2001 TL - Redo for my daughter
09-02-2020, 11:18 AM
#1
Instructor
Thread Starter
2001 TL - Redo for my daughter
Hey guys, I figured I would post here before getting too deep into this project to see if there is any advice or comments that may be of assistance...
I picked up a 2001 Acura TL automatic with just over 229k miles on it late last year. It will be my daughters first car. She is going to art college in downtown Milwaukee, and I wanted something safe and reliable for her. I have been doing the driving for her first semester, and she has been spending some time behind the wheel of my other vehicles, but it is about time for her to have her own car.
The car was a single-owner car before I got it, being owned by an older couple. It was the wife's car and she took really good care of it. It was all-original, had all the service records and everything else. Newer all-weather tires, brakes were checked at the time the tires were rotated a few months before I bought it and the only issues I could tell right away were a known issue with it not consistently going into 3rd gear until it was warm, an exhaust tip that was up towards the bumper a little, the rearview mirror had a distorted view (caused by leaked auto-dim fluid I found out) and the headlights were fogged/discolored and when turned on had different colors (I figured someone just changed a single bulb to a different one). All in all it was an excellent deal as they let it go somewhat inexpensively with the known transmission issue. The engine ran perfectly smooth, good power, no noises, rode excellent and in general is beyond perfect for a first car. Even the emergency brake still functioned fine.
Once I got it home I did a once over, found the wiper arm linkage had some broken bushings (common I found out), the battery was as new as the tires, the rearview mirror bounced more than I liked, the exhaust tip was askew because of a broken flange bolt, the oil needed to be changed and the last timing belt/waterpump was done at 115k miles, so it was due. I fixed the wipers, charged the battery, changed the oil, put a new air filter in it (one of the cover bolts broke, dammit), put some Techron fuel system cleaner in the gas tank and drove it for a few weeks, but then decided to park it until I figured out what to do about the transmission (since I didn't want it to give out entirely and then have to have it towed). The transmissions seem kinda pricey for what they are and was contemplating buying a rebuild and swapping it myself, but then found a local Honda/Acura guy that actually does rebuilds for not much more than the unit I could buy online, which included removal/installation and included a warranty, so I decided to go that route. I had a lot of stuff going on between the new year and summer, so I decided to park it for a while and did monthly start ups and charged the battery once to make sure it was properly maintained.
Well, August rolled around and I decided to get the transmission fixed. In taking it there I was checking things out and found out the cruise control doesn't work. Beyond that everything else was just fine. Dropped it off, the guy made a case to replace the original starter while he was at it, so I let him do it along with adding in a transmission cooler. A couple of weeks later I go and pick it up and after putting a couple hundred miles on it I decided to build my list of things to get done.
The List:
- Timing set (waterpump, belt, pulleys, tensioner, timing cover seals)
- Coolant hoses and thermostat w/gasket
- New valve cover gaskets
- Brakes (new calipers, rotors, ceramic pads)
- Alternator
- Belts, tensioner and idler pulleys
- Tune up (new coils, plugs, PCV valve w/gasket)
- Set valve lash
- Flush and fill cooling system
- Replace power steering fluid
- Recharge AC (wasn't as cold as I hoped in the summer)
- Fix exhaust flange
- Fix air box (broken bolt)
- Fix cruise control
- Replace rearview mirror
I have been taking care of things as I can, having done the exhaust fix, replaced the rearview mirror with one from a 2006 TL (autodim works nice), the cruise control plastic pulley was broken in a way I that I had to drill a hole through the portion of the pulley further back and then safety-wire the cable to the pulley (works great BTW), fixed the airbox, recharged the AC and collected the rest of the parts to do in a weekend.
