3 of the most recent posts are about rattles.

[optronix]

*insert something about lacking japanese craftsmanship like the FL5.

...or at least that's how I'd have expected this to go on the other forum.

Plenty of complaints about rattles for FL5s too.

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[egxflash]

Plenty of complaints about rattles for FL5s too.

I was being sarcastic.

 

[optronix]

I was being sarcastic.

I wasn't, because people do legitimately think this. So I wanted to remind everyone that their expectations of fabled Japanese folded-steel car manufacturing nets the same result as our corn-fed Ohio car manufacturing.

 

[egxflash]

I wasn't, because people do legitimately think this. So I wanted to remind everyone that their expectations of fabled Japanese folded-steel car manufacturing nets the same result as our corn-fed Ohio car manufacturing.

Well. I think you're preaching to the wrong crowd. Like I initially mentioned, people who think that are mostly in the other forum.

Most of the folks in here own a DE5 and generally don't have that illusion. I personally think both cars fall short on the build quality aspect.

 

[optronix]

Well. I think you're preaching to the wrong crowd. Like I initially mentioned, people who think that are mostly in the other forum.

Most of the folks in here own a DE5 and generally don't have that illusion. I personally think both cars fall short on the build quality aspect.

Lol. They pop up in here too.

 

[creaturemachine]

Imagine thinking there's some old Japanese master car builder who spent a lifetime perfecting the craft of... assembling a Honda Civic.

 

[pomegranate]

I don’t get this opinion. What does build quality have to do with “what this cars about”? It’s marketed as the more daily, street version of the Type R, therefore it should be more solid and refined. It’s not a track car where shit rattling all over the place doesn’t matter. There’s no denying the interior and build quality is pretty substandard for a mid-$50k car. I love the driving experience as much as anyone else, but when the only option I have to drown out dash and engine rattles is to blast music, the driving experience is lessened.

Exactly. You can literally write, "I don't care, that's not what this car is about" for everything besides the manual transmission lmao

 

[optronix]

Exactly. You can literally write, "I don't care, that's not what this car is about" for everything besides the manual transmission lmao

Have you bought one yet?

I mean, I get it. If you stretch your budget to buy this car and your soul leaves your body every time you hear a buzz in the dash, then I'm not saying your disappointment is unjustified. It happens in the Porsche forums ALL THE TIME- the occasional dentist buys a 911 during a midlife crisis and has crippling anxiety because the road noise is higher than he's used to from the 3-series he just traded in.

Look, as proof, here's a marketing video they had to put together to try to stem the tide of balding white men's tears over brake noise:



So no, you're within your rights to be disappointed, if that makes you feel better. All I'm saying is it doesn't bother me. And maybe expectations are part of that.

 

[ASPEC]

Have you bought one yet?

I mean, I get it. If you stretch your budget to buy this car and your soul leaves your body every time you hear a buzz in the dash, then I'm not saying your disappointment is unjustified. It happens in the Porsche forums ALL THE TIME- the occasional dentist buys a 911 during a midlife crisis and has crippling anxiety because the road noise is higher than he's used to from the 3-series he just traded in.

Look, as proof, here's a marketing video they had to put together to try to stem the tide of balding white men's tears over brake noise:



So no, you're within your rights to be disappointed, if that makes you feel better. All I'm saying is it doesn't bother me. And maybe expectations are part of that.

I think expectations are a huge piece to all of this. Even my 330i M-Sport had rattles and creaks. Went into my Integra and expected that, if I had the above with the Bimmer, I'd probably have it with the Integra. Most satisfying part for me is that I don't miss the Bimmer.

 

[Victorofhavoc]

Thing is, a lot of people paid 56-60k for this car with some options. That's 10-14k more than average sure, but also 20-30% more than average in a "luxury" car brand. Average also being a larger vehicle and often a very different thing. Comparative to other cars that this should be competitive against, this is really on the cheaper end. I hear it from people all the time, "you could have bought a truck for that money." most unknowing people assume it's a 35k car.

It's a fun car to drive, but if you're getting rattles at low rpm, mid rpm, and from the speakers when turning up the volume it can turn into a rough experience because you have no band aid to your noise issues.

