No doubt it could be done for under a grand. But if you were to take it to the dealer no way. I do my own work on 90% of the stuff I need to do to the car.

I'm just telling it like it is with the CLS. My situation with my CLS is going to be differant than others and I respect that.

People come here to find accurate info on Acuras. So why should the truth not be told.?

When closed minded biased people, that talk about the CLS like its the greatest car ever, when really it is the Black Sheep of Acura, tell me to stop giving my opinion because they don't like what I have to say, it ticks me off. The op came here for opionions on the CLS. And thats what he is getting.

There are plenty of things I like about my CLS, but everyone else has already stated them. So I'm just giving him the other side of the coin to look at.

 

boy I'm glad I've choose the CL-S 6spd over the 5AT from day one (02'). so damn close getting the 02' TL-S because of a great deal that the dealer was offering.....

 

I'm curious, does a 2002 TL-S with similar options have the same bad resale that a 2002 CL-S does.

If it's not as bad, then the low resale is from the CL being a discontinued car and the fact it is a big coupe. The resales isn't from the poor reliability.

You are claiming the low resale is because of the reliability of the car when that is not the case. That is why I used the TL-S as an example, it is the exact same cars and would more than likely have the exact same problems as the CL-S yet there is a difference in value.

NADA Pricing of 2002 TL-S with Navi, 100k Miles-- Rough Trade in value $6,350
NADA Pricing of 2002 CL-S with Navi, 100k Miles-- Rough Trade in value $5,850

That's almost a 10% difference and they are the same cars with what should be the same reliability ratings.

So using resale value as a way of validating that the car is poor quality doesn't work.

 

Being curious, I looked at the resale of some other cars.

2002 Audi A4--- 100k miles $6,775 - base $38,000- depreciation 83%
2002 BMW 330XI 100k miles $8,775 - base $42,000- depreciation 81%
2002 Infiniti I35 100k miles $5,250 - base $40,000- depreciation 87%
2002 Accordlx v6100k miles $5,100 - base $28,000- depreciation 82%
2002 CLS 100k miles $5,850 - base $35,000 - depreciation 83%

Not sure how the CL-S is any different from all these other high mileage cars when it comes to severe depreciation .

 

irjanus: Sooooo..nways, 1st of all..welcome to Azine! as you have probably already seen, a lot of opinionated folks around here & a lot of info to be had. As with my friend nf3, mine carries a salvage title as well, but so far I'm at over 122K miles & tranny still shifts strong... *knock on wood* and IMO it is just a "hit or miss" w/ the trannies...I might be biased but I say get the tranny fixed by a reliable shop you know, then keep the car...

 

thanks for the welcome lol.

I really do thank you all for the opinions. Like a few posters have said, its beneficial for me to hear from both sides. Its funny with cars. Its all abou that particular car. I had a 99 eclipse gs and it was a tank. As was a 91 Chevy beretta. Then I had a friend with a honda acord and it was crap. I think its all luck of the draw.

The explorer (99) has a similar tranny issue apparently, though its not as talked about as the minor continuous repairs... then again there are TONS on the road so i would invariably hear more people complaining. I also read in the FAQ (the CL/TL 2nd gen) that out of 2500+ members as of 2002, only 48 had tranny issues. (this was a while ago and the number has surely gone up).

My goal here is to hedge my bets, and make the smart choice. Without fixing the transmission, the CL is relatively worthless to anyone outside of a car enthusiest, and even then, i'm going to lose heavily on my initial investment. A trade seems to be my most viable option should I get rid of it.... though another downside is the terrible resale of a 99 explorer..

I think im going to be hit or miss either way.
Maybe i should look for signs lol...
The tow to get it looked at was quoted t 90 bucks... (the shop was 30 miles away), and thru an error i was only charged 15 dollars

I'm just so nervous about all the what-ifs... then again life is littered with what-ifs.

currently i'm leaning 60/40 on keeping the car and fixing the tranny. Overall, build quality is nicer, and if both vehicles are a crap shoot reliability wise, I may as well go with the one that is three years younger and 30k less on the odo

 

It's a good attitude and perspective.

30k less on the odo is a big consideration in my opinion.

