Gverd001

Hello all,
I recently purchased a 2003 tl a couple of weeks ago without doing thorough research on it. Needless to say I felt a knot in my stomach when I read about all the transmission problems. The car I got only had one owner (old couple) that only drove it for about 72k miles. They maintained it very well. The VIN didn't have a recall on it and the transmission has never been serviced for problems, but I'm becoming more concerned about the tranny failing on me at some point in the not so distant future. It seems like many here suggest this is a matter of when not if. In planning for the worst, I'm considering doing the swap with the 07 AV6 seeing as how that seems to work for a lot of folks. Does anybody know a good mechanic with reasonable pricing that has done this before and is in the LA/San Diego area. If you guys have any other suggestions, I'm all ears. Thanks.

Nicks2001tl

So, you have a perfectly good car and want to do preventative maintenance, cool. In addition to the transmission the motor mounts also have a high fail rate. You might be the lucky one and not have to replace the transmission.


My point, don`t repair the transmission unless it fails. Check the maintenance schedule and do the scheduled fluid changes, and address any issue as it happens.


If you want to replace the tranny with an AV6 I won`t stop you, but....

frankjnjr

i feel your pain and felt compelled to relate my experience. in june, 2014 i purchased a 2003 type S with 196,000 miles. the car was well cared for, extremely clean, and has the P7W A87 RMK B7WA transmission. currently, the car has 220,387 miles. to date, after two 3x transmission drain and refills and a Blackstone Lab "transmission oil " analysis performed on the fluid that was in the car when i purchased it, the transmission is performing as it should with no signs of the dreaded trans issues many on this forum experience. shortly after buying this car, i purchased an 07 accord trans just in case, but knock on wood, no issues to date. my point being that it may be premature to replace your transmission at this time. it would be prudent, in my opinion, to set $1500 to $2000 aside just in case. of course, for complete peace of mind, the 07 AV6 is the way to go. good luck

musiclevelz5

Great approach to the transmission concerns of these cars!

I believe all of these cars should have an AV6 put in them when the B7WA goes out which is obviously inevitable. No amount of highway driving or easy on the throttle or so called preventative maintenance will prevent these trans from failing again.

It can take a few months or 10 years before the trans goes out...

The best action to take is to be prepared when the trans does shit the bed and then you can swap in your AV6 you have had stored for this very occasion!

dpw-ct

I have a 2000 TL with 149,000 miles transmission slips occasionally maybe 25% the time I'm driving it. Actually looking to sell the car but don't want to hand someone a big problem do you think it makes sense to do the drain and refill any further advice. I don't really do much work on my car at all but is this something I should try to handle myself.

frankjnjr

certainly, if the trans is slipping 25% of the time, there is a serious issue. that issue may, or may not mean the transmission is history. a decent 2g tl, at that mileage, with known transmission issues is normally worth less than $1,000.00 in my market area, assuming you can find someone to buy it. if you are not very, very familiar with the mechanics and repair "DIY" of your car, i would not recommend trying to replace the transmission yourself. not only could you be hurt physically, you could also inadvertently damage other components in the process. it's not an easy job! you may want to consider trying to find a qualified reputable transmission specialist to diagnose the problem before you proceed further. ( Bkackstone Lab ) trans fluid anaylsis would be another consideration and would tell you how much and what kind of material levels the fluid contains, as apposed to what levels it should contain. this analysis gives you a good idea of overall health of the transmission.

dpw-ct

No sorry for the c0nfusion I would not try the transmission replacement myself , my question was should I try the drain and refill 3x by myself

frankjnjr

sure. it can't hurt. drain and refill is a very simple procedure. to make sure i get the correct amount of fluid back in, i use two one half gallon milk jugs to drain the old fluid, making sure the fluid level is correct prior to draining. than i fill two clean and dry half gallon milk jugs with the exact same amount of fluid i removed. this way, there is no guess work as to weather the transmission is over or under filled, and saves you the trouble of draining excess or adding more to obtain the correct level. works for me and saves time in the long run. you may find it difficult to remove both the drain and fill plugs. they are both really tight and require a bit of leverage to remove. it is doubtful that a fluid change will correct the slipping issue. as long as your changing the fluid, you may as well change the external filter, remove the shift solenoids and check the screens for debris. if you find debris in the screens, chances are pretty good the transmission is not in good shape, but it may buy you some time. there are DIY posts with pictures on each of the above procedures and they are all relatively simple to perform.