2006 Civic idle speed

Hi all,

My 2006 Civic LX (manual transmission) idles around 600 or 650 rpm. I can
feel a definite vibration from the engine while stopped. It's a bit
annoying, but I won't be concerned, if that's normal for this car. Is it
normal?

I contrast my experience with a 1999 New Beetle (turbo, but also manual
transmission), which idles around 800rpm. I never feel a vibration (and
sometimes wonder if it's running!).

Thanks,
Tim

 

650 RPM? No it's NOT normal. If it's really 650 RPM, that is. What line on
the tach is the needle pointing at?

You're still under warranty. If there really is a problem, take it in to
the dealer ASAP and let them bill Honda for it. Don't mess around with this
yourself. You paid for that warranty when you bought the car, so make wise
use of your money.

 

Thanks. Definitely under warranty, as it's only been driven 700 miles.

The needle is pointing to 600 or 650 (ish), just above halfway between 0 and
1 (times 1000 is ~ 650).

I took the car to my dealer today. A mechanic test drove it while I rode
passenger. He looked at the tach and felt the vibration and told me it is
normal.

So, I'm curious to know more about your opinion on the matter. Where should
it be idling, and how would my dealer correct the vibration, were they to
attack it?

Tim

 

650 is normal if the engine is hot and running perfectly smoothly. It
shouldn't be that low if it's shaking. At least in my 97 Civic, the ECU
set the idle to the lowest speed that idled smoothly, usually about 650
RPM on a warm day.

It's possible that the idle screw isn't set right. Try holding the RPM
at 900 to fool the ECU into closing the idle speed solenoid. Now let go
of the throttle suddenly. The idle speed should not dip below 500-600
RPM.

I can sympathize with you on getting your car fixed. My 2005 Accord
Hybrid has been having engine troubles for over a year. It has a
stumbling idle and the engine light sometimes blinks at high RPM. I had
to file a complaint with Honda so I can lemon-law it if needed. The
last repair claimed that it needed valve adjustment and more computer
upgrades. The idle is still a bit shaky for a V6 so I'm waiting for the
blinking light again.

 

What I'm curious about is whether or not they hooked it up to a scan tool.
That tool would have given an exact idle speed reading. The tach is not
necessarily 100% accurate.

If the car is indeed idling at 650, then that's too low. I doubt it is
though, as the ECM will adjust idle to the correct speed (usually about
750) if it can do so and maintain proper mixture.

If they think the ECM has picked up some bogus learning, you can reset the
ECM and then preform a "relearn" procedure.

As for the vibration? Until someone comes up with a way of transmitting
vibrations over the Internet... What kind of car are you used to driving?

 

I have the exact same complaint about my 06 civic. After the engine
heats up it idles at around 600 rpms. I need to rev it alot to prevent
that clunking noise or stall it out. When its cold in idles around 1000
and I have no problems. Also, I heard a knocking noise coming from the
engine so I took it to the dealer. After leaving it over night they
told me that honda canada said to change the Block. Its possible that
the rod came loose in the crank case. Please keep me posted on what
happens with you car.

 

xcivicx, do you hear a knocking while it's running? I hear a knock, but
only when I start my car.

Fortunately, mine has never stalled, but it feels like it wants to
sometimes!

I'm not sure what I'm going to do next. There are a couple of authorized
Honda service centers where I am, but my dealer told me everything is normal
.... what's going to happen if I take it back again? I guess I can insist
that they keep it and hook it up to a scan tool.

In response to Tegger, no, they didn't hook it to a device when I took it in
last week. A mechanic drove it and watched the tach, felt the same vibration
I felt, and he and the advisor said they didn't need to accept it for
repair. I felt better taking it away than leaving it and paying them a
diagnostic fee to tell me the same thing they said when I brought it in.

The vibration isn't violent, but it is strong enough to make *me* vibrate
at, let's see, perhaps, 10Hz? Wow, that was a SWAG ... but it's not far off
the idle count, is it (10 * 60 ~ 600rpm)? So, it's annoying. I'm comparing
it to a 1999 VW New Beetle Turbo (gas) 1.8T (20 valve), which was a great
performer. OTOH, I've not driven any car that vibrates like this Civic when
brand new. I also have owned a 1991 Ford Escort and a 1980 Pinto (both
workhorse vehicles that needed little attention).

Another bit to note is that if I put it in neutral and rev the gas to about
1,000rpm, the vibration doesn't go away. The engine itself seems to be
moving around enough to be shaking the car. Does that sound plausible?

BTW, I appreciate everyone's input on this! That the tach might look like
650 and the engine not necessarily running there is good information.
Still, it doesn't seem that a new car should make me aware it's running when
it's stopped.

Oh, and it did something new today. The driver's automatic window didn't
close all the way up; it stopped near the top, then reopened partly. It
happened several times, but behavior is erratic. I had the same problem in
my Beetle, but after several years of operation.

I thought this Honda was going to be a solid machine, but this new version
of Civic isn't making me very happy.

Tim

 

Well considering that its a new engine and new model problems are
expected to happen. I havent had any problems with the dealership I
bought the car from. They held the car and diognosed the problem and
are willing to fix it. The knocking noise happens while running and is
most apparent at 1500 rpm. As far as the Idling problem, a friend of
mine just bought a 06 civic and he is saying the same thing. I think it
has something to do with the soch v tech that closes 3 of the 4 valves
while power is not needed. If your dealer is telling you that your
crazy try a different dealer. I also had a 98 beetle and a 02 jetta and
they never had problems like this even though thier quality rating is
lower than Hondas.