Here are the parts I decided to go with:
- Continental Pro Series Plus Timing kit (NPW waterpump, Continental belt, Koyo bearings on the pulleys, AISIN tensioner, camshaft seals)
- Continental hoses, AISIN thermostat and gasket
- BrakeMotive black painted new front and rear calipers with zinc plated drilled/slotted rotors and ceramic brake pads
- Pure Energy 130amp new alternator
- Continental tensioner pulley and belts, AC Delco idler pulley
- NGK coils, NGK plugs (OEM), OEM PCV valve w/grommet
- Honda Type 2 coolant (3 gallons) along with 4 gallons of distilled water for flush (if I can get to the block drain)
- Honda Power Steering fluid (I bought 6 of the 12 ounce bottles)
Now I am still on the fence on how I want to do the power steering fluid replacement, as in if I want to do the service manual method of drain the reservoir and the start the car with the lines removed to get the rest of the old fluid out and then refill and bleed (first time I saw a service manual actually say to run a system dry), or if I want to hookup drain hoses to both return lines and then fill the reservoir and just turn the steering wheel lock to lock with the car off to push out the old fluid?
Also, in regards to the cooling system, if getting to the engine block drain isn't a hassle and it opens easy enough I plan on draining both the block and radiator, filling with distilled water, running it for 10 minutes, draining them both again, refilling again with distilled, run again for 10 minutes and then drain once more, do the timing set, hoses and thermostat, then filling with the 50/50 Honda Type 2 and be done with it? Or if the block drain is not accessible, do I just drain the radiator, do the timing set/hoses/thermostat and then just refill with 50/50 Type 2 and not worry about it? (I have no idea of the history, and I know the timing set that was done at 115k was done at a non-dealer mechanic, so I have no idea on the coolant or if they even used distilled water on the refill, even though they listed coolant on the receipt explicitly)
For the brakes I will be flushing with a good heavy duty DOT3 fluid that I use in all my vehicles. I figured the painted calipers and zinc coated rotors will make it look nice for as long as she will own the car.
Now I have not read anything in regards to NGK coils as replacements for the Denso OEM coils, but at the price they are on RockAuto I figured why not change them out. At 229k miles I figure they are due for a change. I also went with the OEM double-platinum spark plugs as well. I did not find any paperwork that would indicate they ever had the valve lash adjusted. I will say I don't know if they ever drove this car hard at all, since after the transmission getting done I finally did a WOT on-ramp pull and I will say the VTEC actuation sounded weird the first time or two, but after that it sounded better and better and now it sounds normal. The engine also has excellent power.
After I was done with the airbox yesterday I did a Seafoam intake flush and changed the PCV valve. The original one was stuck closed I believe. After the Seafoam I drive it around a bit and it screams on the expressway.
I am planning on next weekend, or the weekend after to do the rest of the stuff I have not done already.
In talking with my daughter, and seeing how she will be parking a few blocks form school, and that I don't want her to touch her phone while driving, I decided to make a few additions.
Upgrades:
- Remote start alarm system with 2-way communication (1-mile range)
- Replacement headunit with hand-free bluetooth, backup camera and navigation
In doing the headunit I decided to go a route least traveled it would seem: Utilize the Bose EQ and keep all the existing speakers. I will be powering the 4 door speakers with a mini 4-channel amplifier, custom wiring the Bose EQ and doing level matching with an o-scope. That should keep the sound the same (she really likes how the stock audio sounds) as well as keep the subwoofer intact. For the backup camera, since she is parking downtown, I am utilizing a camera built-into a license plate frame and putting in additional screws at the bottom to discourage license-plate cutters from taking part of her plate (yeah, stealing the renewal stickers by cutting license plates still happens I guess).
The equipment I picked up for the upgrades are:
- Excalibur 1830 remote start alarm (old-school, reliable, uses AAA battery for the remote and I already have a Blade transponder bypass module from a previous vehicle)
- Blade-AL module for bypass
- Pioneer AVIC-Z150BH 7" headunit with Navigation (old-school, but I already have one in another vehicle, so I have the updated maps for it and this way she doesn't have to touch her phone for nav)
- Crimestopper CAM-400 backup camera and chrome license plate mount
- Maestro SW steering wheel interface (to program the steering wheel buttons for the headunit)
- Metra wiring harness
- Metra double-din headunit mount (I also picked up the American International kit, but the Metra looks better in the dash)
- Hifonics Thor TPS-A350.4 4-channel micro-amplifier
I will update on how things go as far as the audio/remote start-alarm upgrades go...
If anyone has any input on any of this, or suggestions or anything else to add that I may be overlooking, I would greatly appreciate the feedback/input.
