Nikon D80 Kit Lens - 18-135mm Problem

I bought a Nikon D80 kit less than two months ago and something is wrong with my

lens. At least I think it is my lens, as I know nothing about camera hardware.

 

It started when my camera was on macro mode, if I was zoomed to 135mm or any

zoom at all really, I would hear this quiet squeaking noise.

 

Now that quiet squeaking noise has become louder, especially on macro mode, but

when zoomed is happening on other modes as well. The camera also seems to have

a hard time focusing when zoomed. Focusing in and out in and out. It made a

little bit of a louder noise last night when I was taking photos, and then this

morning it was really bad. It hasn't been dropped or anything like that.

 

It works fine if I do not zoom at all nor does it make any noises.

 

I have been in Tibet for the past two weeks and it is incredibly dry here, could

this have anything to do with it? Do you need to keep lenses lubricated in dry

climates? (These may seem silly but I really do not know). Maybe it needs a

good cleaning?

 

Any ideas, suggestions would be helpful.

 

I am in China, but I bought the kit here and I have the international warranty,

so hopefully I can just exchange it or have it sent away if it is a more serious

problem. (But, I'm in China so it may not be that easy because it never is).

I had the same problem . . . a high pitched noise and focus problems started when the lens was about two weeks old. I brought it back and got a replacement. I have seen a few posts on other sites about similar problems with this lens.

It could be debris in the lens. Dry climates usually mean dusty climates as well. But it could be a mechanical issue. Modern lenses like these usually don't use lubricants. Plastic on plastic is slippery enough. I would try to exchange your lens or pick up a 50 f1.8 to see you through till you get back.

You're not going to want to hear this, but there's nothing wrong with your lens. The 18-135 is designed to be a piece of crap -- sounds like everything is in order.

The kit lens produces sharp, colorful, contrasty pictures. As with any equipment, knowing how to use it/them is key.

I tried to clean the lens and it didn't make a difference. So unfortunately, I don't think it is debris.

 

I have had this camera and lens just under two months, I assume that I cannot exchange past 30 days...so I'll probably have to send it out?

 

Wonderful.

My dad has had two lenses fail with this. They got so bad that they were unable to focus anymore. The autofocus would bind and then overshoot. Of course this means that the camera just seeks for focus, and then stops trying after a while. The lenses is completely useless. The second lens is heading back to the camera store right away.... Needless to say, my dad isn't too happy about this.

I also had the same squeaking noise lens problem with the Nikon d80 - Nikkor 18-135 kit. The squeak got very loud and the lens would no longer focus within 4 weeks of purchase. I purchased it from a local authorized Nikon dealer and was able to exchange it for a new one.

 

I did not use the camera that much and I never abused it. The only thing I can think of is cold weather may exasperate the problem (just a guess). Bottom line is there appears to be quality issues with the Nikkor DX 18-135 zoom lens.

I love my D80 with the 18-135mm lens but have the same problem described here. It?s exciting to be back in the SLR photo world having sold my Nikon 6006 about 5 years ago, but disapointing to exprience this with my expensive new toy.

 

Sadly I?ve experienced this same lens problem with my Nikon D80. Purchased at Circuit City for Christmas 2006 and less than 90 days old, the lens auto focus failed. Circuit City offered no recourse or support. Buyers beware that Circuit City offers no customer service for digital cameras beyond their 14 day policy. Even with purchased service plans Circuit City is unable to provide support since they don?t carry the same model for long periods of time and they ask you to deal with the manufacturer.

 

This 18-135mm Nikor lens auto focus failure appears to be a common problem with this model. The better news is that the lens is warranted by Nikon for 5 years and Nikon USA support communicated to me that with every service situation they add 6 months to the warranty. Auto focus failure after about a month or two of operation with a slight whining or noise appears to be common with this lens. It?s a bummer to have to have brand new and expensive product fail, especially when you choose the manufacturer for reliability. Let?s hope Nikon can fix this problem and I?ve been told it will take them about 30 days to return. Ouch!

 

Digital photo buffs beware, Circuit City?s lack of customer support for camera?s beyond the stated service plans can be avoided by looking to camera stores and other retailers who value the long term relationships.

I have this lens now for about 5 months. Last Sat. I noticed a whistling noise & some time the

motor inside grinding. It is now hunting more to focus. I took it to the shop & they have

acknowledged that it ihas a problem. So I hope they will be fixing it soon.

