vipvop

I have a 99 TL with 109,000 miles, my transmission's been changing gears kind of hard for a while (since around 90,000 miles). I got the transmission fluid changed at around 92,000 miles, but it's still changing gears hard, and just yesterday it got noticably worse. I'm pretty sure it's the typical 99 problem (3rd gear seems to have problems, so I'm guessing 3rd gear clutch pack), but since I'm 9,000 miles over the extended warranty I'm guessing the dealer is going to want to charge me for the replacement. The thing is, I brought the car in for service at a little over 90,000 miles and they didn't say anything was wrong with the 3rd gear clutch pack, which was a known problem at that time, so do I have any chance of making them pay for the new part since they should have seen it during the "inspection" they do (or at least charge you for)?

I'm wondering how I should approach this, the dealer pisses me off enough that I'm already going to be pissed before I even get there, let alone if they say they won't warranty it, but should I just bring it in to see if they'll cover it, and if not say don't do any work and wait to call acura customer service? am I just screwed here?

HustleLikeM0FO

Did you have the 100k extended bumper to bumper warrenty? If you did then there is a slight, tiny, small chance that they might do it but most likely they will not. Its worth a shot trying though but expect to be turned down. My friend's tranny on his Civic failed like 4k miles after the FACTORY warrenty was up and he went to Honda and they covered it..... so thats why I said you have a tiny chance of them covering it.

If you did not have the 100k extended warreny on your car then I dont know if its even worth trying to go down there and see if they will cover it...... I think Honda factory powertrain (engine/tranny/drive axel) warrenty ends at 60k miles and you're waaay beyond that.

basically, if you have the 100k extended warrenty then its worth a shot...

MikePA

When you got your fluid changed, did you report that the transmission was shifting hard and, in response, they changed the fluid or did you just ask them to change the fluid?

If you reported transmission problems before 100,000 miles, take your copy of the dealer work order with you. If you didn't, you might have to depend upon the dealer's good will.

BTW, the 99s ARE covered by the 100,000 tranny warranty. You do not have to have the bumper to bumper coverage.

ou sig

possibly nothing you can do...I mean how hard is it shifting? its normal for the trannies to shift harder when they are cold...that doesnt mean your pack is going out. And its not a normal thing for the '99s. I have only heard of a few people over the past 2 years with '99 problems - vs. 50+ with the 5 speeds.

and like Mike said, you have the 100k or 7 year warranty on the thing. Just go in with the best attitude possible with your recipt from your tranny fluid work and hope for the best. Some have gotten the dealer to honor it even after the 100k limit or some have got a very good deal on a new one at least.

MikePA

And if you get turned down at one dealer, try another one.

fsttyms1

i had mine replaced at 115K for free

Green2000TL

go find a dealershap that has good relations with Corperate (Honda of America) they are more likely to be approved for "good will warranty work" Honda will not pay the dealership for work done outside of warranty.

vipvop

I got the fluid replaced at a place other than the dealer, I just had the car in to the dealer at 90,000 miles for the 90,000 mile maintenance. I'm not sure if my reciept has anything about the car shifting hard, hopefully it does. I'm just thinking that they should cover it so close to 100,000 miles since it's a known problem and they had the car in fairly recently for the 90,000 mile maint., which comes with numerous inspections (though I doubt they actually go through them all).

Anyone know which dealers in LA have good relations with Honda of America? I'm guessing not the pasadena one...

ChucksCL-S

Mine went a 164K miles and I only paid for the labor. How? Because I took it back to where I bought it and nicely said "take care of me and I'll be a customer for life, but if you rape me I'll pay the ticket and you'll never see my loyal rear end again". Done.

ou sig

that is exactly how you should handle the situation

Southern

Check the trans fluid level with the engine fully warmed-up. If they overfilled or underfilled the trans fluid then point this out to them and make them responsible for the problems you are having.

If the trand fluid level is correct then it is up to the dealer if they want to throw a bone your way.

Comet2404

If they make you pay, it should only be a little bit. Your not that far out of warranty, and they should really cover all of it, if they dont, they should cover at least 80% of it.

figueroa1357

dont waste your time, mine does that too the dealor told me its normal and for as many miles it has you cant expect it to shift like a brand new car.

vipvop

Mine was shifting like an old car for 15,000 miles, now it's shifting / slipping into gear sometimes. You can noticably tell something went wrong, it's not just the car being old. It seems to be worse if I've been driving it for a while, coming home today after freeway driving I got to the stop sign near my house, stopped, then started going. The gears seemed to slip a bit then catch, causing the car to lurch forward - not cool.

Anyone know how much the 99 tranny problem costs? I keep on seeing $4500 for the 00-03 TLs, but I'm hoping 99 doesnt need new ECU and all that...

avs007

Well, if your dealer is anything like the one I went to, they probably didn't even bother opening the hood to look at anything. They just looked at your odometer, and figured out what needs replacing.

I brought my car in for service, because the car leaked all of its coolant at the gas station. Had it towed to the dealer. They replaced the radiator and lower hose. They told me I need 4 new tires, because they are worn down, even though I just bought tires a few days before . When I told them that, they said they didn't look at the tires. They said that because that mileage was typical for the life expectancy of the stock tires.

So then two months later, my tranny goes kablooey. So I bring it in again. Then they tell me that my coolant looks very dirty and needs to be flushed. WTF? They just replaced the radiator, how can the coolant be dirty in only 2-3 months? They said they would see why the master mechanic recommended this, but never followed up with me, even though they said they'd call me back.

VTEC11

I would still try to get them to replace it under warranty whether you complained about the tranny going bad ar 90k. Some people have gotten them replaced past 100k miles. If they refuse, atleast get them to cover the tranny and just pay for labor (as chuckstls).

GOod luck, let us know how it goes.