Hi! So i am currently in market for a used car and my budget is about 10k. I have searched through the typical used car sites and most of the acuras under that figure has ~100K+ miles on them and mostly are 2003 and prior. I did talk to an acura salesman today and he gave me an offer for one with 93k miles for 9700 non-negotiable which i thought was a bit high. The interior is mostly good and everything seemed to work - there is a small crack on one of the plastic parts on driver side but it is not that noticeable..


http://www.walkthelot.com/dealer/mod...UA56773A083054

I am still looking elsewhere as well.. just kind of curious what the experts here think about that deal and can give me some inputs and perhaps even help me find a better deal(!!!). I am looking for a 4 door sedan type of car and i am in chapel hill nc area. I do need to find a car by next week so i am a bit rushing...

Thanks!

 

Just watch out for potential tranny problems.

 

is there any way to find out though? is there a mileage that i shouldnt go for in terms of buying one?
Like is this one a good deal if the insides check out?
http://raleigh.craigslist.org/ctd/2996112468.html

also, are the timing belts and pumps just as important?

 

I found this listing - seems to be a car that has been taken care of very well - it is being sold by a mechanic - good deal?
http://raleigh.craigslist.org/cto/2994797982.html

 

Here are the different acuras i found - any advice would be appreciated:
Dealers:
1. 2002 TL w/navi 121k miles asking 7k Dealer
2. 2003 TL 128k miles asking 7.6k Dealer
3. 2003 TL w/navi 153k miles asking 7.5k Dealer
4. 2003 TLS 129k miles, asking 7.6k with free powertrain warranty..


Owners:
1. 2003 Tl 3.2 V6 selling by a mechanic 110k miles asking $8600
New:Water Pump,Timing Belt,100,000 mile maintenance,Brakes,Tires with less than 5,000 miles

http://raleigh.craigslist.org/cto/2994797982.html

2. 2004 TL 120k miles asking $8500. New air filter, plugs, oil, trans fluid, timing belt and water pump was done at 90k and the transmission was replaced two weeks ago with a new rebuilt one. The guy said his transmission broke and he got a salvaged one from another place (paid 1200ish) and rebuilt it and now he is basically selling the car with it (maybe dont want to risk it?)
http://raleigh.craigslist.org/cto/3001272816.html


3. 2003 TLS 134k miles asking 8200. Custom JVC navi and Dealership maintained, timing belt, new transmission, new brakes. The new transmission was due to a recall of parts so it was not the transmission was dead but some parts was to be replaced...

http://raleigh.craigslist.org/cto/3005231953.html

I am leaning towards Owners 1 or 3... Both has maintained and loved their cars and it seems on paper I don't need to do much at all post purchase in terms of servicing (might do a general checkup prior). Although the dealership prices are lower but with their admin fees it can be up there and there's no telling what work has/hasnt been done... Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!!

 

computer just ate my long response so I will ask you to look at the dozen other buying a TL threads

In general- the 105 timing belt/wp service is critical!!!! and cost over 1000$
any of these cars may have brake problems and ps issues if fluid wasnt kept changed
If still on stock brakes those all need to go --theres 500+ for great set of brakes
shocks may be near end

basically- NO,, on any of these cars- and in general with your budget = no on a TL.

If you know how to do all maitenance repairs yourself its not so bad--but pay a shop ?when you blew your entire wad on purchase,,bad plan

We all love our car and few would buy another one today knowing what we know and have done on it.

a good honda accord is sexy and runs on 87 octane- cheaper everything-- to insure and operate

 

Those guys are asking retail. You want to offer wholesale.

KBB says my car is forth $6200. Personally, I wouldn't offer more than $2800 for it.

See the disparity?

 

trans recall- was not to install an internal part or replace trans
(trans replacement done only if certain overheat damamge to 2nd gear was found with a boroscope)
otherwise they all got the oil jet kit and sent down the road--it installed an external oil line directing atf flow onto 2nd gear thru the atf fill hole on top of trans

that stopped the prob of broken 2nd gear and shaft- which had caused the front wheels to lock up at 70 mph--a very exciting few seconds,,,,,even more so for tailgaters~

had zero to do with the prob of early clutch wearout-- from low flow inside a particular area
trans warranty replaced for early wearout-after early 2005- have a new case design with improved oil passages and better life,,, but still prone to same issue

