Honda Civic Type R FL5 weird noise when turning

[hondalover92]

First of all, hello everyone and all the best!


I’m new to the forum and, to be honest, I came here because of an issue I’m having with my FL5 — but I hope to stick around even after it’s resolved, to talk about cars and enjoy good communication with everyone here.

I’ve searched almost the entire forum and couldn’t find anyone with the same issue as mine. Maybe it’s not even a problem — I’m not sure. Apologies in advance if a similar topic already exists.

The car has about 30,000 miles and i buy car like this, i am secund owner, and the issue happens while driving — when the steering wheel is turned about 75% or more and I lightly apply the throttle, I hear a kind of whining or electric buzzing sound.
There’s no noise if I don’t touch the gas — for example, if I make a U-turn in 2nd gear without touching the throttle, there’s no sound. As soon as I start applying the throttle, the sound appears.

Once I start straightening the wheel, the sound disappears regardless of throttle.

The steering rack has already been replaced.

The thing is, my warranty expires in about 40 days, and to take the car to the service center, I’d have to remove the lowering springs and spacers (the noise was present even before I installed them).

That’s why I’m curious about your experiences — has anyone else noticed this kind of sound?

Three other owners told me they hear something similar when turning, so I’m not sure whether it’s normal or not.

I should also mention that the car drives perfectly through corners — no weird noises, no knocking, just as it should.


Thanks everyone, cheers!

Video here 🫡

 

[FL5HondaGuy]

The good news is it doesn't sound violent . I had to listen a couple times because the noise was so faint sounding. It sounds like something rubbing but if that were the case it would still be there if you were not on throttle. Maybe its a mechanical/ECU gremlin where the LSD is somehow sensing something when you turn and on throttle where the system is intervening ? I am NOT a mechanic but just thinking out loud. The good news is you came to the right place. The community is very helpful here. GL my guy.

 

[hondalover92]

The good news is it doesn't sound violent . I had to listen a couple times because the noise was so faint sounding. It sounds like something rubbing but if that were the case it would still be there if you were not on throttle. Maybe its a mechanical/ECU gremlin where the LSD is somehow sensing something when you turn and on throttle where the system is intervening ? I am NOT a mechanic but just thinking out loud. The good news is you came to the right place. The community is very helpful here. GL my guy.

Thank you for your response, I really appreciate it. My assumption is that it’s related to the LSD and that this is a normal occurrence, but I still want to investigate it because my warranty is only valid for another 40 days. In case it’s not normal, I would need to remove the wheel spacers and HR springs. I also want to avoid the service center claiming that these modifications are the cause of the noise, and the nearest authorized service is 400 km away one way, so if it’s not necessary, I would like to avoid removing the springs and spacers and driving 800 km unnecessarily.


On the FK8 I had before the FL5, I didn’t hear this.

 

[FL5HondaGuy]

Here is a thought : Remove the spacers and drive it. See if you can replicate the noise. If need be do the same with springs. Might seem like a drag but it could save you $$$ in the long run or at least if you still have the noise after the spring and spacer removal you know you are safe bringing it to the dealer and they won't deny coverage. If you identify it at the spacers or springs you just found the reason. I am also running H&R's which in the whole scheme of things is a very mild drop compared to other springs out there(also on 265/35/19's for more meat). I am also running H&R spacers (20mm up front and 25MM in the rear with zero issues). Do you think you still have life left in your shocks and if not could it be throwing off the electronic damper control system ?? Is everything torqued to spec ? The rabbit hole is strong on this one. LOL

 

[hondalover92]

Here is a thought : Remove the spacers and drive it. See if you can replicate the noise. If need be do the same with springs. Might seem like a drag but it could save you $$$ in the long run or at least if you still have it after the spring and spacer removal you know you are safe bringing it to the dealer and they won't deny coverage. If you identify it at the spacers or springs you just found the reason. I am also running H&R's which in the whole scheme of things is a very mild drop compared to other springs out there(also on 265/35/19's for more meat). I am also running H&R spacers (20mm up front and 25MM in the rear with zero issues). Do you think you still have life left in your shocks and if not could it be throwing off the electronic damper control system ?? Is everything torqued to spec ? The rabbit hole is strong on this one. LOL

I bought the car full stock and immediately noticed that sound. Later, I installed springs, spacers, and new tires (because even the original tires were terrible—they made noise when driving on a flat surface around 50–60 km/h), and I kind of hoped that maybe replacing the tires would make it go away. But it didn’t—the sound from the video remains. The springs and spacers I have are identical to yours: 2/2.5 cm and HR 2/1.5 cm.

I’ll wait a little longer; maybe someone on the forum will report the same problem. If not, there’s no other option but to remove the springs and spacers and take the car to the service to have it checked.

Below is a video of me turning in a semicircle in 2nd gear without throttle. You don’t hear anything, except at the end of the video when I slightly applied the gas, and it immediately made a “bzzz” sound.

The shock absorbers are perfect, as is everything else on the car. The car drives perfectly—it’s excellent in corners, on uneven roads, and in all conditions; it drives exactly as it should.

 

[hondalover92]

Is it possible that I’m the only one with this problem? No one else seems to know this sound? :/
Cmon guys, help please

 

[Fl5#727]

First of all, hello everyone and all the best!


I’m new to the forum and, to be honest, I came here because of an issue I’m having with my FL5 — but I hope to stick around even after it’s resolved, to talk about cars and enjoy good communication with everyone here.

I’ve searched almost the entire forum and couldn’t find anyone with the same issue as mine. Maybe it’s not even a problem — I’m not sure. Apologies in advance if a similar topic already exists.

