My tranny started slipping yesterday while I am out of town on business. I am
in a small town and the nearest Acura dealer is over 90 miles away. I called
my dealer in Austin and they said to have it towed at my expense to the dealer.
Called customer service they said the same thing. I am having it towed to my
home dealer in Austin Texas for $600 bucks.
My Tl Type S is an 03 with 73000 miles. I am not covered by extended warranty
and fall outside the vin #'s set aside by Acura. Does anyone have any thoughts
on what I should do next? My dealer does not seem very sympathetic. Anyone
have any positive experiences with David McDavid? I really don't feel like paying
for a new tranny out of my pocket when it is not my fault. To top it all off, I just
had the tranny serviced with them a month ago!
Merry Christmas to everyone in the forum. May you all have a transmission
that works perfectly as long as you own your car.

Sincerely,
Kendall C

 

My '03 was also outside the covered VIN range, but they serviced it under warranty, anyway. They most likely will do the same for you. Pay for it yourself for now, and ask for reimbursement once the car's in the shop.

 

I agree with Rob. Bring it in, then call Acura Client services and talk with them. Odds are they will reimburse you and cover teh tranny
Monday thru Fri 6am to 5pm Pacific standard time. 1-800-382-2238

 

Sorry to hear that... Does anyone know what the VIN number cut-off for the 03 TL's are? Is it posted somewhere, of you just have to find out the hard way?

 

Go to acuras owners link (acura.com) and register there. It will tell you

 

my transmission let go on me the other day and acura had to cover it. it is covered 7yrs 100k miles no matter what. they had to pay for the tranny and labor and they had to pay for my rental and for my tows 150 dollars worth because i was like 65 miles away. acura has to do all that if it is the tranny due to the warranty

 

Except for in his case since he has a 03 thats in the certain vin range that isnt covered. But odds are they will honor it

 

why is it that certain 03 models are not covered? did they fix the tranny problem? if not that is complete bullshit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Thanks for the encouragement guys. I am having the car shipped
to the dealer on Monday. I will let everyone know what happens
and what they say.
I don't post very often, but wanted to say that the board is a
great place to learn. Thanks again.

 

Mid-year 2003 production, they implemented a running fix to the transmission. It fixed the problem, so Acura didn't offer the extended transmission warranty to the later batch '03.





Yeah, right. They did it so that people will believe the transmission problem has been fixed. It's a publicity stunt, just like the 2nd gear oil jet kit recall was. All a ruse to trick the public into thinking it's been fixed.

 

I agree to try have Acura fix it first (I assume you get at least 12 mo./ 12K warranty out of it). If not, AAMCO with an extended warranty (it sounds like it might be cheaper this way if Acura doesn't cover it). That's my plan after 100K miles if mine goes.

 

Hey, sorry to hear about what happenned. My tranny also went out while I was near Austin, and let me tell you, Sterling Acura is likely the superior dealership. They gave me several options on how I could either A) Avoid paying out of pocket (they gave me tips on how to deal with Acura Client Services) or B) Low cost replacement options rather than the $5000 new tranny from Acura.

The service is simply excellent, and I just didn't get the same vibe when I tried dealing with McDavid Acura. If you have a relationship with McDavid, I guess that's the better way to go, but if not, think twice about maybe taking it to Sterling.

-Joe

 

I had no idea the tranny problems were this prevalent on the TL's. Mine went out last night on the highway (it was bit of a scary episode). Luckily I managed to make it to the Acura dealership and left it there for them to look at on Monday. I went home and got on this site to see if anyone knew what the problem might be. It didn't take me too long to find out I wasn't the first to have this disappointing experience. I love my TL, but man this makes it really hard for me to be loyal to Acura. I'm pretty certain I'm outside the VIN range, but I'll try what some have suggested and talk to Acura Customer Service. My only concern is if they just replace it with another weak tranny.

What do I do after 100K? I'd like to keep my TL for a lot longer, but it's hard to have confidence in the tranny when so many others have had problems with it. Anyone on here have difficulties or recurring issues with their replacement tranny?

 

No offense, but everyone of your questions have been answered, multiple times, in this forum. Yes, people have had recurring tranny issues. Some are on their fourth. Some claim that Acura has fixed the problem with upgraded parts. Make sure you get the latest tranny from Acura.

 

If anyone's curious about the VIN # range....this is from the CL forum.

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=104677

***********************
BACKGROUND

In certain vehicles, a higher than normal number of automatic transmission may have defects in material or workmanship that could cause premature wear or failure. To insure that customers have adequate warranty coverage, American Honda is increasing the warranty on the transmission (including solenoids) and the torque converter to 7 years or 100,000 miles whichever occurs first.

