I keep mentioning that to the shops & no one seems to have heard of it. They say computer systems may be different, etc. Even the dealership seemed surprised by the suggestion.

 

you don't have any Honda/Acura specified shops or Honda speed shops in your area?? i can think of about 10 off the top of my head by me

 

The dealers are hesitant to use a newer transmission that will actually work because that means its less money for them.

This swap has been done by many so far. Talk to PDiddy about it. I think he was the first to do it and hes got quite a few miles on it already, with the supercharger.

Im sorry if you already mentioned this, but where are you located?

 

I'm in Los Angeles. There may be shops that specialize, I didn't really do a search that way.

So here's where I'm at. The final "goodwill" offer from Acura was about $3600 + tax for a replacement transmission. I decided to look elsewhere, so I paid them $135 (which in itself seems excessive; everyone else gave me a free diagnostic and an assessment; they gave me nothing but conflicting information and it took 2 days to get it).

Took the car to a nearby shop (that specializes in Japanese vehicles, I think). They couldn't take me today. He looked at the oil and said it needed a flush, and that should be the first step. Just do the flush and wait and see, it may fix it; if the light comes on again, bring it back. (He didn't do a computer diagnostic; his mechanic did drive around the block w/ me, although I couldn't replicate the jerking.) His transmission guy told me that doing a flush without a new filter wouldn't really help, and that the filters are inside, so once you take it apart to change the filter, you might as well rebuild the whole thing. (Does any of that make sense?)

Since they couldn't take me till next week, and since it wasn't jerking, I decided to take it to another shop that does only transmissions, about 6 miles away. I drove very easy, only surface streets, and the kicking didn't start till I was almost to the shop. I.e., it needs to get hot before it begins slipping. The first guy said that meant it didn't need a whole rebuild. If I needed a new tranny, he said, it would be shifting badly right from the get-go. (True? False?)

The third shop drove around with me, looked at the diagnostic, got the 1750 code again and said that it meant a mechanical failure inside the transmission. He said there were no cheap fixes for that. He said he'd rebuild it for $2500; $2700 if it needed a new case. He offers a 1 year/12,000 mile warranty (which doesn't much excite me.) I'm not crazy about a rebuild based on what I've read here but he said any replacement tranny is going to simply be a rebuild like what he'd do to mine.

At this point, I've received several wildly divergent diagnoses and had no idea. I was just tired and decided to leave it with him. He's not open on the weekends but I was afraid to drive it over the weekend so I called for a rental car.

He'd also do a replacement. At first he said it would cost the same as a rebuild, then said it'd probably cost more -- the part plus $800 labor. But again he said he's never replaced a transmission with one from another model, and gave me the same "are you crazy" look all the other shop have given me in response to that suggestion (not just dealers).

Since they're closed, I still have the option of finding a replacement transmission over the weekend and calling him first thing Monday with a change of plans.

Have I made the right decision(s)?

I find all this exhausting, stressful and kind of depressing. I'm with the member whose username is IHateCars!

 

Old news:

-Honda auto trans sucked between 98-04. Especially the V6 5 speeds.
- Dealers are more expensive then Aamco and local shops.
-Your out of warranty. The dealer is cutting you slack, thats pretty good since some wont even budge.

 

Yep, I get all that.
Apparently some Honda transmissions are still having problems.

And I am out of warranty on a car that had a recalled transmission and an extended warranty due to a class action lawsuit. That has already had a transmission replaced once under warranty.

Except for the last one: The dealer gave me 3 prices; went up every time I spoke to them, for no particular reason -- first $4500, then $4700, then $5300 ... Being a little higher than independents, I'd understand. 30%, even 50% I'd forgive ... but more than twice the highest bidder ... ? If they're giving you a little bit off of an over-inflated price, then they're not doing you any favors, they're just taking your business.


Q: is there a Parts thread on here? Like a classifieds? If so, please point me there.
If not, wouldn't it be great if there were?

 

Oh, another question -- forgive my ignorance, I'm so impressed by the knowledge here -- what exactly is the difference between an OEM and remanufactured? Is installing either better than a rebuild?

Do you ever think it's wise to buy an OEM from a salvage yard?

