jbceg

Hi everyone.

I got a 99 3.2TL. Couple of months ago my Check Engine light came on. I took it to Acura dealership (Montlair Acura in Verona)and they told me it was a catalitic convertor. They changed it free of charge and that seemed to have solved the problem until I started feeling the transmission knocking and both TCS and Check Engine lights came on. I took it back to the dealer and they changed the transmittion free of charge thanks to the warranty extention.

Couple of days ago my Check Engine light came on yet again! I took it to the dealer and now they are telling me that it is the Oxygen Sensor, that it is not covered under warrenty (?) and it will cost me $310 (part and labor) to fix.

If any of you guys can explain to me what Oxygen Sensor is and what it does and whether what the dealer is saying is correct about it not being covered under warranty I appreciate it.

Thanks

JB
1999 Acura 3.2 TL

dark inspire

oh wow, the same thing is happening to my dadz Oddyssey, they replaced the Catalytic converter for bout $700, sorry i cant help you but im interested in a response as well seeing that we might be payin for the same part as well. good luck!

bigdaddy-fl

An O2 sensor can make the engine light come on. It's not too big of a deal though. It's a sensor that is screwed into the exhaust pipe, there might be two on the TL's, I'm not too sure, havn't looked yet. Anyways, they detect the lean/rich mixture of fuel/air in the exhaust and translates this into a voltage that is sent to the computer, the computer then translates this voltage to determine wether it should add more or less fuel or air into the combustion chamber. If the sensor goes bad, it will send the wrong signal to the computer, causing it to give out a bad air and fuel mixture. The computer will sense the bad mixture and let you know with that obnoxious light on the dash and big bill from the dealer. However, O2 sensors are very universal and don't necessarily require you to take it to a dealer, almost any backwards mechanic shop can change it out, just depends on how adventurous you're feeling. You'll probably get charged just under 200 anywhere else. Hope I helped!

MahaRaja

well the tl is has two sensors....one before the cat. in the headers downpipe and one after the cat......if you know which one is messed up....you could change it yourself...it isn't that difficult...all you need is a jack and a wrench....goodluck

UWgrad

ask the dealer specifically which one is bad and buy the part there and install yourself...its very easy to install..just unscrew and put the new one in

ou sig

Its sad that most dealers rip you off so much that knowone trusts them or wants to take their car there. I wish I could take mine there if needed and trust their price/service. It seems all they care about is $$$ - even more than regular mechanic shops. Luckly I can do most maintenance on my car myself.

jbceg

Thank you guys all for the info, especially bigdaddy-fl, MahaRaja and UWgrad. Very usefull info. I think I am still going to take to the dealer though because I don't have knowledge or facilities to do it myself.

Also I notices a new problem. When I first start the car, the engine goes to very low RPMs and then shakes a little and shuts off. I have to keep pressing the gas to keep it going. After few seconds it starts running normally.

Can that be because of the bad O2 sensor. I am guessing it can since it regulates the fuel flow to the engine.
What do you guys think?

Thanks again!

bigdaddy-fl

An o2 sensor can cause it to have a bad idle, i havn't had one cause the car to shut off before, but, seeing as how it only happens when it's cold, it's very possible. This is because the engine runs a slightly richer/leaner mixture when it's first warming up, so if it runs too lean, it'll stall, this can be caused by the o2 telling the comp to give it an even leaner mixture. for an o2 sensor, you don't necessarilly need to take it to the dealer, any shop that can unbolt and rebolt the sensor back in can do it, (which is any shop)

bbznyc

Actually, your stalls can be caused by few things, one of them is a problem that was an issue with tl's - bad ignition switch (they will change it free of charge). Also, it could be the spark plugs. I had a similar problem. I got check engine light on, and they told me i need to change my cat + 02 sensors (at least 1,000) but first i put in catalytic converter cleaner myself + i use same gas all the time. So far, knock on the wood, nothing. But if it happens again - F it. You can buy 02 sensors yourself... Call Ray-laks Acura(1800Raylaks) speak with Tim, he will sell it to you for a good price, plus he might give you dir how to change it... I am sure you can do this man...

Let us know what happens...

Bitium

It seems like they are correct. They did replaced one oxygen sensor for me under warranty, but I think they were just been nice. The oxygen sensor will eventually go bad, I would expect a few years.

Replacing an oxygen sensor is very easy. It just screws in and out. They are about $100 for our cars.

The price you were quoted was for $200 labor and $100 for part. I can't believe they are charging you 2.5 hours of labor if $80 an hour. I would take a technician .5 to fix such thing, maybe an hour for an average person, that includes lift.

Strannik

Maybe they are replacing both sensors?

bigdaddy-fl

Even if it was both sensors, it's still a rediculous price, but we all no the dealer is a gold digger when it comes to customer care. No surprise there.

ACU

my 3.2 tl has 62k. I have used premium gas ever since I bought it 10k ago, but for the last two refills I have used mid-grade gas. the check engine light went on after 1/4 of the second gas refill.
do you guys think it has something to do with that?
i appreciate your input!

geminiaraya1

I have a 2006 acura tl I just recently purchased at auction. Car runs great but I need to smog to get my tags and check engine light is still on after changing 2 of the O2 sensors that the code reader told my mechanic to change and the VSA light is on. Any ideas would be much appreciated

Saudade

First, you should ask this in the correct forum. This is for 2nd Gen TLs (1999-2003). You need the 3rd Gen TL forum.

Next, you need to pull the codes and list the specific OBD codes that are triggering the CEL.