Hey guys. I've had MY06 for almost a year now and no problems other then a broken cup holder clip. I've got around 25k miles. About 400 miles ago I had my rear tires changed to bf goodrich gforce sports but my fronts are still OEM. I have no mods so car is bone stock. When driving a bit aggresively and on turns (usually right) I hear what sounds to be a grinding noise if I steer too much. If I take a turn fast but wide (not turning the wheel a lot) the noise doesn't happen as often but if I take the trun sharp and turn the wheel pretty far I hear the noise. I've also noticed that my VSA light comes on and this has happened going 70 on the freeway on normal freeway curves (nothing sharp at all or anything to alarm the VSA). I'm not whipping the car around or throwing the end out at all for the VSA to engage. The "!" light flashes indicating the VSA is working however the turn is not nearly sharp and my speed is not anywhere near alarming for the VSA to kick in. My guesses have been possibly blown front struts and the tires rubbing the wheel well, front OEM tires not working well with rear tires, or issue with the VSA system? The noise sounds like a grinding noise or two rough items rubbing each other. I thought it about it and maybe its the brakes engaging when the VSA is active then again I also question the tire rubbing the wheel well. I haven't visited a dealership yet since it's a tricky problem and I fear it will be very timely to determine the cause at a dealership. I wanted to narrow down any possible culprits before taking her in. Any input? I did read a few posts with some other MY06 owners having similiar issues.

 

Let me preface this post by saying i'm not an expert on the subject and this suggestion is just that. This is a fairly important safety feature and the best bet is to hit up the dealership.

Could one of your ABS sensors be messed up (rock getting in there etc)? I was under impression the VSA system used said sensors to detect wheelspin and the like. If thats the case, the system would perhaps start to kick in unwantedlyso.

Just my $0.02

 

Sounds like your brake pads are worn. Inspect. This could relate to VSA as your stopping may be offset wrong by one of the pads being more worn than the other.

The VSA does sound like a tire rubbing when it engages. That is normal.

 

What size tires do you have on the back now? If this happend right after you put the new tires on... cause and effect and all that...

It's possible that guy at the tire shop put 215s on the back.

 

no the tires are the right size. The guy doing it is a long time S2K owner with a shop. I checked them as well when he was doing it. As far as the brakes go. I just had the front brakes changed at a Honda dealership. The rear brakes were not changed. It may be my rear brakes are worn however I don't see why this would set off my VSA on any normal turn. Any input?

 

have you try turn off the VSA and see if it still make that sound. if it still makes that sound then it not the VSA.

 

I'm actually scared to try this because the car feels very unstable even at low speeds. Obviously the issue does not occur if I'm going I would say anything under 35mph. I will try it out on an open road and update tomorrow. Any other insight?

 

Don't kill yourself when you turn off the VSA but disabling it would help the troubleshooting. I personally hate most traction systems and find most of them useless. I know the honda ones like to use the ABS to "correct" the car which causes premature brake wear when someone like myself drives....

 

We're the rear tires balanced? Its possible that an out of balance (or improperly balanced) tire would cause this. It's possible that a tire balance weight just fell off. Take it back to the tire store, get them to check it out.

How soon after replacing the tires did you start having issues?

 

The front was never touched the rear was. And yes he did balance them properly. The weights have not fallon off, I checked them. Yesterday I did some testing and I found that it is VSA related. The grinding noise is the activation of VSA and it does come on randomly. I turned the VSA off and I was able to take the same turns without the interuptions. I did notice though the front felt unstable. I'll be taking her in soon to a dealer to see what the hell is up. I'll keep you guys posted.