I have had this lens for 2 months now and just yesterday experienced the same problems. I thought moisture got into the lens and caused the problem. I was shooting pics inside the Botanic Gardens and the mist sprayers went on. The camera was misted a bit but it was in no way drenched with water. After that, the lens started squeaking and would not auto focus when zoomed. It just kept going in and out and squeaking, almost grinding. No problem auto focusing at wider angles but it still squeaks. Unfortunately, I bought this camera at an on-line photo shop. I guess I'll have to return it directly to Nikon. Seems like a serious quality issue.

Just bought the camera in the UK, a little over 2 weeks ago. Did not have time to make more

than 100 pictures or so. I now have the same problem (no autofocus at all). It is clearly the

lense as my D80 works fine with other lenses. I find this most upsetting and the quality

control around the production of the lense is a disgrace as there are a number of sites

logging similar complaints. In addition there must be all those who do not bother posting

something on a site and just return / get the lense repaired.

Same problem here. I got about a year's use out of it before it tanked. Damn.

I had the same problem with my lens too. I had it 2 weeks before it went out.

I just had the same problem with a D40 kit lens after about a month. The quality of Nikon seems not to be what it was. Perhaps it's time to go to Canon.

I've had the same problem with the 28-55mm lens that came with my D50 for about 8 months now. I got about a year's worth of use out of it before it started acting up, as described above.

 

My question is: can the lens be repaired/cleaned/oiled/something? Is this something I can do myself? Is there a repair place out there that can do this?

I'm not having an auto focus problem, but it may be related nonetheless.

 

I've had a new D80 for just a month, and the entire shutter diaphragm just sort of fell apart inside the lense. The leaves are separated and just hanging in there.

 

Also, the sharpness of the 18-135 has been very dissapointing ever since it was new - If the light is very strong (as with the flash), and the subject is rather close (within a few feet, the sharpness is superb. But, for anything else it just is not giving anything like acceptable sharpness. The same is true for manual focus as well - only more so.

 

Also, my wife just recently took a full zoom (135) shot of a flat, smooth ocean horizon, and it was slightly curled down in the middle like you would expect to see from a short focal length just verging on 'fish eye' (it wasn't much, but when I put a stright line on the horizon to level the shot it jumped out at you).

 

The store is going to replace the lense, but I've been very reluctant to put out the big (or bigger) bucks to get further lenses in hopes that they will be better (at least until I get this sorted out).

 

This is not my idea of good lense imagery (or qualty). And, it's from Nikon???

I got it repaired by Nikon. It took about 4 weeks. Came back and worked fine. I am using it

extensively, no further problems.

<p>I bought Nikon lens 18-135 mm f/3.5 on April 2007. Nikon company fix the lens once in 2008, and I will ship lens to them again coming Monday to repair. It is the same problem with lens happened twice. The same problems each of you describe in your posting. The lens is hard to focusing, making nose. I couldn't say anything bad about lens performance. I took hundred of pictures and it was published. It is sharp lens.The lens works using Manual focus, but AF is the mess.<br>

It is bad when it is happened just before photoshoot. I was using different lens with NikonD80 fro several months. I was shooting portraits with Nikon 70-300mm,and few days later I need to use again 18-135 mm lens again.I just switch to 18-135 mm, and the lens is not focusing.<br>

It was odd, I couldn't fin the reason why the lens break first and second time.<br>

I am thinking to buy Nikon 18-200 f/3.5. It is much more expensive lens, but I hope it is better quality.<br>

What lens you are using for event photography?</p>

<p>My initial post was on Jan 19, 2007 regarding Nikon d80 - Nikkor 18-135 kit - lens failure. Well, the lens failed again. Fortunately the lens has a 5 year warranty. I purchased my camera at a Nikon authorized dealer and repair shop. I just had to show my original receipt and pay for shipping. I got the lens back in two weeks. I shot several hundred photos since then. So far the repaired lens is working OK... </p>

<p>Mark,<br>

I shoot hundreds of pictures after Nikon repair my lens in 2008. It is no guarantee how long this lens could be use after Nikon will repair this lens again in 2010.<br>

What do you think about 18-200 mm lens f/3.5?</p>

<p>After my 18-135 lens died the second time, I was considering getting the 18-200 mm f/3.5 lens. The 18-200 focal length is very good for the vast majority of shooting situations. My friend has the 18-200 lens with no complaints. If the price is not an issue, I would recommend upgrading to the 18-200.</p>

<p>I used a Nikon DX 18-70 lens on my D-80 and it seems to have stopped working (now that I am in Peru, of course). I get the 'ro5' error code in the viewfinder and the shutter does not fire. It seems Nikon is now selling shoddy products and I am questioning my loyalty to Nikon over all these years. It seems Canon equipment is far less expensive and there is no point in paying a Nikon premium, if all you get are shoddy products - as this thread shows.</p>