Dale Cash

My 06 has 87,000. I am afraid it is dying now. Does a complete flush help?

I hate cars

If you think it's dying, tell us what it's doing. Likely new switches and a Dex III or Type F fluid will greatly extend the life, if it's not too late.

IcePak

My 2004 TL is at 193,000 and still on the original transmission (window sticker said the tranny was made in Japan).

I bought it used at 83,000 and it only had one fluid change to that point. Since I bought it, I did a 3x3 flush, put in a new ATF filter and changed the fluid every 15k. I still need to get the pressure switches changed though.

Lately when going down a hill and it goes into 2 or 3rd, I feel a little vibration for 5-10 seconds with reduced torque and then it seems to engage in gear and I feel all the torque. Is this the shudder that users have brought up?

Eternal 28

What steps should I take to switch to type f fluid? Should I just drain the original fluid and mix in the type f or do I have to flush it out and put type f fluid?

Thank you

Dale Cash

I traded mine yesterday because of the same problem. I bought a 2012 TSX.

sleeper22

Don't flush. Do a 3 by 3 drain and refill or mix it in like you said. I have yet to replace the pressure switches and I am at 100,000 miles. I did the 3 by 3 drain and refill and replaced with Amsoil synthetic. Shifts better and smoother now. The only thing I notice now is when its downshifting from around 40-45mph I feel it a little more so not sure if this is normal?

Ping83

This information is very useful insight as I am looking at buying a 07 tl yoke s with 85k. Anyone have updates on tls failures as this thread is two years old?

Thanks in advance for any help.

1KLRTOY

Here's a start, take the time to read through these, and also change the pressure switches
https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-2004-2008-93/redline-my-system-820509/ https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=820509

3.2TLc

A very special thanks to "I hate cars" for his dedication in helping to inform others of ways to attempt keeping their TL tranny's going for longer than they were unfortunately predestined to. Bravo, keep up the good work !!!

Ya really helped me to keep our family's 2000 TL's original 185k tranny alive for longer than expected.

tlorencz

iTrader: (1)

I bought my 08 TL S with 56k miles on it. Replaced the transmission fluid and the PSs at 97k miles. Have had no problems to date.

gatoboxer

My 2004 Acura TL 138,000 miles auto transmission started over heating going up a hill and the code for check engine light is P0741 Torque Converter Clutch Solenoid Stuck Off. The check engine light with the code has been on for about a year with no problems. But one day I was driving up a hill and the car wasn't shifting with smoke coming out of everywhere and ATF leaking from I think the dip stick seemed like it was overheating.

I hate cars

Of course it overheated going uphill with no TCC. These transmissions do not have much in the way of cooling capacity. It's assumed the clutch is going to be locked when on the freeway and unlike some of the older transmissions, they don't have enough cooling capacity to run unlocked for extended periods.

The uphill made things much worse. I don't like Acura's transmission programming. When going uphill, when the load gets too high and it needs more rpm to maintain speed, it unlocks the TCC first. This creates lots of heat and you're still not in a lower gear with the torque multiplication, just more rpm for slightly more power.

What I've found is manually downshifting to 4th the TCC will remain locked so almost no heat is being produced, you get the torque multiplication from the lower gear, the higher rpm so there's more power available but...... since the clutch is locked, rpm is almost identical to 5th and unlocked. It makes no sense that they would program it to unlock in 5th first instead of downshifting to 4th first with the clutch locked.

If you have a TCC that no longer locks, you will have less heat when going uphill if you're in a lower gear. If you're on a fairly steep uphill and going 65mph, you're much better off at 4,000rpm in 3rd than 2,500rpm in 5th or 4th. At higher rpm the torque converter will be more efficient with less "slippage" to cause heat and with less speed differential between engine and trans input shaft.

One thing many forget about is plenty of heat is created when coasting downhill with no TCC. The amount of torque it takes to spin the engine or to hold the car at speed is less than it is to climb the hill but it's not a big difference and it still creates plenty heat. So unlike the engine where the injectors shut off when coasting downhill and the engine gets a break, the trans produces additional heat both uphill and downhill compared to level ground.

Even on level ground, the trans will likely run measurably cooler in 4th than in 5th without the clutch locked. The problem with running a car for a year without fixing the TCC is it breaks down the fluid much quicker due to the heat that's created and the additional shear produced by the converter operation without the clutch locked. It goes from a solenoid or converter problem to a whole trans problem and cost to fix skyrockets. At a minimum it should have been run on the best synthetic you can find for it's superior heat handling and oxidation resistance. It's still a bandaid though. The fluid eventually boils, the pump cavitates, there's just enough hydraulic pressure to keep the car moving and to allow the clutches to engage just enough to slip and burn themselves up in just one incident.