I've had to readjust my own expectations. I have a vehicle that serves my performance driving needs and that has many things going for it you just can't have out of a fwd street car. This was supposed to be a "nicer" vehicle for me to drive my kids around in that won't fall apart if I drive it at the track. There's a reason I didn't get a civic type r and strip it. I wanted to be back in a manual as well (while I can). My realization came in the form of "accept this is not a nice car and just treat it as a daily beater". I've also had to fix several of my own rattles the dealer couldn't, the worst of which was a monster resonant squeal that would occur from 3.5 to 5.5k rpm under moderate to full throttle. That noise was not something I could get over or ignore, so I did something about it.

Things could be a lot worse though... You could be driving an mdx or a civic . My dad's mdx with 80k miles on it blew its transmission recently so they got an Xc90 and are much happier with the bougier vehicle. Meanwhile I think the Xc90 is the best looking suv, but driving any Volvo today is frustrating... Dull and senseless.

 

[ABPDE5]

I think criticisms of rattles and other QC issues are valid, but I also think expectations often need to be tempered.

Acura may be a "luxury" car brand, but it has never carried a reputation for the level of luxury you'd get from a Lexus or an Audi. And, the Integra is their entry-level car.

I keep hearing "this is a $50k car", and while that's true, let's be clear: the Integra was built to a $35k price point. The Type-S has $15k+ in powertrain, suspension, braking, etc. updates. The expectation for this car should be that you are paying $50k+ for a car with a $35k interior / exterior. (And that's a $35k interior in 2025... which is equivalent to a $27k interior in 2015.)

 

[Victorofhavoc]

I think criticisms of rattles and other QC issues are valid, but I also think expectations often need to be tempered.

Acura may be a "luxury" car brand, but it has never carried a reputation for the level of luxury you'd get from a Lexus or an Audi. And, the Integra is their entry-level car.

I keep hearing "this is a $50k car", and while that's true, let's be clear: the Integra was built to a $35k price point. The Type-S has $15k+ in powertrain, suspension, braking, etc. updates. The expectation for this car should be that you are paying $50k+ for a car with a $35k interior / exterior. (And that's a $35k interior in 2025... which is equivalent to a $27k interior in 2015.)

At the risk of sounding pedantic, let's talk real msrp... It's a 53k car and typically 56k on a dealer lot. That's about 20k more than a base Integra and it's definitely not 15k or 20k in mechanical upgrade because they're not giving you a spare engine, trans, and brakes to take home with you. The mechanical side is more like 6k-8k in up charge to honda/acura at best.

They're justifying the cost for the "specialness" and limited production factor. There's a good 5-6k charge just because they have to shoe horn parts in and spend time designing. I'm also sure they charged up a bit higher because they could and to justify it being "premium" over the lower cost type r.

Don't get me wrong, I love driving this car, and as I fix rattles my enjoyment continues to increase. It's just really hard to see a 7 year old civic and be jealous of their panel gaps and alignment sometimes. Nevermind a direct competitor like an s3 who's tech feels more this century.

We just have to be realistic. I think C&D sums it well. I'll leave this right here... https://www.caranddriver.com/rankings/best-sedans/luxury/performance-subcompact

 

[ABPDE5]

... it's definitely not 15k or 20k in mechanical upgrade because they're not giving you a spare engine, trans, and brakes to take home with you. The mechanical side is more like 6k-8k in up charge to honda/acura at best.

They're justifying the cost for the "specialness" and limited production factor. There's a good 5-6k charge just because they have to shoe horn parts in and spend time designing. I'm also sure they charged up a bit higher because they could and to justify it being "premium" over the lower cost type r.

I am not trying to argue that Acura / Honda spent $15k on upgrades for this car (re-reading my comment, I realize it can come across that way). I am pointing out that that is the amount that the consumer is being charged over the base version of the car and that the performance upgrades are the material "improvements" they get in return. No doubt the cost to the manufacturer was far less (and you are correct re: some of that cost delta also covering design, manufacturing, training, maintenance, etc. costs associated with a low production vehicle).

