blueacura

I just bought (last friday) an pre-owned certified TL 03 automatic with 39K miles. They told me it was certified and when I asked for the inspection report they gave me a list with a bunch of check marks saying everything was ok w/o a tech signature or name of who did the work. I also asked them for a vechile maintaince history report and they could not provide as it was purchased from an acution in florida.

My wife and I noticed a missing plastic cover near the back bose speaker and the front left air condition vent had the close/open wheel jammed in and could not be used. Also when I was driving off the lot I noticed a small piece of rust on the hood near the wipers that went undetected on the test drives.

Just tonight I felt a little bit of vibration on the pedal when driving in lower gears but you really have to pay attention turn the music down to feel and hear it.

We just had dinner with another acura owner and he mentioned that the vibration or "driving over gravel" as he put it was the start of a transmission problem or a piece of the transmission that had to do with the torque???

I bought an acura because I though it would be a long term dependable car. Any advice as to how to deal with the dealer/service or salesperson on this..My main goal is to spend as little time on this as possible while getting the results I need.

Am I crazy to think they did not even do the certification due to the 3 things that we found wrong with the car? Is it common that the sales person does not call back customers if they have a problem on newly purchsed car? Do I have to get the work done at the dealer I bough from or the one closest to me on something like this??

S1CK TypeS

well the 2nd gen TLs are known for their weak transmissions. so it could very well be the problem. my TL-S is at the dealer right now gettin a new tranny. I noticed a jerk as i shifted gears at higher RPMs in sport mode. I had them check it when i took it in for a service and it ended up failing the transmission preasure test. if your car has any warranty left and it should since you only have 39k miles on it, take it to the dealer and let them know of your concerns. they should fix what ever the problem is

Bob_F

Did you or the dealer run a CarFax report on it? If not, it might be worth $20 to see if there's anything peculiar about your cars history.

The fact that it was purchased at an auction would make me a bit curious. Assuming that you bought it in the Chicago area location listed in your sig, how did it get there from the location of the auction in Florida?

Could the dealer tell you if the car had ever been in an accident of if it had any serious mechanical problems? Is there any chance it had been among the thousands of cars flodded in Katrina?

Regarding the transmission, I think you're still covered under the factory warranty should it fail. The transmissions are definitely a weak area for the 2nd generation TLs. Consumer Reports gives the 2000-2003 TLs a "black dot" for transmission problems, based on its subscriber surveys. And there are many threads about transmission problems here.

If you start to have serious concerns about your car, check into a potential "buy back" clause in your purchase paperwork.

Anyway, this is the right place to learn all about your TL! I justy bought a used 1999 TL and this forum has been incredibly helpful. I love the car.

Good Luck!

Bob

CL Platano

take it back and have them fix the problems or give you your money back.

AcuraBuddy

yup take it back and get it fixed and checked out if it is still under warranty....if you have a title on it meaning its a salvaged or so then your doooomeed

JMAL

cant be, its certified. that means it has to have a clean past. thats what you pay for

Billy Sacco

One thing that you should check into as soon as possible is if your car is covered under the tranny warranty. You can check that by singing into owner link website and entering your VIN in. It will tell you if your car is part of the extended warranty for transmissions. If it is not then its a real crap shoot man. Knowing what I know now about the tranny if my car was not covered I would not have bought it at all! I love my TL but I just had a tranny replaced and if I would have had to pay for it . Well I probably would not have been able to and I would be with no car right now. That is the very first thing you should be looking at IMO.

JMAL

certified = 7-year/100,000 mile Powertrain Limited Warranty regardless of anything. recall or no recall on all certified acuras.

NSXNEXT

iTrader: (2)

Vibration could be a bad motor/tranny mount.

AcuraBuddy

Thnx JMAL for the clarification hehe i didnt know if it was certified then it has a clean title ....Ya live to learn and learn to live...and yeah dude im pretty sure the TL should be covered under warranty and you can check by signing up at the owners link or by calling Honda up at their client services number

bkzjimmy

lol sorry. but its tru cause i have the same thing.