VEHICLES AFFECTED

2000-02 3.2TL: All

2003 3.2TL (except Type S):
From VIN 19UUA5…3A000001 thru 19UUA5…3A019556

2003 3.2TL Type S:
From VIN 19UUA5…3A000001 thru 19UUA5…3A019061

2001-02 3.2CL: All

2003 3.2CL (all models):
From VIN 19UYA42…3A000001 thru 19UYA42…3A005203

…

 

Hmm..... I start wondering how come it seems to me most of the tranny issue start around 73 - 75k miles? Mine failed at 74k. Anyone has similar observation?

 

Totally agree with PA. They just said that so they can avoid sales issues, legal issue, etc. If they really did fix the problem on 03, then why can't they use those implemented parts on the rebuilds to avoid the same repeated problem?

 

My 03 TLP also fell outside the vin range for the extended warranty. I called Acura Customer Service and explaind to them although they said my trans should not fail because the problem was fixed on the assembly line it failed at 36000 miles. I explaned to them that I belong to an Acura owners group (Acurazine) and I know of many owners who have had multiple transmissions replaced. I demanded to be included in the extended warranty. I received a call back and was told no problem as long as i signed a release saying I would not go after Acura/Honda for transmission issues after the warranty period. I also filed a complaint with the NHTSA. Anyone who has had a trans failure should do the same. Check out the website and seach for complaints about Acura TL transmissions. Makes for some interesting reading. http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/

 

Thought I would update my transmission story. Spoke with McDavid Acura
Wednesday around 4 pm. I had it towed there on Monday afternoon from
Tyler(3.5hrs). The service writer told me to speak with the service manager
of the dealer. He did confirm that I had tranny issues and that indeed I was
out of the vin# range. He told me that Acura would replace my tranny one
time only no questions asked($4500 value?). I would have to cover the cost
of a rent car and towing. Did not need a rent car and got the towing through
a friend's company so it was covered.
I don't think it was a perfect solution, but it beats shelling out for a new tranny
at Christmas time. The manager was very nice and I just want to move on.
I hope the replacement transmission lasts another 70k. Merry Christmas and
happy holidays to all the members.

Kendall Clements

 

This whole tranny issue is the reason I departed with my 03 type S yesterday. I had a tranny failure last November and have dreaded another since. When I bought the tl I made sure it was not in the vin range "supposedly" affected. I thought I did my homework and was bit hard in the end. I bought the tl right after the list came out, so I thought I had peace of mind. It was a great car and I would have love to have kept it but in the long run it just wasn't worth the hassle. I'll come by here every so often and continue to lurk. It was an up and down 3 years with my tl and I wish all of you the best of luck.

 

Hmm - should have gotten one covered by the extended warranty and kept it. I absolutely love my car. I'm on the 3rd tranny - and as long as Acura backs it I'm comfortable.

(and I own a tranny shop )

 

those of you who have had trannys go....did any of those occur AFTER

the oil jet kit "fix"?

 

Yes.

 

Yes because the Oil Jet DOES NOT fix teh 3rd gear clutch pack problem. It keeps the 2nd gear shaft cooler and lubricated

 

i've got a late model 03 TLS...which i understand from this forum is NOT covered
by any extended tranny warranty...

i've got 45m miles on the car, this forum suggests that problems crop up around
75m miles+

IF the newer TL's aren't experiencing the same kind of tranny problems (are they?)
or if i went to a manual...

would trading in for a 3G TL make sense?....

i love the 03TLS...and typically keep my cars for a long time...but is it an accident
(blown tranny) just waiting to happen?

if i'm NOT covered and IF acura won't fix a tranny...then i've got big $$ exposure
which in my mind makes up for the extra money spent in trading up to a newer
model...


worried and confused......


ps...any data on what % of TL's experience the tranny failures?....1%?...20%?

also....any maintenace or driving tips to reduce the probability of a failure?

 

Go to acuras site and register for ts acuralink. Its free and will tell you if your covered
2003 3.2TL Type S:
From VIN 19UUA5…3A000001 thru 19UUA5…3A019061

if you like the 3rd gen and its in the budget and want to go for it. Its a great car.

as for %?? there are no figures out there on that.

and there is nothing you can do as far as driving to make it last. There are people who drove like grannies that had them fail fast and there are people who beat them and had them last quite awhile while others fail qickly also

 

No one reads or searches any more.

People have had failures before 75K. No, no one knows the percentage. No, there are no driving or maintenance tips to reduce the probablility. The newer TLs and, obviously, the manuals dont have a problem. There's no way to predict who will have a problem. Keep in mind that people are much more likely to complain here. If it bugs you the only alternative is to trade.