 

Your over thinking this. You laid out what you need in your 1st post. Does the CL fit this or does the Explorer fit this? Either way your loosing your ass.
I know I would not want to own a used salvage car that was worth nothing. Good luck getting rid of it later. After you just spent a ton of $ to fix.
There are far more buyers looking for a used SUV to haul stuff in.

 

On a side note...I think there are cases when salvaged cars are total POS's...mine being one!

I had to put a ridiculous amount of money into correcting all the neglected issues.

 

Nice work pits, I never thought to look at comparable cars. I see you point here. Nicely played!

 

Ha, not really trying to win but thanks.

It's just, people have to expect cars that are almost 8 years old to be worth pretty much...nothing. Compound that with it being a discontinued model, people don't really sit back and say,

"Damn, I really want myself a used 8 year old CL-S" Name recognition falls off severly when a car becomes discontinued.


As for everyone bashing the explorer, American SUVs are a completely different beast than the sedans.

 

This quote I think sums it up. Dumping money into a salvage is pretty much worthless as you will see no return on it when you decide to get rid of the car. I for one would never buy a salvage, to many worries about "what if" problems.

Unless you plan on keeping the CL for at least 5 years, you probably would be better off economically with the Explorer.

 

no I know i'm over thinking it, but you actually hit on exactly why I am- I plan on keeping whatever I pick up for at least 4-5 years. Minimal driving for the first 3, normal-moderate for the last 2 (rotations/residency). Thats why the salvage title doesnt bother me too much, UNLESS the tranny goes multiple times. I think odds are in my favor of it working out fine with the CL.

there is also the fact that while I was accepted to Erie- I may go elsewhere. (note- my school choice will not be directed by my car issues haha, just saying the application season is young and i've had a few acceptances roll in with more probable).

I'm driving everyone nuts with it all, but i'm just a little shell shocked when it come to all the possible scenarios. I'm a little gun shy when such a huge repair came up so fast.

and since i've had so many people posting to help me with this i'll get a bit more detailed with the story...

...I purchased the car while in process of securing an insurence policy/selling my other car (eclipse). The move was supposed to be lateral. I could sell the eclipse for just under 6, and buy this for just under 6. It would work out great. I needed the car looooong term, low mileage was appealing, as was the fact that it was a honda. I researched the transmission issue though only topically, and to me it seemed (and still seems) that it affected a very small portion of the population.

The lag in securing the policy forced it to sit in the driveway, unused (though I started it every 3 days for 20 min), for approx three weeks... all the while the weather took a dive here in Rochester NY. Sub zero temps and 3-4 feet of snow. The repeated turning on of the car kept the pavement under the car free of snow, but heaped with ice... SO the night i unburried it I decided to move it out of the spot to clear the piles that had built up. With a car behind me, I needed to push it forward, up the driveway, off the ice. I have driven nothing but manual cars all my life, so i saw nothing wrong with rocking out of the spot, D-R-D-R-D-R, ect... (ps... i understand this was a horrible idea in retrospect). The next few days car was put on the road, and tranny issues started.

my thought is that I exasperated a pre-existing condition, possibly pushed the transmission over the edge.


... anyway, yeah i'm overthinking it, but I sort of have to. Med school is going to put me into more than 150,000 worth of debt (if im smart about it) so I need to hedge my bets where I can. Maybe this makes the case to get rid of it, maybe to keep it. I think its a crap shoot either way, and like i said earier, life is full of what ifs.

Thanks for all your help on this everyone!! You have all been very helpful. I'm a member of a few other general car forums and you all have by FAR been the nicest, most knowlegdeable, most willing to help bunch. So... thanks for that! :tup:

 

^ No problem. That's what everyone is here for.


Oh yea, is there any chance of trading the CL for something besides the Explorer?

 

probably not. this kid actually found me. I posted, half jokingly, that i would be interested in giving up both my cars for someone elses truck plus cash in a diff for sale add on another forum. The guy (who I have known for a while thru the site... since 01) PM'd me asking if i was serious and we could talk.

the deal morphed into a straight trade: his truck for my CL and i give gim 500 cash. I figured it to be roughly 6200 for his side, 4500(CL) + 500 from me. I think Iwas making out. I paid 5900 for the CL so I valued it at that minus a tranny (1400). I thought it was pretty fair on the whole. I currently have the CL at a shop and am entertaining my options.

other trades... i probably wouldnt realise as good a return as this deal conciveably offers.