2015 DE - Is rough idle normal?

[tbird89]

I test drove a couple of 2015 DE's at the dealer, and noticed somewhat of a rough idle on both of them. I ended up buying the one that I felt was a little calmer at idle. But it still feels a little rough at idle, and the RPMs will very slightly "jump" (kind of like there's a slight misfire).

I wonder if this is just the car, or if there's something engine-related I should be concerned about. The CEL is not on. The car has 33,000 miles on it.

[inuvik]

I test drove a couple of 2015 DE's at the dealer, and noticed somewhat of a rough idle on both of them. I ended up buying the one that I felt was a little calmer at idle. But it still feels a little rough at idle, and the RPMs will very slightly "jump" (kind of like there's a slight misfire).

I wonder if this is just the car, or if there's something engine-related I should be concerned about. The CEL is not on. The car has 33,000 miles on it.

3 cylinders are notorious for their vibration at low rpm's. Yes it's normal. The 2014's had less dampening in the motor mounts than the 2015's and transmitted quite a bit of vibration to the steering wheel at idle. 2015's were improved but still can be noticeable. I'm not sure if there were changes for the 2017's but a '17 owner could give some feedback. As far as the slightly varying idle are you running your defroster extensively or have the climate control in "auto" mode? If so, the a/c compressor is running so your idle will jump up and down slightly due to when the compressor kicks on it idles up 150 rpm or so. If you have the CVT when you come to a stop waiting at a light the transmission has an "idle neutral logic" mode which in theory disengages the CVT which will cause your idle to vary slightly. I personally don't like it and use neutral extensively at lights.

[wellswebdesign]

3 cylinders are notorious for their vibration at low rpm's. Yes it's normal.

Agreed. Here's someone elses video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yARZF1PCIa0 that sounds similar to my car. It's fairly undetectable while in the vehicle, way more pronounced when you look under the hood. They weren't nicknamed the "Mitsubishi Massage" for nothing.

[Alex1a1f]

3 cylinders are naturally unbalanced and will have a slight warble to them, unless they have a weighted crankshaft and other balance mechanisms.

I have seen the 14s and they are quite shaky, and they did decrease that in the 15s. I have a 17' and don't notice the idle except when the A/C kicks in or slowly accelerating. They definitely did something from 15 to 17 to make is smooth. I'll post a video when I get a second.

Here's a little video that helps explain 3 cylinder issue.

https://youtu.be/Oc5_B4Qua_I

[Eggman]

I test drove a couple of 2015 DE's at the dealer, and noticed somewhat of a rough idle on both of them. I ended up buying the one that I felt was a little calmer at idle. But it still feels a little rough at idle, and the RPMs will very slightly "jump" (kind of like there's a slight misfire).

I wonder if this is just the car, or if there's something engine-related I should be concerned about. The CEL is not on. The car has 33,000 miles on it.

Hello tbird89 and welcome to the forum. It would be helpful if you could share a video of what you are describing. Let us know if you need any assistance with getting the video up.

[tbird89]

Thanks, guys. I'd post a video, but it sounds like what I'm experiencing is normal and I don't need to be concerned. If it gets worse or changes, I'll give an update with a video.

[Jin]

Op didn't specify if it was an auto or manual..

Autos are more rougher.

[cookiemonster]

The rough idle on my 2014 ES CVT went away when I changed the oil to 5W-30 from 0W-20.

[tbird89]

Op didn't specify if it was an auto or manual..

Autos are more rougher.

It's an automatic. Sorry I didn't specify earlier.

[tbird89]

The rough idle on my 2014 ES CVT went away when I changed the oil to 5W-30 from 0W-20.

Come to think of it, I had the oil changed the other day (and they used 0W-20), and it does seem like the rough idle has decreased. It's still there, but not as noticeable as before.