danmm7

iTrader: (1)

Before i begin, let me say that i already do NOT like our local Acura dealer.

I took my 2004 Acura TSX for a bunch of SMALL repair items that needed to be fixed, most under warranty. (new key reprogram, bad sun visor, AT fluid replacement, noisy pass. side window, steering squeak, bad rear speakers + Acura recall items - trunk wiring and headlights) As you can see, none of them are related to one another.

First thing the service adviser said was...."oh, i've never seen so many issues on Acura, this car must have been in a BAD accident which would void your warranty, do you know this?" I told him that i just got the car "used" 1 month ago but i has 100% clean Carfax and it is a local, one owner car. He said ..."well, sometimes Carfax does nto mean anything - we'll see the car". What kind of comment and reaction is this??? Who is this guy to decide that my car was in a BAD accident and the warranty may be void because the car has a bunch of cosmetic issues??

Second thing that pissed me off and i need your feedback on --- one of the issues was that when i was turning the steering wheel towards the passenger, i could hear a squeak. (all quiet in the other direction) It was happening only in one direction. No vibration, no other noise, car drives fine....it sounds like something made out of rubber is touching something else - no rubbing, just touching. I asked the service adviser to check on this too...since the car was in the shop. So, he just called me and informed me that they "found the reason" for the noise --- "Looks like the car was in an accident and during the accident one of the CV boots came off and grease was spilled all over the underside of the car. The drive belt got all dirty with grease and when you turn the steering wheel, you hear this noise. We need to replace the drive belt and clean the mess, it will cost you $310!! " According to him the CV boot was already replaced by some other "body shop".
I said "No" on the belt and told him that i will take care of this at another time. This can't be possible!!!

When i bought the car....i spend 3 hours under it. I looked at it very carefully, i did the oil change myself - there was NO grease or any debris from grease that came out of CV boots. None!
Even if there was some grease somewhere....How would the CV boot grease affect the drive belt (if there was any grease at all) and how would this translate to the squeaky noises from the steering wheel? This does not make any sense to me.

My questions are......can the CV boot come off from "an accident" or fender bender? I know the car was in a fender bender because rear bumper was replaced/repainted.
Do i really need to replace my drive belt? Can the steering wheel squeak really come from it?


Sorry for the long rant....but i am really disappointed with this dealership. I will never go there again!

JTso

iTrader: (2)

I would take the car to another dealer for a second opinion.

CGTSX2004

iTrader: (1)

Get a second opinion from another dealership, but do not be too surprised if the second dealer does tell you the same thing.

Carfax is not infallible and not all people are reliable. Hope for the best, but be prepared for the worst.

garry57

Carfax get it's info from insurance companies claims records and inspection stations (to verify miles only), so that if car was fixed paying out of pocket Carfax will have no recollection of the accident.
Noisy window may be a result of the accident if door were not assembled properly or after market parts where used to fix it.

Saying that, the dealer still may be full of sh... so just take your car to good private mechanic to verify if there indeed was some accident involved then call to Acura relations.

LuvMyTSX

That dealer sounds retarded. Sounds like he way overreacted to some cosmetic issues, like you said. However, I'd say a second opinion is in order for that CV boot situation he mentioned, just to be safe because you never know, and it's better to be safe than sorry.

It sounds like you basically did a once-over of sorts when you looked at it, so you should have seen something if there was in fact anything to see. I had that done at a private mechanic right after I bought mine, just for peace of mind.

miken5678

did you buy this as a certified preowned? doesnt carfax have that buy back guarantee?

danmm7

iTrader: (1)

I bought the car from a large Toyota dealership. It was a trade in for Camry. Not certified. It drives and looks great, except all the MINOR cosmetic issues it came with. Now all of them are fixed.

The Carfax report does have the 100% buy back guarantee.

The dealer from yesterday could NOT give me one definite reason why he believes the car was in an accident. He was using this as an excuse not to cover some of the work that should be covered by Acura. He also tried to act as if Acuras NEVER break and they never have cosmetic issues. I know they are reliable....but come on....3y/o car with 45k miles on it....can't be that perfect, especially if the previous owner did not pay attention to the small details.

Here is everything that they did yesterday.....tell me, which one of these items indicates that the car was in a bad accident?

- They did find out that the noisy passenger window was caused by "faulty" window regulator. Replaced under warranty. (Acura's fault)
- Rear speakers tested OK, they are woofers so unless the volume is cranked up - i cant hear them. (My fault)
- Sun visor was loose and they replaced it under warranty. (Acura's fault)
- Bulbs in seat heaters switches were bad - both switches were replaced under warranty. (Acura's fault)
- They did the trunk wiring harness recall for free (Acura's fault)
- They did the headlights condensation recall for free (Acura's fault)
- They replaced a loose rubber seal(in the top corner) on the passenger door under warranty. (Acura's fault)
- Auto Tranny fluid was replaced per MY request ($90)
- New key and remote was programmed per MY request. ($70)
- Steering wheel squeak was NOT fixed because they blamed it on grease that was "all over the place" from "previously leaking CV joint". To clean "the mess" and to replace DRIVE BELT i was asked to pay $300+. Why do i need to get a new drive belt? How would a drive belt cause the steering wheel squeak when turning in only one direction?? How are the belt, the grease, and steering related???

As you can see....the items above are numerous but nor really related to one another. I believe that none of them proves or shows that the car was in an accident.

I'm planning to spend some time under the car this weekend and check for this magic grease "mess" and see what they were talking about.

LuvMyTSX

I agree, none of those items you listed are anything major, and nothing that would indicate an accident. Just sounds like an untrustworthy dealer to me, so I'd definitely go somewhere else if possible. Maybe even a Honda dealership if you can.

jlukja

Again, I'm with the balloon lady^^

Due to the previous owner's inattention the little things that usually get taken care of during the course of dealer visits in the first 3 years were not taken care of. Individually, they are no big deal and are common issues that a lot of the owners on this board have dealt with. The dealer just had to deal with them all en masse. I also don't understand why a drive belt would be replaced in response to a steering wheel squeak in one direction only. I'd take it somewhere else and get an independent opinion.

SoCaliTrojan

When your car makes sounds while making a turn in one direction, it usually indicates a worn/torn CV boot. The CV boot contains grease to keep your CV joint lubricated.
In your first post it says that the CV boot fell off...in the other post, it says that the dealership stated that it was previously leaking. So which is it?

In either case, the grease may have created a mess. I don't think you need to replace the belt unless it can't be completely cleaned (and thus will slip).

If the CV boot wasn't properly installed, than the previous owner's mechanic is at fault (in the case it fell off). Otherwise, CV boots do wear out or get damaged/torn (especially in lowered cars).

You can easily have the CV boot replaced, but if the CV joint is damaged, it won't do any good. I think for accords it's more cost effective to get the halfshaft replaced instead (I don't know if the TSX's or late-model accords are like that). Torn CV boots should be taken care of immediately...otherwise the CV joint isn't lubricated, dirt will get in, etc...which will resort in higher repair costs later. That dealer quoted price sounds like 2 or 3 times the amount it should cost...

I would get a 2nd opinion, or have your own mechanic do the repair. It in no way indicates a prior accident. Damaged CV boots due to accidents are probably a very minor percentage of all damaged CV boots. My accord with eibach pro-kit and kyb shocks had a torn cv boot after just a few months of being lowered by only an inch (IE: it happens without accidents)