 

dealers are the worst place to shop- they do make sure all recalls are done--but anyone can take their car in for that- its free
beyond that they meet MINIMUM state rules on brake pad and tire depth remaining and do an oil change--because buyers often pull the dipstick and view clean oil as a sign the car was well cared for!
but they dont change spark plugs (ours cost 8 dollars each just for the plug!)
or engine or cabin air filters,,nothing more than cosmetics are done, wax/detail it, and then full retail plus a few grand for negotiation are added in

If you insist on dealer shopping always use internet department or direct to the sales MANAGER
bypass the salesmen and their added commission into the price

Look in the section here on link line at top of page USED CARS
thats only members allowed to post their for sale or wtb ads

even hondas have trans probs--do lots of research here and outside forums
take a friend who has bought cars, and knows about cars, with you
Safety in numbers
Read articles online about buying used cars
Have a private shop look at any car you really like- can say if the car is a good buy or goodbye,, inspections are money well spent

budget 10k???? dont spend more than 7 out the door on a car---have to expect ANY used car will need a thousand in repairs soon'
why else did the old owner put in a rebuilt trans and other work-
then dump the car!,,,they know something bad is coming because they never read the owner book to know what to have done,,and now a mechanic has given the bad news

sidenote: on the one with junkyard rebuilt--bet they installed the junkyard unit thinking is was cheaper than the 2500 to rebuild theirs
It didnt work at all- or not for long,,these dont sit well in junkyards/auto recyclers,,,the seals dont like it and they dry up and leak
that calls for a rebuild!! some savings eh~

 

Most Important--dont tell anyone you only have a week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!-
may as well hand them your wallet and open a tube of lube~

your desperate you say,,,,, hehehehehehehehe
and me with rent and a boat payment to make!!
what perfect timing~

 

Wish they have the Legend (91-95) back. Me, my bro, my sis owned two 92 Legend LS and one 91. I abused it badly, but still run fine after 220k miles, still on original tranny, engine so quite and no leaking oil...etc.

 

you can still find a used Legend now and then in decent shape

We use the front calipers off a legend as upgrade to dual pistons on the cheap

 

Guys thanks for the tips! I did check out both of the acuras (skipped on the trans replacement one...)

1. This one is the 8500 ask gold acura. the interior is in decent shape with noticeable wears. Apparently the mechanic did take care of it but didnt really use premium gas so not sure how important that is. The transmission did have parts replaced and like the description the 100k maintenance etc. The seller is dead on 8200 as lowest he would go though and I dont think I would do that especially i gotta replace the breaks.

2. this is the black TLS. The interior is amazing - i really have to look very hard to find any blemishes - the buttons are still very new (he did have it detailed recently), nothing seems rubbed off - i would give it an "excellent" condition by edmunds standards. He has added premium stereos to replace the stock stereos (subwoofer in trunk) and it sounded great. Also added a navi/jvc/dvd combo(with 30gigs) that can play dvds, hook up to iphones and do navigation. Also bluetooth connection in car as well and the quality was great. He has maintained the car very well - premium oil all the time, oil change every 3k, all rec maintenance with a 100k maintenance before and a mechanic checkup 2 weeks ago (i am gonna do one regardless though if i want to offer). I don't need to do anything post purchase since he did it all. One noticeable thing is the transmission recall/fix was done 2 years ago so if it was a bad fix wouldn't it have blown up already?


He is asking 8200 and his reference is 8750. He did say someone offered 7000 and he turned it down. I am thinking about offering 7500 with 7800 max. After mechanic checkup, registration etc. it should be ~8200 total for me... That's about 700 "real money" out of pocket since i got a check for my totaled Honda accord 03 w/ 120k miles recently...

I do have an offer for a honda accord 2004 ex with 140k miles - 8600 out the door. a bit high for my taste...

 

one serious tip. if you are going to buy a 99-03 TL, make sure the tranny was fixed or replaced within the last 2 years, WITH PROOF OF PURCHASE.

i love my car but i would never buy one again unless i know that the tranny has been replaced and there is proof backing that up. that being said, i also wouldnt spend more than 7k on a TL unless it was a type S in which case 8 at the max and that has got to be a mint motherfucker, which it wont be, so 7-8k is too high.

take the bus in the meantime, dont settle on a car because you need one now, you dont, you just dont want to take the bus lol suck it up and get something good.

look in the marketplace here for used TL's, at least you know most of us on here know about the tranny issues and all the other issues and have either fixed them or are about to fix them, not only that, if they rip you off, you can get acurazine to hunt them down lol

 

How's this deal?
http://fayetteville.craigslist.org/cto/3010078551.html

 

seems fine to me, but maybe you should ask the gen 3 guys.