gear.
Just one more odd thing to consider.
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Ok I'll shorten the list :
Current Vehicles:
2010 Insight
2007 Fit Sport MANUAL
2010 Honda NT700V Deauville
Ok, this will blow your mind if it is it, but I had a strange screeching noise that my Honda dealer identified immediately because it is apparently common is some Honda products.
When are your door locks set to lock? If it is when you turn your key on, then consider that one of the solenoids that locks/unlocks the doors is starting to go bad. I had noticed a "screeching" sound intermittently when I put the car in gear or back into park. My first thought was "Oh crap, there goes the CVT." Turns out it was the door lock solenoid, and I just happened to have my door locks set to lock when I put the car in gear and unlock when I put it in park. So it was just a coincidence that the sound correlated with shifting the car into / out of gear.
Just one more odd thing to consider.
Very Interesting! Thanks for the info. I would not have guessed this might be the problem.
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Intermittent screeching sound at Startup
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