KJ32

Guys, please post all of your frustration, complains and anger in this thread. Because I just sent my second letter to Acura Customer Relations, complaining about this piece of junk they make without throughout testing and research on the vehicle. I mention this site and tell them to check it out. I hope it can help all of us with un-resolved car problems release some anger and let Acura understand the problem, assuming they will read it. It also helps if you guys write to them about the problem and tell them to stop saying "Just bring it to the dealer". Sometimes it's not the dealer's fault. If they designed the car a little better, the service guys would not have so much sh*t to follow. Like all the squeaking rattling noises. Thank you for your co-operation.

hemoglobin23

Well, the list of complaints I have will take up too much space, but if I had to choose the most annoying problems would be the tranny for one....This thing is sooooooo NOT smooth....It makes me want to think that I should have gotten a LEXUS ES300...My girlfriend has one, and it is still smooth as heck (even though we bought it at the same time)...Another thing is the tire choice problem....Stock tires suck big time...The rims, get scratched VERY easily if we attempt to park close to the curb (NEVER had a problem like this in other cars)...Another thing is that there is a lot of interior noise...I thought we bought a car that competed with the ES300...Well, Acura loses in many respects to the ES300...interior noise, transmission, workmanship, and overall reliabilty and customer satisfaction kudos goes to all, but ACURA...I am EXTREMELY disappointed with the TL (1999)...Although it was cool for the first few months, it sucks in the long-run...Also, isn't it convenient that all these problems seem to occur when the warranty just runs out....sheesh...sorry for the long post, but it's about time that someone wrote a thread like this one...THANX KJ...

KJ32

Thanks for your input.

Nate

hemoglobin23, the TLs rims scratch easily? Compared to... ? Show me any rim where you can touch a curb and it doesn't get scratched. Sounds like you need to practice your parallel parking. I agree the tranny is weak and interior noise is a problem. But well thought out complaints will be accepted much more easily if Acura were to read these pages.

elvis46018

I think Acura did some improvements on interios noise for 2002 TLs. Tranny is a very big problem Acura should work on. I believe Acura can make TL much better if they raise the price, but they should at least make TLs not too identical to CLs.

Nate

Yeah, IMO price is worth the small trade-offs (the transmission isn't a <i>small</i> trade-off! ). A similiarly loaded ES300 runs $35k+. The TL was at the very top of my price range.

tea elle

ES300? Reallly? I've driven one and its a totally different experience. 4 speed tranni, no road feel, sub-par handling, I don't think navi is available....I think of the ES300 as the perfect car for non-driving enthusiast who can afford luxury without extravagance. It's like a smooth quiet day in my mom's living room.

walker29

Buy a 2002 TL-S and your problems will be over

KJ32

I appreciated any input, but let's post complaints, frustration and problems here please. Thank you. Maybe miracle will happen, Acura will pay a visit and ask us to design the next TL

kman156

i know the mileage is low, but it's a hard 5,600!!! always in ss mode, downshifting hard, braking hard, turning hard! what tranny problems? can you mod a lexus like you can an acura? hell no... interior wind noise? how about i need earplugs for my stereo system!!! you can pick apart any car for this or that? but i have owned 1 honda and 3 acura's! and have never once had a MAJOR problem. (knock wood) now if you want to get into complaints? THE DEALERSHIPS SUCK!!! kman156

cjscott

I think the stock wheel/tire setup on the TLS should be 235/45/17's on 7" wide rims. It should sit about .5" to .75" lower on stiffer springs. Tailpipes could stand to be more prominent, and the climate control (w/navi) is not real intuitive.

Bitium

I had problems, but no complaints, since I punch my car to the readline everyday. The warped rotor problem was an issue, but then again, I brake hard everyday. The sunroof, seat, or whatever noises/squeks I agree that QA should have taking care of this after the 99' model . They should had design a better tranny from the begining, most of the tranny problems come from drivers under 30. I think they only planned to sell the car to people over 35(YES the tranny was design for soft driving) . I believe they know many many of this issues already, my problem is the have to do a better job addressing them. It took them more than 6 months to sent out a bulletin about the free re-surfacing of rotors, and replacing the pads with softer ones. They also have to improve and make a standard for the dealers, which I think they are working on. That's it for now, I have to go back to work................