Dennis
I picked up a 2001 Acura TL automatic with just over 229k miles on it late last year. It will be my daughters first car. She is going to art college in downtown Milwaukee, and I wanted something safe and reliable for her. I have been doing the driving for her first semester, and she has been spending some time behind the wheel of my other vehicles, but it is about time for her to have her own car.
The car was a single-owner car before I got it, being owned by an older couple. It was the wife's car and she took really good care of it. It was all-original, had all the service records and everything else. Newer all-weather tires, brakes were checked at the time the tires were rotated a few months before I bought it and the only issues I could tell right away were a known issue with it not consistently going into 3rd gear until it was warm, an exhaust tip that was up towards the bumper a little, the rearview mirror had a distorted view (caused by leaked auto-dim fluid I found out) and the headlights were fogged/discolored and when turned on had different colors (I figured someone just changed a single bulb to a different one). All in all it was an excellent deal as they let it go somewhat inexpensively with the known transmission issue. The engine ran perfectly smooth, good power, no noises, rode excellent and in general is beyond perfect for a first car. Even the emergency brake still functioned fine.
Once I got it home I did a once over, found the wiper arm linkage had some broken bushings (common I found out), the battery was as new as the tires, the rearview mirror bounced more than I liked, the exhaust tip was askew because of a broken flange bolt, the oil needed to be changed and the last timing belt/waterpump was done at 115k miles, so it was due. I fixed the wipers, charged the battery, changed the oil, put a new air filter in it (one of the cover bolts broke, dammit), put some Techron fuel system cleaner in the gas tank and drove it for a few weeks, but then decided to park it until I figured out what to do about the transmission (since I didn't want it to give out entirely and then have to have it towed). The transmissions seem kinda pricey for what they are and was contemplating buying a rebuild and swapping it myself, but then found a local Honda/Acura guy that actually does rebuilds for not much more than the unit I could buy online, which included removal/installation and included a warranty, so I decided to go that route. I had a lot of stuff going on between the new year and summer, so I decided to park it for a while and did monthly start ups and charged the battery once to make sure it was properly maintained.
Well, August rolled around and I decided to get the transmission fixed. In taking it there I was checking things out and found out the cruise control doesn't work. Beyond that everything else was just fine. Dropped it off, the guy made a case to replace the original starter while he was at it, so I let him do it along with adding in a transmission cooler. A couple of weeks later I go and pick it up and after putting a couple hundred miles on it I decided to build my list of things to get done.
The List:
- Timing set (waterpump, belt, pulleys, tensioner, timing cover seals)
- Coolant hoses and thermostat w/gasket
- New valve cover gaskets
- Brakes (new calipers, rotors, ceramic pads)
- Alternator
- Belts, tensioner and idler pulleys
- Tune up (new coils, plugs, PCV valve w/gasket)
- Set valve lash
- Flush and fill cooling system
- Replace power steering fluid
- Recharge AC (wasn't as cold as I hoped in the summer)
- Fix exhaust flange
- Fix air box (broken bolt)
- Fix cruise control
- Replace rearview mirror
I have been taking care of things as I can, having done the exhaust fix, replaced the rearview mirror with one from a 2006 TL (autodim works nice), the cruise control plastic pulley was broken in a way I that I had to drill a hole through the portion of the pulley further back and then safety-wire the cable to the pulley (works great BTW), fixed the airbox, recharged the AC and collected the rest of the parts to do in a weekend.
Here are the parts I decided to go with:
- Continental Pro Series Plus Timing kit (NPW waterpump, Continental belt, Koyo bearings on the pulleys, AISIN tensioner, camshaft seals)
- Continental hoses, AISIN thermostat and gasket
- BrakeMotive black painted new front and rear calipers with zinc plated drilled/slotted rotors and ceramic brake pads
- Pure Energy 130amp new alternator
- Continental tensioner pulley and belts, AC Delco idler pulley
- NGK coils, NGK plugs (OEM), OEM PCV valve w/grommet
- Honda Type 2 coolant (3 gallons) along with 4 gallons of distilled water for flush (if I can get to the block drain)
- Honda Power Steering fluid (I bought 6 of the 12 ounce bottles)
Now I am still on the fence on how I want to do the power steering fluid replacement, as in if I want to do the service manual method of drain the reservoir and the start the car with the lines removed to get the rest of the old fluid out and then refill and bleed (first time I saw a service manual actually say to run a system dry), or if I want to hookup drain hoses to both return lines and then fill the reservoir and just turn the steering wheel lock to lock with the car off to push out the old fluid?
