turbobumblbee

History on car first... Car has 109k miles, it is going in this week for the timing belt and water pump to be replaced and I will take care of spark plugs and whatever is on the 105k mile checkup. The maintenance required light has come on recently because I need to change the oil. A couple days ago I am driving and the check engine light comes on, I figured, alright its cold maybe the o2 sensor isn’t working properly and it was a really cold morning. The light turns off that day...

Ok so now I am going to meet up with a couple people for a few drinks last night and I am driving down the road and all of a sudden the check engine light, VSA light and exclamation hazard symbol turn on and the car all of a sudden is driving very jerky and seems to want to die when I come to a stop. The lights got dim and the car felt like it wanted to stall out like a manual car would at stop lights. I get on the phone and call Acura and talk to a tech he says it seems like a problem with the tranny but that light can come on for several reasons. I tell him my car was already serviced for the recall and they installed the cooler line before I purchased the car. Well I am over the Acura warranty due to miles but still have an extended warranty with Carmax. I tell him I would prefer to take it there as it will be cheaper. I get to the bar I turn the car off worried it would not start or be able to get me home, so I try to start the car again and right away it starts up and the VSA light and exclamation hazard symbol are off. I leave the car and go in, I leave afterwards, start the car up and it drives home fine, granted the check engine light and maintenance required lights are still on.

What is wrong with this car and I should I worry more about this new issue before I go spend the money on getting the timing belt replaced? I’ve been honestly thinking about trading it in but I think I owe more than its worth due to the amount of miles... ANY help is appreciated!

Moodist

iTrader: (2)

Still sounds like a tranny issue. See if acura will do a goodwill replacement. Worth a try.

turbobumblbee

What is a goodwill replacement?? And how will i prove to them that it had this issue because when i drove home the car seemed to drive fine.

Also because it went in for warranty work, would they extend it past the standard warranty???

fuzzy02CLS

iTrader: (2)

1st order is to see what codes that car has. It could be as simple as a dirty sensor, or as complex as a tranny going. Just cause your over the tranny warranty don't think you can't get it fixed by Acura under warranty. Many dealers will good will the fix. I don't see how Carmax could fix your tranny if it is that.

turbobumblbee

Carmax would technically cover the cost of Acura to replace the tranny i am guessing..

htown

Just take it to Acura, you aren't much over. They have done plenty of goodwill replacements. Sell the car ASAP

turbobumblbee

Ok just got off the phone with Pohanka Acura in Chantilly and he said it sounds like a tranny problem forsure and to bring it in to them asap and they will give me a loaner car until they find out what the issue is. They said they would also be able to bill carmax as well for the warranty work if Acura does not agree to fix it considering it is only about 9k more over the warranty. Taking it to Acura i get a loaner car and techs that have experianced this before and taking to carmax i get a reimbursement for a $25 a day rental... Anyone know the outcomes of situations like this??

RaviNJCLs

iTrader: (4)

It's looking like someone else will be paying for it. Hope it works out for you.

turbobumblbee

I really hope someone else will pickup this bill... Im BROKE and I was about to get the timing belt replaced on monday, looks like this takes priority...

Anymore input is welcome still.. This ordeal is not over yet

fuzzy02CLS

iTrader: (2)

Stick with the dealer, let them tell you what's going to happen, then sort it out from there. They need to tell you if they will cover it. Untill then you can't really do anything.

turbobumblbee

Alright I got a message from the dealer today.. According to them the reason the Check Engine light is on was the TPS sensor and I will need a new throttle body.. Does this sound right to anyone? He said he cleared the code and called carmax warranty department and they said the throttle body was not covered with my warranty...

He said NOTHING about the VSA light or traction control or anything about the transmission.. If the car did what it did wouldnt it keep the code until it was cleared? I really do not feel comfortable driving the car until I know if the transmission will be replaced or not, I only have a couple thousand miles left on the carmax extended warranty and its over the 100k warranty for Acura..

Im thinking I might ditch the car and sell it, I would possibly be saving alot of money because I have not had the timing belt replaced yet and I dont want to have to pay for a transmission job down the road either.. Gimme some ideas, can i somehow have acura say the car needs a transmission and they get carmax to pay for it? AHH i dont have $$ for this headache right specially with the holidays coming up very soon! HELP!

AcuracltypeS03

Go to autozone they check the codes for free

artbran

iTrader: (2)

They should be able to replace the sensor and not the whole throttle body. I had it go bad on my TL a while back when it just had i think 30000 miles on it. I think the sensors are somewhere in the range of $80

mrsteve

iTrader: (1)

When my primary O2 sensor failed I had the VSA and CEL on. Just because the VSA light comes on doesn't automatically mean the transmission is going.

From the problem you described it does sound like a throttle body issue (stalling, dimming lights, etc). I would think the TPS could be replaced/adjusted without replacing the entire throttle body though.

Pohanka is a good dealership and they should take care of you.

fuzzy02CLS

iTrader: (2)

You can replace this yourself it's not hard to do at all. Basic hand tools & a few hours.
It could also just be really dirty with carbon build up. You should try cleaing it all out with carb cleaner first.
You should sell the thing.