KJ32

more, more I want to see more gripe.

hemoglobin23

Nate...the rim design is design in such a way that the spokes stick out more than "usual". I am comparing this to Lexus ES300, BMW 323i, Cadillac Fleetwood (my dad's), and Mitsubishi Eclipse... What deems a well thought out complaint??? Isn't a complaint, a complaint??? I am simply writing what I FEEL need change or modification...Thus, a complaint...I think you should write well thought out responses before you respond to the posts on the forum...

Shoofin

No complaints here...
Ed

Edub-TL

Kevin,
I have already sent Honduh/Acura a couple letters already, but I would be happy to contribute to this squeaky wheel post.

1) Their Website feedback page is terrible. You can't send any kind of meaningful feedback to them when you are so limited in the lenght of the complain/comment.

2) Why was the 2002 release so soon after the 2001? Why were there vitually no improvments on the 2001 from the 2000 model? Except the cupholder!

Since the 02 was release only about 4 months after the 01, that leads me to believe that the improvments (tails, 6-disc CD, memory seats just to name a few) could have added this to the 01 easily.

Not only did the release of the 02 piss me off. It also depreciated the value of my car greatly in the first 6 months of ownership alot more than what it should have.. This will not help to make me want to get another TL.

I will not buy a TL again unless the TL-S cleared 300HP.

3) OK the Type-S is a step in the right direction.. but where is the luxury? Near-Luxury is the correct label alright. There are gadgets and such, and the "value" of it is fine. But why is it that even after owning a TL, I want to get a Lexus?

4) Please listen to the owners of this site. Service is also a big part of a customer's ownership experience. Of course there are those very few exceptional dealerships like Park Ave; but the majority according to the 3000+ members of this forum are just not up to par. If you are going to charge so much for service, at least get some more knowledgable people.

5) Acura needs to be more innovative in it's technology. Stop playing follow-the-leader and come up with someting more advanced. Honduh will only be hurt if they don't want to be a leader. Other car companies are coming out with advances and improvements, where's Acura?

6) The ongoing squeaks/rattles even in the newer models are totally unacceptable. I had a sunroof ratttle with has been around since the 99 model. FIX IT already!!! Now the new 02 has problems with the seatbelt?? Just about every owner here has some kind of mysterious noise/clicking/rattle in the car. American made quality alright.

Eskimo

KJ32, make sure you cc that letter to the folks at Edmonds.com and Consumers Reports. I am sure that will get their attention.

My only complaints with the TL is the cheap plastic material that Honda continues to use to cover the interior "B" pillars and the rattles everyone complains about. I am surprise to hear 2001, 2002 owners complain of the same problems 1999 and 2000 have. What happened to the Japanese manufacturing culture of making continuous improvements. This to me is not a cost issue but more a result of the lazy ass attitude that seems to have taken over management at Honda American. I mean, how much does it cost to change some plastic material or engineer out the sqeaks. Making these little changes along the way would have made the '02 TLs perfect and could have been done without compromising its value appeal.

city001

The OHIO assemplying plant...needs to do a much better job in quality assurance.... I bought the New Silver TL type S....
when I got it....the cover that's shielding the computer...had a crack..... My dashboard...had a creaking sound when going over rough roads..and later service department told me...it wasn't aligned right....how could this have happened???

My friend bought the same thing with me.....and his bowling ball wood trim alongside the transmission wasn't attached right...or glued correctly...it had a huge gap...

I think Acura should hammer hard on the Ohio assembling plant...they are doing a lousy job there.

G

city001

the thing that wasn't aligned right..was the dashboard..but now...even though they did work....the noise is still there...just not as loud....going back for more service...sigh..

G

kman156

have'nt noticed a problem with my 99, what's the issue? thanks, kman156

KJ32

Eskimo:

Do you know how to get certain public attention about the problem of this vehicle? I mean vehix.com, edmonds.com, consumer report, etc.... I mean very pissed and angry about this new car ownership experience. I want to do something to hurt their sales and reputation. I don't care if it works or not, worth the try. After all, they are getting away with our hard earned money.

Eskimo

You can check on some letter writing books on how to write a constructive complaint letter explaining your situation.