Car has transmission problem?

Me and my now dead Mazda wagon again.

So, in looking at some cars now, I found one I like, a pre-owned 2024 Honda HR-V EX-L basically 8800 miles and basically $30k. Price out of my range of hopefully $24k and under.

I like how it feels to sit in it. Not too high off the ground. Has the 2 things I really want/need - power seats and a sunroof. Cargo space is flexible now. Except there’s this one thing - when driving it, and other cars also - to me, it feels like the transmission is slipping. I step on the gas and there’s a hesitation, like nothing happens for a second, then it kicks in, but there’s like a roar? is the only way I can describe it, between it not doing anything and kicking in. When you go to pass someone or merge into traffic, that hesitation for a second could mean the difference between getting in an accident or not. You can hear and feel like it wants to get in gear, but doesn’t. Which to me sounds and feels like a slipping transmission. But dealer says he drove it and said there’s nothing wrong with it. Claims it’s the “torque” that all cars have nowadays. Don’t believe it. Since he doesn’t feel what I do, we obviously drive differently. Husband’s 7 yr old car doesn’t do that. Son’s 6 yr old car doesn’t do that. Sister’s brand new car doesn’t do that.

So what would you guys call it? Is it really a slipping transmission? Drove 3 in a row that did the same thing. Drove others that don’t. If not transmission, what causes that?

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Pass. Why is a 2024 back on a lot this soon . Someone took a bath financially and while it may be fine why take a chance . There are new vehicles out there for that kind of money.

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Like Volvo-V70, I would question why somebody decided to dump a car after less than 9k miles. Maybe it was a dealer demonstrator car? Can the dealership document that possibility? If so, it might be a viable candidate for purchase.

All of that being said, I think that the behavior that the OP is questioning could simply be the effect of a CVT, coupled with a small turbocharged engine.

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I questioned the same thing. I think dealer said it was a lease. Haven’t found any new cars in my price range yet. Very few with at least those 2 want/needs - power seats & sunroof. Newer ones seem to have one or the other. Don’t seem to have both - again, at least not in my price range and that isn’t a sedan, which I definitely don’t want. And that $24k is higher than I want to go. Actually trying to stay under $22k, but had to bump up because wasn’t finding anything.

But is that a slipping transmission?

Whether or not there’s a “transmission problem” with this specific car, or you simply don’t like how this type of car drives, the solution is the same: don’t buy it. Keep looking for something else which drives in a manner that you find acceptable.

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You’re saying that’s NORMAL for, as you say, “a CVT, coupled with a small turbocharged engine.” ??? To step on the gas and have it hesitate and roar like that???

I’ve never heard of a car lease that ran for less than 24 months.

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If that’s how cars today act, it’s gonna be a very long slog to find one that doesn’t act like that. And I’m looking at anything from 2017 - 2024 with 40k miles and under. Again, in my price range of $22k and under but $24k being top of range.

Yes, that is what I am theorizing in this case. While turbo lag is much less pronounced than it used to be, it still exists with some engines. And, a CVT will select a very low ratio when you first hit the gas, and that can lead to higher RPMs than you experienced with your previous non-CVT car.

I could be wrong on that being a lease. Drove a few that were leases. So this could be a new 2024 with about 8800 miles on it. I can ask again. Does that make a difference, if it’s a new car, not a lease?

But isn’t that actually dangerous, to have that kind of lag before it kicks in?? I just see it as an accident waiting to happen.

I guess it depends on just how long the lag is.

If it’s not a lease and not a dealer’s demonstrator, you have to ask yourself why someone would dump a 2024 car with less than 9k miles.

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That lag, to me, is pronounced. One second or more is enough to get into an accident.

I won’t ask myself that question, I’ll ask the dealer.

Even if it’s not a dealer demo or a lease, why is it out of the realm of reason to think it’s a new car with only 8800 miles on it??

You’re misinterpreting my point. I’m sure that it’s really a 2024 model, and that it really has 8,800 miles on the odometer. What you should ponder is… If this is a well-functioning car, why would somebody part with it so quickly?

My guess–and all anyone can do is to guess–is that the first owner really disliked the car for some reason. The reason could be the same performance/noise issue that you noted, or it could be something totally different. What I can tell you for sure is that you won’t get an honest answer from the car salesman.

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Here is part of Consumer Reports’ review of the 2024 HRV:

The biggest sticking point is the little SUV’s severe lack of oomph. The 158-horsepower, 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and continuously variable transmission (CVT)—a powertrain which is shared with the Civic—work fine when you’re not in a hurry just ambling around town. But any attempt to move quickly results in extremely high (and loud) engine revs with minimal propulsion in return. Our HR-V equipped with optional all-wheel drive (front-wheel drive comes standard) needed 11.1 seconds to go from 0 to 60 mph. That’s really slow.

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So what you’re basically telling me is that this 2024 HRV drives and performs worse than, say, a 1998 Toyota Camry, or a 2000 Dodge Neon, and the OP should just accept that, and shell out a bunch of money for this vehicle??! Come on!

If it really is true that a modern vehicle with a CVT and a turbocharged engine feels like the transmission is slipping/shifting poorly, the logical solution would be to tell this person to buy an older vehicle which doesn’t have this problem, right? And yet, every time I tell someone here to look for a low-mileage, good condition 1997-2001 Toyota Camry, people criticize that advice, because it lacks “modern safety features”, blah blah.

No they don’t all behave poorly . My neighbor has both Turbo and CVT and it does not have driving problems.

The real question is if the test drive has you on a Forum asking questions why don’t you look at something else in your price range.

They’re stating exactly what I was saying!!! So no to that car. Thanks for finding that. Made a big difference.

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