The car has about 30,000 miles and i buy car like this, i am secund owner, and the issue happens while driving — when the steering wheel is turned about 75% or more and I lightly apply the throttle, I hear a kind of whining or electric buzzing sound.
There’s no noise if I don’t touch the gas — for example, if I make a U-turn in 2nd gear without touching the throttle, there’s no sound. As soon as I start applying the throttle, the sound appears.

Once I start straightening the wheel, the sound disappears regardless of throttle.

The steering rack has already been replaced.

The thing is, my warranty expires in about 40 days, and to take the car to the service center, I’d have to remove the lowering springs and spacers (the noise was present even before I installed them).

That’s why I’m curious about your experiences — has anyone else noticed this kind of sound?

Three other owners told me they hear something similar when turning, so I’m not sure whether it’s normal or not.

I should also mention that the car drives perfectly through corners — no weird noises, no knocking, just as it should.


Thanks everyone, cheers!

Video here 🫡

what is that LIM button on the right side of your steering wheel? do you live in the states? my FL5 does not have that.

 

[jcm]

i have this exact same groaning sound

2025 zero suspension mods, just some basic bolt ons

I have near zero information about a root cause here and i am very curious to know, it has me a lil nervous

 

[hondalover92]

what is that LIM button on the right side of your steering wheel? do you live in the states? my FL5 does not have that.

Its EU version, LIM is speed limit

i have this exact same groaning sound

2025 zero suspension mods, just some basic bolt ons

I have near zero information about a root cause here and i am very curious to know, it has me a lil nervous

A few people on Facebook messaged me saying they have the same sound, but no one knows what it could be from. :/

 

[jcm]

ill be investigating this probably sometime this week or this weekend, will follow up as soon as i can

 

[T41WN.1]

ill be investigating this probably sometime this week or this weekend, will follow up as soon as i can

Following as I am also dealing with this.

 

[optronix]

Ok so I'm not insane. I have the exact same noise too.

I have an Integra Type S, aftermarket wheels with +45 offset, lowered on Eibach Pro-kit and EVS ball joints with camber at -3.5 degrees. I also just had a tire come apart where it looks almost like some of it could have been cause by rubbing/cutting into something on the passenger side front. I didn't notice it until August right after I swapped out the OEM Michelins for 275/35 Falken RT660+.

Here's a pic of the tire for reference; I've had other folks suggest this tire is just faulty and delaminated, but I'm still nervous because it happened so fast. I thought my issue was related to alignment, but it's just the one tire, the rest are fine and I had rotated it a month previous after 1 autocross event. The dealer didn't say anything about the tire when it was rotated and then I did 3 more autocross events and this is what I saw when I swapped out for all seasons last week...

No answer for you but following this thread.

Of the people dealing with this issue; how many are running spacers/aftermarket wheels with lower offset? Of those, how many are lowered on springs?

 

[hondalover92]

Ok so I'm not insane. I have the exact same noise too.

I have an Integra Type S, aftermarket wheels with +45 offset, lowered on Eibach Pro-kit and EVS ball joints with camber at -3.5 degrees. I also just had a tire come apart where it looks almost like some of it could have been cause by rubbing/cutting into something on the passenger side front. I didn't notice it until August right after I swapped out the OEM Michelins for 275/35 Falken RT660+.

Here's a pic of the tire for reference; I've had other folks suggest this tire is just faulty and delaminated, but I'm still nervous because it happened so fast. I thought my issue was related to alignment, but it's just the one tire, the rest are fine and I had rotated it a month previous after 1 autocross event. The dealer didn't say anything about the tire when it was rotated and then I did 3 more autocross events and this is what I saw when I swapped out for all seasons last week...

No answer for you but following this thread.

Of the people dealing with this issue; how many are running spacers/aftermarket wheels with lower offset? Of those, how many are lowered on springs?

My original Michelin tires had the inner edge in terrible condition, just like yours, but since my tires had 40,000 km when I bought the car, I considered it normal.

I had the same noise even before installing the springs and spacers — the springs are HR, 2 cm in the front and 1.5 cm in the rear.

Interestingly, that humming noise is connected to the throttle — if you turning in the same gear and same speed without gas, you can’t hear it. I also noticed that it becomes much quieter once the car is fully warmed up, after about 40 minutes of driving.

Maybe try changing the gearbox oil, since it’s also for the LSD, or add some more grease to the drive shafts — I’m not sure, but I think the noise is related to the LSD or the drive shafts.

 

[jcm]

correct i have the same observation, it is connected to the throttle. no throttle = no motion = no noise

I was checking this out again recently, this obviously does not provide any actual root cause analysis but a long time FK8 owner said he'd been hearing this same noise for years with no actual issues presenting.

LSD drive shafts etc moving parts probably on the right track... else we would hear EPS while stationary right

 

[T41WN.1]

correct i have the same observation, it is connected to the throttle. no throttle = no motion = no noise

I was checking this out again recently, this obviously does not provide any actual root cause analysis but a long time FK8 owner said he'd been hearing this same noise for years with no actual issues presenting.

LSD drive shafts etc moving parts probably on the right track... else we would hear EPS while stationary right

whats even more concerning to me was before I heard this noise, I did a U-turn entering with some speed, and then I heard a grinding noise. I pulled over and checked everything, nothing came off, or could see any damage. But ever since when I full do U-turns with throttle, that buzzing noise can be heard.

Took it to Honda and they said nothing was wrong, but now that I think of it, I really hope its not the LSD but everything is point towards it.

My car still drives fine, even when I took it on track I didn't have any issues. Didn't hear the buzz noise either but could just be because all I hear is tyres squeeling and exhaust noises lol.

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