my tl 2.5 is a piece of shit, the more i read this forum, the more possible problems i notice..at least thanks to you guys ive identified them. i bought this shitass car used, and i love it and religiously maintain it, but damn do the problems ever stop?! if i had a chance id sell it, but i def would lose more than thousands.. ive had other cars b4 and none have cost so much to maintain. Acura Canada ppl are bunch of dickheads who dont even give us the extended emissions in canada as my manifold unlike most regular cars CRACK! jus wanted to vent out here, and i know yall will disagree...but there may be ppl in same position as me.

 

The 2.5 TL is one of the most reliable cars you'll ever find on planet earth. It's unfortunate you're having problems. Man it will be tough for you to find a more reliable car than the first generation TL

 

I would have to agree with you.... we here would probably disagree with your assessment of the TL its unfortunate that your car is giving you trouble. The Acura TL that i have is the 1996 3.2 mine has 102k on the clock now and it rides and purrrs like a kitten. You bought yours used as did I ,I bought mine with 86k on the clock. I just feel you may have gotten a bad egg which is posible. BUT for the most part I have to agree with the other guy saying the 1st gen tl is the most reliable car on the planet. i have dont nothing but change the oil in mine. i average 28 on the highway and i drive 3 xs per year to NY from FLA.

If you have any questions about your car . let me know ill see what I can do.

Dave

 

I have a 97 TL 2.5, purchased brand new. It has 210k on it and only majore issue I had.
I would say it is one of the most reliable car.
honda makes the best automobile.

 

What are the such extensive problems that you are having?

I have to say, most people are impressed with my car versus other cars of the same year or similar, and are also impressed when they find out mine has over 150,000 miles on it.

I'm guessing the previous owner of yours didn't maintain it well, and now the problems are starting up, but that would happen with any car.

 

I believe the previous owner of your car just didnt maintain it like he should . and its funny Im not sure about the rest of the guys here but for the most part at 100 k + all i have to do is change the oil. granted I work for an Acura dealer and i have my techs look at it once a month maybe every other but i never have an issue. I can say honestly the only issue i had in the last 6 months was me blowing a fuse due to my stupidity. other than that my car looks like new and rdes like new.

Keep in touch im glad to see we are out there. its almost like a 1st gen TL club 100 K +

Dave

 

I agree with Dave on this. You probably just got a bad egg.
But its okay to vent.

From my experience, I think Honda and Toyota makes the most reliable cars in the world. My uncle still has his 1978 Toyota Celica in his garage. He bought it when he first came to America, and it stills run at 210,000 miles!

Someday, Im going to buy one of the next gen TL, modify it, and store it away like wines. Once time has change, Im going to take it out for a spin.

 

sorry about your bad experience with your car... i would have to agree with the rest about yours possibly being a bad egg... i love my car...

 

i'm gonna have to jump on the bandwagon with everyone else and say sorry to hear that you got one of the bad ones. I mean my car has gone through alot of abuse but it still runs like a champ. Is it possible for you to bring it to a US dealer and get it done through there?

 

1996 3.2TL owner here. 138k miles. Let's just say that its driven like its "meant" to be driven! i've hit 132mph, cruised at 100mph for hours, and slogged through 2mph traffic for 3 hours. And....

as someelse said....she "purrs like a kitten". I have never driven a car that is this well made, and has the feeling of solodity and involvement that this car has. After a hard day's work, or when shit's just not goin your way, I really do thank god for being able to get into the car, and have a relaxing ride home. Or if I'm lookin for something a tad more engagin, drop it down a couple of gears and let that C32 sing its muted roar.

No problems. Has never left me stranded. The best car I've owned, and one of the best I've ever driven. (for reference, i've driven many in its "league" - 2G LS400, 1G RL, 2G ES300) and none can approach this car's perfect blend.

Thats all folks.

 

I wouldnt go so far as to say "Never a TL again"... maybe just not another ugly 97 2.5 TL.... i think its time to upgrade to a 3.2 99-03. i love my 99.

 

I like the 1st gen look more than the 2nd. Oh and hows your tranny?

 

i love your car to

 

thanks all for your pity and my wallet...well, you all prob. are right, i must be just unlucky!

bought it at 153000km and the following probs happened up 174000:
-right away manifold cracked, cost of fix was close to $1500 but i went with the cheap fix to weld it. im sure this is temporary and im sure im killing some gas because of it. i hear the extended emissions in US helps out, but goddamn im in canada, and THEY DONT SEE THIS BEING A PROB. IN CDN 2.5 TL!
-after a month of driving, my starter went...more $
-my car one day wouldnt start, needed new distributor caps and rotors(dont know why!! but it happened all of a sudden)
-ABS! went through the bleeding like 4 times, got new accumulator..$300, no more ABS light..but somehow i see the problem coming back
-TRANNY! been through many flushes! replaced atf strainer(filter) but still the jerks are really bad..well, its not something i mind, but i hope my tranny doesnt die one day, tranny tech suggests rebuild tranny (pfft ya right)
- premature break pad wear, accident free car, and i drive like a granny...
-19MPG! (around avg but damn my dad's cts has better mileage)
-newest problem:radiator! leaking (going to try block leak stop),oil in coolant, im sure my head gasket is shot! WHY ME?
-my acura key! what the!?? thank god for replacement
-water in my trunk! my amp keeps getting fried because of it, i need to fix with sealer (taillights) even moisture in my front bumper lens
-my engine has ticking noise, could be valves, wish it was self-adjusting, thats some fragile work and they can mess it up even more!
-bodyroll in my car..my alignment is ok, steering shakes, my tires are balanced
-my windows are strange! the slowness was fixed on the driver side by lubing, thx to ur guys diy, but i got many scratches, which discourages me from tinting and i always keep getting stonechips (4x$40 is 160 just for stonechips)


I love this car, think it drives sweeet, i know it will last me long time but the way it keeps hogging my wallet it aint good for student life. ive learned the next car i get MUST have warranty even if its an acura, so id be forced to buy a new car and not pimp used luxury anymore.