Also, in regards to the cooling system, if getting to the engine block drain isn't a hassle and it opens easy enough I plan on draining both the block and radiator, filling with distilled water, running it for 10 minutes, draining them both again, refilling again with distilled, run again for 10 minutes and then drain once more, do the timing set, hoses and thermostat, then filling with the 50/50 Honda Type 2 and be done with it? Or if the block drain is not accessible, do I just drain the radiator, do the timing set/hoses/thermostat and then just refill with 50/50 Type 2 and not worry about it? (I have no idea of the history, and I know the timing set that was done at 115k was done at a non-dealer mechanic, so I have no idea on the coolant or if they even used distilled water on the refill, even though they listed coolant on the receipt explicitly)
For the brakes I will be flushing with a good heavy duty DOT3 fluid that I use in all my vehicles. I figured the painted calipers and zinc coated rotors will make it look nice for as long as she will own the car.
Now I have not read anything in regards to NGK coils as replacements for the Denso OEM coils, but at the price they are on RockAuto I figured why not change them out. At 229k miles I figure they are due for a change. I also went with the OEM double-platinum spark plugs as well. I did not find any paperwork that would indicate they ever had the valve lash adjusted. I will say I don't know if they ever drove this car hard at all, since after the transmission getting done I finally did a WOT on-ramp pull and I will say the VTEC actuation sounded weird the first time or two, but after that it sounded better and better and now it sounds normal. The engine also has excellent power.
After I was done with the airbox yesterday I did a Seafoam intake flush and changed the PCV valve. The original one was stuck closed I believe. After the Seafoam I drive it around a bit and it screams on the expressway.
I am planning on next weekend, or the weekend after to do the rest of the stuff I have not done already.
In talking with my daughter, and seeing how she will be parking a few blocks form school, and that I don't want her to touch her phone while driving, I decided to make a few additions.
Upgrades:
- Remote start alarm system with 2-way communication (1-mile range)
- Replacement headunit with hand-free bluetooth, backup camera and navigation
In doing the headunit I decided to go a route least traveled it would seem: Utilize the Bose EQ and keep all the existing speakers. I will be powering the 4 door speakers with a mini 4-channel amplifier, custom wiring the Bose EQ and doing level matching with an o-scope. That should keep the sound the same (she really likes how the stock audio sounds) as well as keep the subwoofer intact. For the backup camera, since she is parking downtown, I am utilizing a camera built-into a license plate frame and putting in additional screws at the bottom to discourage license-plate cutters from taking part of her plate (yeah, stealing the renewal stickers by cutting license plates still happens I guess).
The equipment I picked up for the upgrades are:
- Excalibur 1830 remote start alarm (old-school, reliable, uses AAA battery for the remote and I already have a Blade transponder bypass module from a previous vehicle)
- Blade-AL module for bypass
- Pioneer AVIC-Z150BH 7" headunit with Navigation (old-school, but I already have one in another vehicle, so I have the updated maps for it and this way she doesn't have to touch her phone for nav)
- Crimestopper CAM-400 backup camera and chrome license plate mount
- Maestro SW steering wheel interface (to program the steering wheel buttons for the headunit)
- Metra wiring harness
- Metra double-din headunit mount (I also picked up the American International kit, but the Metra looks better in the dash)
- Hifonics Thor TPS-A350.4 4-channel micro-amplifier
I will update on how things go as far as the audio/remote start-alarm upgrades go...
If anyone has any input on any of this, or suggestions or anything else to add that I may be overlooking, I would greatly appreciate the feedback/input.
Dennis
The following 2 users liked this post by DP01TL:
Arkady (09-02-2020),
justnspace (09-02-2020)
09-02-2020, 01:13 PM
#3
Instructor
Thread Starter
I forgot to mention, the headlights were pretty fogged up and tinted an amber color, so I used a Meguires headlight restoration kit and redid the headlights. They are not perfectly clear, but are 85-90% better and no more discoloration.
