Rob24

iTrader: (1)

Hey everyone,

I'm interested in getting an auto CL. What problems or things should I look for when testing/inspecting them? Any other advice would be greatly appreciated. Also a rough price estimate. Thanks.

gnuts

iTrader: (1)

6 speed or bust. Why buy a car with a flawed transmission?

JarrettLauderdale

If you're set on an automatic CL for whatever reason, I would plan now to purchase a used transmission from a 2006-2007 Accord V6 automatic. As gnuts hinted to, the issues with the automatic that came in these cars are so numerous that it's not even worth entertaining the idea of fixing them. Honda had class action lawsuits levied against then because of how badly they performed and how often they needed to be replaced. The problems were later fixed, and the Accord I mentioned earlier is one of the models that you can get the revised design on that is still compatible with the engine that came in these cars.

Prices are all over the place. Ideally, you could find one in otherwisegreat condition with a bad automatic transmission. Talk them down to a steal and swap in the Accord transmission. Clean car, cheap price and reliable transmission. Win, win, win.

R J Poseidon 6

Listen to those 2 Rob24 - they're correct.

Good luck b/c it's a sick car & it seems like coupes are making a comeback so .... #StepUp!

brian6speed

iTrader: (5)

What coupes are making a comeback? Unless you mean 4 door cars with slanting roof that they call coupes but really aren't.

Acura has not made coupe since 2003 and probably never will. You can't expect Americans to fit in back seat without extra doors.

Avoid auto CL btw.

Rob24

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for the replies and advice. I'm gonna try to find a CLS6 and if not will get an auto and swap for a 06-07 V6 tranny.

JarrettLauderdale

I've said for the past couple of years that if Acura made a 2-door version of the current TLX SH-AWD, that I would be the guy that reserves one at the dealer. Then I found out that the TLX has a McPherson strut front suspension. I get that it's not the worst thing on the planet, but it's an evolutionary regression from a wishbone-style suspension.

brian6speed

iTrader: (5)

Acura is run by bean counters, there are no real enthusiasts at Acura. I would recommend never buying a new Acura again. This is from a guy who wears acura hats and shirts and even uses an Acura blanket in my bed lol.

Damn didn't know acura is using mac strut on front for tlx now.

Bmw, porsche, etc use mac strut in front also. They seem to get them to work quite well for street cars. Their lower mounting is different than other manufacturers though. For their race cars they do remove the mac struts for unequal A arms which tells you which is better.

Mac struts require less parts, are cheaper, and easier to package.

A well designed mac strut setup can be better than a poorly designed double wishbone.

Our suspension geometry is part of reason my CL does so well at autocross.

It is hard for me to blame manufacturers for doing this when customers don't know difference or care. This makes car cheaper which is a plus for consumers who will never autocross or track their cars. Mac strut is good enough for street cars, which 99.9% of cars are.

There is a Porsche Boxster Spyder I autocross against that I haven't beat yet. That has mac struts on all 4 corners and does really well. It is only 2700 lbs and makes 320hp. Mid engine helps, so does PDK gearbox. Was talking to owner and he said PDK is around 1 second a run faster than the manual version. He has better tires than me also. Think I can give it a challenge with same tires. I am not very aggressive during 1-2 up shift just to be easy on tranny. That hurts my times slightly. Then keeping it in 2nd gear versus PDK that changes gears for you. That thing is robably shifting from 1-2 a lot.

My Focus ST has mac struts. Issue with stock setup is that you have to run front tire pressure at 40 just to keep tires from rolling over. With mac struts you really need -3 degrees of camber or more and lots of positive caster. With that much camber you lose some grip in straight line accelerating and braking.

Humberwho

Wise choice !

YeuEmMaiMai

also before you buy, run the car past your insurance agent to get any history and to find out what your rates are.. CL are considered performance coupes so Insurance will not be the same as a civic

Oldsman71

iTrader: (1)

Good luck with your search. Getting harder and harder to find a good six speed car with decent miles (less than 120K). Recommend looking in southern or western states to avoid rust issues associated with northeast and midwest.

GroundedCustom

The only thing made in Amercia anymore are big fat asses!!

Its unfortunate acura stopped making the coupe. Besides the nsx which is not practial in anyway, besides the m3 or a g35 which to me the m3 is the only one that holds a spot in my heart

Even the issue of a "true" manual, with a clutch pedal, acura seems to be steering away
Its sad.

The CL minus the auto tranny issue is one car that never lost its styling. Its a simple and eligaent cockpit that even being 15 years old still looks "undated"

Getting into a 6sp for myself, i dont see ever getting rid of it. Just another addition to the quiver

R J Poseidon 6

Very sad, but it's the way of the future. As much as I hate to admit it, some pdk's semi this that or whatever seem to be shifting quicker w/no room for human error.

I freaking hate it, but all manufacturers are steering away from manuals sadly.