 

oh and in addition haha, vibration! engine mount from what i gather. why ME?! there must be more just cant remember while im at work.

 

Fortunately for him or her the '99 TL still had the old 4-speed auto in it. Acura changed over to the 5 speed in '00.

 

unfortunately for that dumbass poster, approximately 1% of all those tranny's were screwed up too. What a tool.

 

PZWNED

 

Hey, Try contacting acura directly about the extended warranty. I got mine used and i have in WRITING what they will replace on the car at no cost to me. seems like cap and rotort were covered. as for MPG, change the spark plugs and get a valve adjustment. It cost around $100 American

 

Thanks J, I did try contacting Acura Canada Customer Relations, and they told me they cant do anything..'this problem not experienced in canada' and i told them ya...then why do i experience it!@ im sure if i file a suit on behalf on cdns, they will wake their ass up and cover my manifold.

Oh guess what my caliper slider seized on me, new brakes...woohoo more $ to spend. DAMN LUCK!

 

My 98 3.2TL has almost 300k KM on it or 185k miles and its still running strong! no major problems just the regular maintenance!

 

two new problems, front bearings (500) and speaker popped! damn.

 

hmm, i just had alot of problems with my car too, but I know that they are common...


Radiator leaked...new radiator put in and hoses replaced = $482
One of the radiator fans died so im running with one in right now untill my mechanic can find a cheap fan for it.

Rear rotors and pads replaced a while ago...normal wear and tear.

abs light comes on, but when ever it DOES rain, i never drive crazy, so im all good.

i need the tranny drained and filled but i never have any time to go get it done.



i might get a new car this summer though... dodge magnum or subaru impreza wrx sports wagon (i need a car that can hold my dj equip.)

 

'96 3.2 TL with 216k with and its smooth as butter.

 

I had just sold my 1996 3.2 tl 104 K . Im Finishing the deal tomorrow adn Ill be working on my next Acura. I may break down and get a new one but i may just sve myself a few bucks and get a preowned again. I got a great offer on mine and could not pass it up... I wish you all well , I will have to say that out of my entire fleet of cars I have owned in the past 16 years. My TL was the most reliable and treated me the best. I WILL be staying with Acura no doubt about it.

Yea I know i Sell them but thats not where my loyalty comes from. I have 1st hand experience owning one and i can honestly say this car will and any Acura will treat you better than any other car.

Keep the thread alive guys......... I want to hear more .

Dave
Miami Acura

 

My TL is giving me no problems, knock on wood.

 

Introducing my new 2002 TL - S With Navigation.
Im quite pleased with my new TL I had my boys in teh shop go over it and is scored very high on the KICK A$$ meter. ill see if i can get any pics

Keep in touch you guys all got quite....

Dave
[IMG]C:\Internet D-Loads\2002 TL Navi 5 Int.JPG[/IMG]

 

Although Ive spent a lot on repairs already, and I can imagine my car being the bad egg of Acuras, this car has horrified me in not mingling with Acuras for bad luck's sake, seems like I should go a hefty more and fork out wanting cash for much rather other purposes..right now i call it the 'flippin ting', but I need to make this TL reliable enough to call it 'long friend', anybody that had front wheel bearing problem please let me know what you encountered ,hopefully just front...why should this happen in the first place, would mounts (engine/tranny)be involved?

so my 96 2.5tl main priorties
1. wheel bearing
2. checking mounts(building for engine+tranny(tranny esp.!)Jerks are 100% on gear shifts )
3. To not have any sensi stems n seeds in any corners of my car. Also the smoke! I wanna be high when somebody else drives .

Yes, thats 2 main real fixups for now, but there are much more major ones as you see from b4 on the list.

 

lol i started this thread and i wanted to bring back the fact that I have a TL. Got it a lil time ago and loving it!!!! plus it has warranty!!!! and everytime i see the 1stgen TL, i miss it. Too bad mine was a piece of shit, but goddamn it looked nice!

Might be the flashback thread of the day! haha

 

you need stop being bitter even with a blown head my tl always ran and never let me down or refused to start. no car will be perfect, you should of done the work yourself and saved thousands.

 

^ He's not being bitter...

~Cheers~

 

^ i guess if i think i can understand his point of view.. well glad you moved up and atleast got another acura!! hope that one treats you better.

 

I have 189,000 now on my '97 3.2 TL and its been extraordinarily reliable. I make sure it's maintained regularly and it drives today as it did when I bought it 12 years ago.

The only mechanical problems I've had were a crack in the radiator at 170,000 miles and a bad starter at 180,000 miles.

Overall, I can't complain. It's paid for and the insurance is only $450.00 a year.

 

Water in the trunk cracked manifold leaky taillights ?

Sounds like this car took a bad hit to the rear.

(yes I know this thread is old and the guy no longer has the car)

 

1 G Tl is the best Tl acura ever made. now i own a 3g and i got some free rattles. now i kind of miss the 1g. the only prob in the 1 g is that parts are expencive $$$.

 

Either way TL FTW!

 

That's true. Everytime I drive my car I noticed very little to no rattle. Everytime I drive my mom's tsx I've always noticed some rattles.

 

No rattles in the TL or RL

 

true the 3G does have a lot of rattles but they're all fixable and most have a DIY on the 3G forums.

andrew070489 - ya mine just needed a little extra caring :\ which is why I was just so upset when this thread first started.

 

^ yeah i feel ya i bought mine with a bad engine if you learn though its a pretty easy car to work on