I also found out these cars have HID headlights from the factory and the bulbs are prohibitively expensive (like $100/each). I ended up finding on Amazon a pair of D2R bulbs for $28 so I went that route, swapped them in and they are much better. The ones I pulled out were labaled "made in Germany" so I can only assume they were the OEM originals. The replacements have more of a blue-white tint compared to the amber-white of the original bulbs, but are the same and have great output so I am pretty happy with the inexpensive replacements. Just have to wait and see how long they will last.
Also, I will add, in replacing them I only figured out when I was done with the second one that the easy way to do it is to unplug the bulb before putting it in the housing. That wiring gets in the way of the wire clip if you do it with the bulb attached to the wiring. Oh well, live and learn.
Lastly, anyone know what the solenoid on the drivers shock tower does? It is the one with the little muffler sitting on top of it. Yesterday after I was done with the Seafoam treatment/PCV replacement, when I came back I popped teh hood and noticed that solenoid was clicking on/off and causing a difference in idle when it did it. I can only imagine it is a vacuum solenoid that opens and allows the engine to pull vacuum in a reservoir for use by the climate control system? If so I must have hit it at the right time for it to recharge the vacuum reservoir.
I also found out these cars have HID headlights from the factory and the bulbs are prohibitively expensive (like $100/each). I ended up finding on Amazon a pair of D2R bulbs for $28 so I went that route, swapped them in and they are much better. The ones I pulled out were labaled "made in Germany" so I can only assume they were the OEM originals. The replacements have more of a blue-white tint compared to the amber-white of the original bulbs, but are the same and have great output so I am pretty happy with the inexpensive replacements. Just have to wait and see how long they will last.
Also, I will add, in replacing them I only figured out when I was done with the second one that the easy way to do it is to unplug the bulb before putting it in the housing. That wiring gets in the way of the wire clip if you do it with the bulb attached to the wiring. Oh well, live and learn.
Lastly, anyone know what the solenoid on the drivers shock tower does? It is the one with the little muffler sitting on top of it. Yesterday after I was done with the Seafoam treatment/PCV replacement, when I came back I popped teh hood and noticed that solenoid was clicking on/off and causing a difference in idle when it did it. I can only imagine it is a vacuum solenoid that opens and allows the engine to pull vacuum in a reservoir for use by the climate control system? If so I must have hit it at the right time for it to recharge the vacuum reservoir.
09-02-2020, 03:56 PM
#4
Suzuka Master
iTrader: (1)
https://www.acuraoemparts.com/v-2001...--engine-mount
If so, it is part of the front & rear engine mount vacuum system.
09-02-2020, 06:16 PM
#5
Instructor
Thread Starter
Does it look like #11 on the link below?
https://www.acuraoemparts.com/v-2001...--engine-mount
If so, it is part of the front & rear engine mount vacuum system.
https://www.acuraoemparts.com/v-2001...--engine-mount
If so, it is part of the front & rear engine mount vacuum system.
I have never seen a vacuum actuated engine dampening system before on a car. Pretty cool.
Does anyone know if there is a failure, does it throw an engine code? Just wondering how much they monitor stuff like this.
The day I heard it was just after taking it out for only a few minutes, came back and popped the hood and it was making venting noises off and on for a good minute or two while it was idling.
09-02-2020, 06:22 PM
#6
Instructor
Thread Starter
I forgot to mention, I also picked up the Lisle 19mm socket specifically made to remove the harmonic balancer bolt. So I am hoping that goes pretty easy when I need to do it.
09-02-2020, 10:01 PM
#7
Sounds like a good list to keep you busy for a while! Do you think you could post some pictures of what you did to fix the cruise control? I've been giving my right leg a workout for the past few years, but I think it's about time I get my cruise control fixed up. I'd be very interested in seeing how you hooked your fix up.
I've done my power steering fluid flushes with the "steering wheel jiggle" 4 times in total now across two cars with no issues. Personally, I feel weird fully drying out my pump.
I've done my power steering fluid flushes with the "steering wheel jiggle" 4 times in total now across two cars with no issues. Personally, I feel weird fully drying out my pump.
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Arkady (09-03-2020)
09-03-2020, 01:55 PM
#9
Instructor
Thread Starter
Hmm, just noticed you cannot edit a post once there are replies...