 

OEM stand for Original Equipment Manufacturer meaning the same part (from the same manufacturer) Honda used in the car when it was built. A reman is just what it says, the same part remanufactured by a different company. I wouldn't trust either in the case of this as the oem transmissions has a BUILD error/defect. As said earlier, I would do some research through p diddy's thread as well as others who have swapped in a newer 3rd gen TL trans, compile this info along with what needs to be done and present it to each shop you go to seeing along the way who will actually take it on and who for the best price. This GREATLY slims down the possibility that you will have transmission problems in the future as 05+ TL trans fail by a much lower margin then any honda v6 trans before that year.

 

Before you do anything, talk to this guy on the other forum:

/forums/members/nighthawk04v6.html

Just type v 6 performance (dot) net before the above (without spaces of course). He owns a shop called Project Import in Orange County and definitely knows his shit. His name is Keit.

http://projectimport.com/?page_id=21

Most times remanufactured parts are mostly OEM with different bearings or seals. Honda does not remanufacture parts though.

 

I knew they will come up with something else than solenoid. The thing is when 3rd clutch pack looses all its friction compound it starts to chew base material and that stuff clogs shift solenoids that no longer deliver pressure to clutch packs . That equals bad transmission. Never heard of shift selector to fail ... but you never know

 

thanks, emailed him.

i guess they'll start on the rebuild tomorrow if i don't have a replacement tranny. I know it's not ideal but I don't have the luxury of waiting days till one appears.

i don't know if i can convince them to try the TL transmission. they balked at that.

 

So hard to know with Acura's diagnosis. It changed every time I spoke to them. I guess if your solution is to replace the tranny whether it's a small fix or big problem, the diagnosis doesn't much matter. Only wish I hadn't spent $135 and two or three days to do what three other shops had given me for free in ten minutes.

Thanks, Civicdrivr, I spoke to him yesterday, and it was very interesting!

He said the TL 3rd gen trannies are really hard to come by and expensive; what's more, his opinion was that all of Hondas V6 transmissions "suck", and that if you go with a Honda, you're better off sticking with a V4. He thought I was better off rebuilding what I have and trading out the car as soon as I can. That was reassuring because looking for a replacement was becoming a headache.

He went on to say that every manufacturer has some achilles heel -- Said German cars weren't any better, have computer problems -- & that the most traded in car in the Cash for Clunkers program were Mercedes. (!) BMW has electrical issues, Audi hasn't figured out the SSI.

He felt the most reliable car out there was Toyota, and owns a Lexus himself.

I really was jonesing for a little variety when I needed to replace my Camry, but I do have to say, I never had any major problems with that car in the 14 years I owned it. Repairs were all small fixes. I also used the dealer from time to time for service and didn't feel like they were gouging me the way I've felt with Acura.

The look of the Lexus doesn't excite me so much, but I want a hassle-free car, so I guess I'll be trading in my dream-turned-nightmare CL for a Toyota soon ...

Thanks again to everyone who weighed in. It's really helpful to get input from those who've been thru the same issues and/or know cars better than I.

 

Sorry to hear your having such a hard time with the CL. But you probably knew this was coming.

I plan on driving my CL for a long time. I've had it for almost 5 years and put 50k miles on it. I have money stashed away for a rebuild and enough to swap in an oddy trans into the car. I already have the transmission sitting in my garage.

No doubt this car has a big, expensive problem. But I enjoy my car too much to let it go now or in the near future. I guess what I'm say is that I'm sorry you didn't have the positive experience before your transmission failed to offset this matter.

 

Just to conclude -- picked up the car at the shop last week, and the rebuilt transmission sounds and feels like new. What's more, the guys at the shop must've been bored, coz they actually hammered a ding out of my bumper for free! Rental car for five days only set me back $80 and the cost of the repair was $2500, over $1100 less than Acura offered as a "goodwill" gesture. Only regret is that I gave Acura $135 to give me the same diagnosis every one else gave me for free.

If anyone's in the LA area and needs a good transmission shop, I'd recommend Paul's in Culver City (at least, so far, so good -- they asked me to bring the car back in a few weeks for a check-up.)

Thanks again for the feedback!

Now, just got to get that new timing belt ...