Hey guys,

my brother has an 06 RL with about 49k miles on it. He has the acuracare extended warranty, so were covered for repairs, but i'll explain what happened, a lot of you are very informed, so please chime in with any information.

So for about 2 months, its been on and off, before you fully turn the car on, just in ac position(to listen to radio/use fan etc.) there was a loud buzzing noise coming from engine bay. As soon as you turned the car on, you couldn't tell because the engine noise masked it. Basically the noise was very visible, as if something kept running(not a fan, a noise that was very different).

At first, the dealer thought it was an ABS actuator, but everytime he took it to the dealer the noise went away(love when that happens!), this went on 3 different times. the dealer kept it for 2 weeks almost, on and off, trying to get the noise come back, but nothing. Then the dealer delivered the car back, the minute the driver returned the car.....the noise came back again!!...this time, the driver who dropped off the car heard it with my brother. So they took it back......and came up with this diagnosis.

they said, TRANSMISSION Solenoid #2 needs to be replaced, and thats what was causing the buzzing noise. and they literally had to order the part from japan, to be installed tomorrow(almost 2 weeks to get the part). dealer said they will keep it for a few days afterward to make sure it was that. here are my concerns.

1. NO CODES appeared....which the dealer said should have occured.
2. all the while, the dealer had the car, thinking it was abs acutator causing noise, but never reproduced infront of them.....he complained of harsh shifting around 20-30mph. they said they checked everything out...did computer tests blah blah......and it was all normal. So how can it be normal then....now all of a sudden, a part of transmission needs to be repaired?
3. They were NOT able to pointpoint that its the solenoid #2....they are making an educated estimate.
4. they have said.....they had no clue how to diagnoise it....called acura for help.
5. my brother called another Acura dealer in town(my brother also took video's of this noise everytime it happened, and saved it. he showed the other dealer, they were puzzled why it was trans. solenoid......and said to him, typically a transmission solenoid, is caused by a defect somewhere else in transmission...."we would just put a new tranny in it.....95% of solenoid repairs end up with new tranny anyway).

my brother knows nothing about cars.....qiute frankly i dont either. The thing thats bother both of us is....if these guys are simply masking a greater issue by replacing the solenoid. is there anything he can ask them to do, without sort of telling them what to do, and u know be one of those know it all customers. guys plz help.....any input......suggestions.....insights.....

another thing...my brother is super meticulous with car maintenance, everything done by dealer...and usually before or on schedule. and he drives like a grandma

 

Id apprecite any feedback guys. Anything?!!

 

Yours is the first situation like this I've heard about. Most RL tranny issues are from the propeller shaft needing replaced.

If your brother is uncomfortable about getting only the solenoid replaced, he always has the option to take it to the other dealer for a tranny replacement.

 

lol whats the problem. obviously take it to the other dealer. get your entire tranny replaced. extended warranty covers you in any dealers anyways. solenoid fix sounds like a bandaid to the problem, when what you need is a surgery.