If you are looking to maximize interior / exterior quality, spending north of $50k on a car with panels, paint, assembly process, etc. designed to meet a $35k price point is not efficient -- neither is buying a limited production car that has thousands tacked onto the price for no material return to the customer (beyond eventual resale value).

To be clear: I am not saying "Acura shouldn't try to do a better job with paint quality or QC" and I am not trying to say we shouldn't be honest that those issues exist with this car -- they do. I am just saying that the expectation for this car should be that you are getting the same level of quality for those things that you would if you spent $35k on a base Integra. It's perfectly fine to want more than that for your hard-earned money! But, you'd be better served looking for a car with a price-point that starts closer to what you're actually spending or with higher production numbers yielding better value / $.

(I am also not here to argue that manufacturers in 2025 aren't cutting corners that they weren't in 2015. Corporate rot is real, and it's a scourge on our product quality and selection, compensation, etc.)

 

[Victorofhavoc]

I am not trying to argue that Acura / Honda spent $15k on upgrades for this car (re-reading my comment, I realize it can come across that way). I am pointing out that that is the amount that the consumer is being charged over the base version of the car and that the performance upgrades are the material "improvements" they get in return. No doubt the cost to the manufacturer was far less (and you are correct re: some of that cost delta also covering design, manufacturing, training, maintenance, etc. costs associated with a low production vehicle).

If you are looking to maximize interior / exterior quality, spending north of $50k on a car with panels, paint, assembly process, etc. designed to meet a $35k price point is not efficient -- neither is buying a limited production car that has thousands tacked onto the price for no material return to the customer (beyond eventual resale value).

To be clear: I am not saying "Acura shouldn't try to do a better job with paint quality or QC" and I am not trying to say we shouldn't be honest that those issues exist with this car -- they do. I am just saying that the expectation for this car should be that you are getting the same level of quality for those things that you would if you spent $35k on a base Integra. It's perfectly fine to want more than that for your hard-earned money! But, you'd be better served looking for a car with a price-point that starts closer to what you're actually spending or with higher production numbers yielding better value / $.

(I am also not here to argue that manufacturers in 2025 aren't cutting corners that they weren't in 2015. Corporate rot is real, and it's a scourge on our product quality and selection, compensation, etc.)

 

[egxflash]

I am not trying to argue that Acura / Honda spent $15k on upgrades for this car (re-reading my comment, I realize it can come across that way). I am pointing out that that is the amount that the consumer is being charged over the base version of the car and that the performance upgrades are the material "improvements" they get in return. No doubt the cost to the manufacturer was far less (and you are correct re: some of that cost delta also covering design, manufacturing, training, maintenance, etc. costs associated with a low production vehicle).

If you are looking to maximize interior / exterior quality, spending north of $50k on a car with panels, paint, assembly process, etc. designed to meet a $35k price point is not efficient -- neither is buying a limited production car that has thousands tacked onto the price for no material return to the customer (beyond eventual resale value).

To be clear: I am not saying "Acura shouldn't try to do a better job with paint quality or QC" and I am not trying to say we shouldn't be honest that those issues exist with this car -- they do. I am just saying that the expectation for this car should be that you are getting the same level of quality for those things that you would if you spent $35k on a base Integra. It's perfectly fine to want more than that for your hard-earned money! But, you'd be better served looking for a car with a price-point that starts closer to what you're actually spending or with higher production numbers yielding better value / $.

(I am also not here to argue that manufacturers in 2025 aren't cutting corners that they weren't in 2015. Corporate rot is real, and it's a scourge on our product quality and selection, compensation, etc.)

I agree with everything you said above and like @Victorofhavoc said, expectations need to be adjusted because at the end of the day, the car carries an Acura badge, not a Honda and that's where the expectations usually start -- that there's some level of refinement.

The irksome part for me is that this car has more creaks and rattles a lot earlier on than other entry to mid-level cars I've owned. Hell, not even my chevy truck rattles this much and that's not exactly built like a tank. Shit, I've I had a $30k base level civic and it rattled all to hell, I think it's still valid to complain about it. Just because six figure porsches have rattles, doesn't mean we need to lick Acura's boot for giving us a car with a 6 spd.

Now, do I still like this car? Of course.

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