avs007

So while I was in Munich, my wife calls me and says her TL broke down. She said there was steam pouring out of her engine compartment, and coolant leaking underneath. Had the car towed to the dealer. I figured, "Whatever, it will be under warranty."

Anyways, she calls back, and says the dealer said the radiator was punctured from a rock, so it will cost $590 to replace out of pocket. I've never ever had a radiator puncture like this from an errant rock. And I've logged many many many miles over the years. My wife also informed me, that the dealer said that, the Head Gasket may have blown, as a result of the engine loosing coolant, because of the rock. So the head gasket may have to be replaced out of pocket, because it wouldn't be covered under warranty


So I was venting to a co-worker about this ordeal. (I didn't tell him what car it happened to). Anyways, I was like, "Have you ever experienced anything like this?". And he said, "Actually, my wife had an Acura 3.2TL, that had the radiator puncture from a rock"... Is this a common problem with the TL? I may consider installing some wire mesh down there, to prevent future disasters.

Oh yeah, while the car was in, she had the tranny recall done to it. The car has < 45,000 miles on it. The dealer said the tranny fluid was burnt. They than implied that the warranty would be voided because we didn't have the transmission flushed

I pointed out, that the service manual does not say replacement was required with < 45,000 miles. In fact, it was listed as a recommendation to be replaced at 60,000 miles. I then pointed out that the recall even talks about burnt fluid. They than backed off the warranty claim, but said they would look into the recall issue. What ticked me off more, was that this is the same dealer that a few months ago, said they cannot do the recall work, unless we had the recall letter in hand, even though I verified with more than one source, that our TL was covered in the recall.

Anyways, they said that they installed the kit, and that the 2nd gear looked fine. Than said we need to pay them to flush the tranny. They said that honda/acura tranny's are hard to service, and that you must connect them to a machine. (Even though my Acura Service Manuals say nothing of the sort).

If the tranny is fine, why is the fluid burnt at only 44,000 miles? I've seen other tranny's go for much longer than this, and not get discolored/burnt.

etxxz

that blows bro, the rock part sounds very possible just unlikely to happen but blowing your head gaskey sounds VERY unlikely unless your wife drove the car very long/hot with all that steam coming out...which i really doubt...

if tru, i'd never let her touch the TL again then give her a ford. Still, wouldnt that radiator problem be covered under the warranty? whats your insurance's deductible?

avs007

Nah, I've trained my wife well in that regard. She pulled over immediately. Dealer said warranty won't cover "Road Hazards". They said our insurance would though, but I think our deductible is either $250 or $500 I forget. I figured it wouldn't be worth going through insurance, cause knowing them, they might jack our rates. Thankfully, the dealer called us back and said the head gaskets are fine.

Severin

Hmmm.... I thought the A/C Condensor coils were in front of the radiator as seen through the bumber inlets; gotta take a look.. Always thought those would take a rock first..

fla-tls

I agree with you, Severin. I had a condenser spring a leak because of a rock, and the compressor oil looked an aweful lot like coolant.

I don't see how a rock could hit the radiator without going through the condenser first, and that would be one HUGE rock.

Perhaps something blew and they just don't want to deal with it under warranty? It sound like you dealership doesn't like warranty work at all (not as high of margins on warranty work).

etxxz

too bad acura wants to sell you that radiator so expensive...a radiator with the size and capability of ours shoulnt be over $150, and i'm sure those acura bastards get them for $50. IF your deductible is 250, make the insurance pay it, you'll pay 20-30bux extra for a year and it'll dissapear. making the cost $300...vs $600?

my brother's (previusly mine) 3000GT VR4 was hit with a mailbox and the damage was like 1600 and he made the insurance pay for it...now he's paying $90 extra for 2years + the 500 deductible...dazit YO!

*the other way around...he hit the mailbox

phipark

I'm sure they are charging an arm and a leg for labor.

phipark

I would go to another dealer. You shouldn't be harrassed about the tranny like that. It's a recall, nothing to do with the warranty. You don't need a letter, it's per VIN. If they don't comply with the recall, I would call Honda. I wouldn't be able to deal with a dealer such as yours. I would blow a gasket (no pun intended). That head gasket will cost you well over $1500 too.

avs007

That's why I bought the TL at a dealer 130 miles away, cause I dislike the ones in Portland. Especially Tonkin, those guys are plain rude. (Almost closed hood on my head, and told me they had a buyer interested in the car.....What the hell am I?) When I bought the TL, the Portland dealers wouldn't budge on price, so I went elsewhere. When I drove back to Portland inquiring about a spoiler install, their comment was, "So you bought a used one huh?"

I've never been so pissed. I told the guy I got a shiny new TL with only 11 miles on it, for less then what you guys wanted for the "Program" TL with 7,000 miles on it.

One time my wife got a nail in the tire. I took the car to Ron Tonkin Acura, and they actually sent me away, saying they don't plug flat tires. They told me to take it to a tire shop. I ended up getting it plugged for free at Beaverton Honda!

When I originally inquired about the Tranny recall, both Portland dealers said that they would not provide any loaners for the recall work. (On top of requiring the letter in hand)