The Ridgeline is two months old. It has been to two dealers in that time. I hear a tapping noise on the left side of the truck. I only hear it when the truck is moving. I have had the wheels rotated. One dealer took the front bumper off. One dealer gave it a complete electronic check at the OBD port. Nothing. No codes. The last visit, I drove the mechanic around. He heard it, the tapping noise. He had no fix for that. The service adviser wrote it up as a “not excessive noise.” It’s excessive and annoying to me. I have never had a new vehicle make that noise. Today, I took it back to the dealer. I told the service advisor to check the brakes. I saw on-line some people reported hearing that noise.
Did your dealership shop do the necessary testing to eliminate the possibility of a small pebble in a wheel or brakes that’s rattling around as you drive? Does it get quieter the faster you go? Or louder the faster you go?
Sounds like you need to talk to the service manager, if already done that, then call Honda customer service corp. Get them involved ASAP and make sure everything is documented incase of a buy back (Leman Law), and to make sure the dealer(s) is doing everything possible to find the issue…
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But it sounds like whoever will need to use Chassis Ears to pinpoint the location of the noise…
Where on the left does the sound come from? It’s possible something is lodged in the front fender area, in the door, or behind the front door. Have someone ride in the left rear seat and listen for the noise and see if it’s in the door or behind the door. Also, do you have anything on the roof? We had a noise on the right side of our minivan. It sounded to me like it was in the sliding door. It turned out to be a loose clip on the roof rack.
I agree–overall–with Dave’s comments, but I question whether something like a tapping noise would qualify for a Lemon Law buy-back. Every Lemon Law statute that I have seen specifically states that the problem has to be one that “materially affects the safety or driveability” of the vehicle. Would a tapping noise–with no other symptoms–qualify?
If the OP contacts Honda at the corporate level, he/she can request a meeting with Honda’s Regional Service Supervisor, at the dealership. Those folks visit the dealerships on an occasional basis, and by demonstrating the problem to someone on that level, it is possible that he/she could motivate/authorize the dealership to do more than they have already done.