I just wanted to edit out the fact that there is no idler pulley... RockAuto labeled it wrong. The only pulley for the drive belt system is the tensioner pulley.
I just wanted to edit out the fact that there is no idler pulley... RockAuto labeled it wrong. The only pulley for the drive belt system is the tensioner pulley.
09-04-2020, 10:30 AM
#10
Three Wheelin'
Sounds like you have a good plan. A couple of thoughts:
Stay with Honda/Acura OEM power steering fluid. These pumps are very finicky with the fluid they push.
Most likely the problem with the cruise control is the pulley on the throttle body which is broken. If you do a search, I had posted a fix a while ago.
Stay with Honda/Acura OEM power steering fluid. These pumps are very finicky with the fluid they push.
Most likely the problem with the cruise control is the pulley on the throttle body which is broken. If you do a search, I had posted a fix a while ago.
09-04-2020, 11:54 AM
#11
Senior Moderator
09-09-2020, 08:17 AM
#12
Instructor
Thread Starter
I finally got in the "OEM" Pioneer GPS antenna so I am just about ready to do the stereo system upgrade and remote-start/alarm installation. I ordered up a Microsoft Miracast adapter, since it is a plug-and-play operation for the headunit. No idea if my daughter will actually use it, but for the $15 it costs, and the fact that getting inside the dash is near impossible without a ton of hassles I would get it installed and setup "just in case" she has a need at some point.
At the moment we are having rain for the next few days and then I can pull one of the cars out of the garage and get the TL in there... I also plan to do the brakes and a few other things before I dive into the engine and do the rest of the maintenance items. I am quite happy with how the Seafoam in the oil, Seafoam intake manifold cleanup and general maintenance stuff has made it even quieter than it was before. After a valve-lash adjustment and new plugs and coils I am certain it will be as quiet as a new engine. Pretty amazing for 230k miles.
I also picked up a decent R134a gauge set and adapters and set the pressures properly on the air conditioning system. It went from running all the time to cycling every couple of minutes with the right pressures. The compressor sounded better when engaged as well. (side-note: I overfilled it by mistake a few weeks ago). I also put in some new oil to account for what was lost as I "recovered" the extra refrigerant to bring the pressures in-line. On a 70 degree day I was getting 49 degree outlets temps in the car. Pretty much spot-on.
I do plan on evacuating and doing a complete refill with the exact amount of refrigerant and oil at some point here in the next month or so before winter. I just need to find a decent vacuum pump that won't cost an arm and a leg. Most of the options out there are either "professional" units that are cost prohibitive, or inexpensive units that are a crapshoot on whether or not they will work properly. In the meantime setting the pressures properly at least gets it "in the range" to operating well. I may just leave it for winter and revisit in the spring if I can't find a decent pump for cheap.
At the moment we are having rain for the next few days and then I can pull one of the cars out of the garage and get the TL in there... I also plan to do the brakes and a few other things before I dive into the engine and do the rest of the maintenance items. I am quite happy with how the Seafoam in the oil, Seafoam intake manifold cleanup and general maintenance stuff has made it even quieter than it was before. After a valve-lash adjustment and new plugs and coils I am certain it will be as quiet as a new engine. Pretty amazing for 230k miles.
I also picked up a decent R134a gauge set and adapters and set the pressures properly on the air conditioning system. It went from running all the time to cycling every couple of minutes with the right pressures. The compressor sounded better when engaged as well. (side-note: I overfilled it by mistake a few weeks ago). I also put in some new oil to account for what was lost as I "recovered" the extra refrigerant to bring the pressures in-line. On a 70 degree day I was getting 49 degree outlets temps in the car. Pretty much spot-on.
I do plan on evacuating and doing a complete refill with the exact amount of refrigerant and oil at some point here in the next month or so before winter. I just need to find a decent vacuum pump that won't cost an arm and a leg. Most of the options out there are either "professional" units that are cost prohibitive, or inexpensive units that are a crapshoot on whether or not they will work properly. In the meantime setting the pressures properly at least gets it "in the range" to operating well. I may just leave it for winter and revisit in the spring if I can't find a decent pump for cheap.
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