i have 2006 tsx w 60k miles. Should i be changing shocks/struts soon? appreciate any advice

 

I've never heard of any car needing to replace their shocks or struts as long as you don't ram into things and break something.

Why the sudden interest in replacing those? Does the ride feel different?

Most you should be worried about in such a reliable car is routine maintenance.

 

I agree-the shocks/struts aré still good on my 06 tsx.

 

The old push and look for bounce test still applies.

Select a corner of the vehicle...push the vehicle down (don't push on the sheet metal, you can bend it) and then see if it returns to position or bounces a little. A bounce is indicative of a need to further check the damper at that position.

 

Depends mainly on how the car is driven. All highway, they'll most likely last the life of the car. A lot of driving on crappy roads, and I'd guess not so long. Like any other part, the more usage is sees, the less time it will last. Both of our TSX's are driven mainly on the highway. The 07 has over 150K miles on it and still rides and handles fine. The 05 has about 120K miles on the Koni yellows I installed and it too seems to ride and handle as well as ever.

 

thanks, that helps a lot. I'll try the push test. It drives fine. I got it used at 28k, so never knew what kind of maintanence was done on it. I've pretty much only done oil changes since ive had it.

 

Maybe you should look into changing the transmission fluid at this time. Most vehicles change them around 30k miles, but I hardly hear of Honda/Acura or Toyota owners changing their transmission fluid at regular intervals (every 30k). I don't buy into the lifetime fill BS because Mercedes vehicles had that same philosophy until their expenses piled up through warranty replacements of $9,000 transmissions. Now they require 39k intervals (changed from their lifetime fill nonsense just after 3 years!). I don't doubt the reliability of these vehicles and a lot of these Honda/Toyota vehicles make it through their lifetime without issues (though owners probably sell them before any issues). Its just a safety measure if you plan on keeping your Acura for the life of the vehicle.

I changed it on my Corolla around 32k miles and it was just like changing the oil, but located on the driver's side. Just unplug and fill! The Mercedes was a bit more difficult, but the job is done!

 

What to do for maintenance to a 6 y/o, 60K mile TSX is worthy of a new thread, but this is probably good advice, though the MM seems to be fairly dependable in determining the change interval. The change procedure is not quite that easy, though the only thing I'd add is you have to R&R the belly pan (worst part of the job), and to do a complete AT fluid change (properly anyway)(well, the best you're going to do), you have to do it three times (with a short drive in between). There are a number of threads here on fluid changes if anyone has any questions (try a search)(though the search function on here is dismal, so good luck).

 

To answer the OP, I changed my shocks at about 115K miles after 6 years in service. For reference my car is about 85% highway driven. The car was riding fine on smooth roads but it was wallowing a bit more in hard turns and crashed a bit more on washboard surfaces. My control arm bushings were still in good shape and my car passed the bounce test and none of the shocks was leaking any fluid. I likely would have just kept going on them but a forum member was selling his practically new OEM suspension at a steal price (he upgraded to aftermarket coilovers at about 200 miles) so I picked them up and swapped them in. There was a noticeable difference.

Point is that the OEM suspension will degrade so slowly over the time that it is really not noticeable until you replace.

OT: Simba, like your new avatar. Is it the same girl that used to be in your color avatar?

 

Since you're a newbie, you wouldn't know, but yes, same girl, pretty much since the beginning (since I've been here). I change it around, so you'll see more of her. Thank you for noticing.

 

Miller is a god!

Anyway, you really can't go by age or miles for struts. You need to see how the car handles on bumpy roads and how huch body roll you have. Another member listed the bump test, which is a great way to see how the state of the strut. The struts on the TSX are hard to see leaks due to the dust boot, but you will feel loose on the road if shocks are needed.

 

if it helps.. ive got a 06 tsx with 80k miles... i noticed the front struts were leaking when i replaced my front upper a arms ...guess it just depends....

 

I'll bet you a bag of donuts they are not as good as you think...I swapped mine in my 2006 TSX at 137K and there is a night and day difference in handling/stopping....

 

Well, it goes back to replacement being mileage based and not really about age.

 

My 05 is at 108k miles. back end sounds like a bed at a cheap motel. I also have 8 bowling balls in the trunk at all times and a 12" sub box. But thats only been for last couple months. I'm hoping its only the struts.

 

ok, so sorry for the dumb question, but I'm now a bit confused. does the tsx use shocks or struts, or both?

i found in some other threads that people recommend the Koni sport yellow shocks. would i need to buy struts as well?

 

It appears that some use the terms interchangeably, and you right to be confused. The TSX actually has shock absorbers, though they could be confused with a "strut" since the springs are mounted on the shocks and could appear like a strut when they're viewed as a unit.

 

I just replaced all 4 struts at 135k. I didn't appreciate just how much they were gone until I was driving daily over a torn up road surface prior to resurfacing. My '05 TSX would bounce & skip over the road. After replacing, I can't believe the difference. I feel like I am driving on rails.
I have heard many times in the past as 90k being the magic number for shocks needing replacing. In my experience, I would guess that my shocks were maybe showing the first signs for replacement at 115k - 120k.
I spent a lot of time investigating replacements, getting many mixed reviews. I didn't want to lower my ride and was happy with the OE, so just went with original spec from Hondapartsunlimited.com

 

X2...this is something everyone should do during an oil change. Sturts wear out and that is that...doesn't matter how many miles or age.