david-s

Visited local dealer today to check on a certain squeak my cars been making. They raised my car up to inspect it. And he told me the noise is my struts rubbing against another suspension part. He showed me where the blue paint on my tokico struts were rubbing off on this part. This is the least of my worries. He then asked if I've ever had any transmission work done on my car and i told him another acura dealer replaced my tranny under warranty about 10k miles ago. He said to take it back to them because when taking off the tranny you must take off the roll bar and i guess when they put it back on the lost a bolt. Also they never sealed my rear main sealer, which they are suppose to do, so it is now leaking out of control. When I had the tranny replaced i asked about how much it would cost to replace the motor mounts and they told me about 400. I informed the this man today about this and he says that is completly wrong and that they are trying to rip me off because OEM motor mounts cost 136 dollars. And since the tranny is already out so are the motor mounts meaning there should be no labor charge just parts charge= $136! I plan on revisiting the acura dealer that replaced my tranny and raising hell. I think it is only right for them to fix what they were suppose to the first time and do it right and they should replace my motor mounts for such the inconvenience.

david-s

Oh btw i asked him about innovative motor mounts and he didnt reccomend them. He says that since they are so strong they will cause the other mounts to break sooner.

fsttyms1

what other mounts. You replace all the mounts with the innovative. Then there arent any others to go.

fsttyms1

First off if your shock is rubbing on ANY other suspension part you have BIG issues. Its not something to not worry about. 2nd You dont have to take off the roll?? Sway bar to take the trans off. 3rd there is NOTHING to seal on the rear main seal. Its either good or bad. If it is it needs to be replaced. Also YOU were wrong about the motor mounts. They are NOT removed when the trans comes out. Its just easier to replace them with the trans removed.

MurdaZ

iTrader: (1)

wwwwwwwoooooooow....

david-s

Innovative i beleive only comes with three mounts, not the front. Correct me if im wrong. Maybe it wasnt the sway bar but there is some suspension part that must come off to remove the tranny. I believe this technician and please do not try to discredit him based on my story, because i probably got half the story wrong.

david-s

he said that once they fix the tranny there suppose to give you the option of sealing it for 25 dollars, which they didnt. And now it is bad, meaning its their fault and they are obligated to fix it. And to fix it you must take off the whole transmission making it a breeze to replace the mounts.

fsttyms1

There are 5 total mounts on the car. 3 are for the motor. All 3 are made by innovative Including the front. The only ones that they dont make are the 2 little rubber isolator style for the trans. There is no suspension part to have to come off to remove the trans. The lower front subframe comes off and the 2 radius rods. Sometimes the lower ball joint gets separated to remove the axle. Ive got the shop manual and it shows what needs to come off, Plus ive removed it myself 4 times. Im not trying to discredit any one, Merely state correct info for you so you can make that decision on your own.

01tl4tl

If your friend is not an acura employed tech- he doesnt have the complete correct story.

They are under NO obligation to offer to replace the engine rear main oil seal while the trans is removed if it is not leaking!!!!
If its not leaking -they have no reason to replace it!
Most people balk at needed repairs, let alone one thats preventative!

Front motor mount is ~$120 for the part (may have gone up) and 3/10 of an hour $30, to install WITH trans removed.
What happens is: the service writer punches motor mount into the computer and fails to use the correct entry code for- WITH trans removed, easily fixed simple human mistake

Otherwise its a few hour job = 200$ labor plus the part
There is no reason to expect them to install the mount for free since its not removed with the trans, just easier to get to it at with the trans out

You have tokiko shocks, probably lowered a little bit?- with a contact issue, that could also indicate the bolt was left loose and fell out- or incorrect installation
When were they installed?
Lets not blame acura immediatly until the facts are in~

WHO installed the shocks-
did you change the sway/anti-roll bar bushings, or new end links or the entire bar with an aftermarket bigger bar?
WHO did that installation?? where did you get the parts?

For the current oil leak- maybe the dealer will negotiate a lower labor rate than retail,like what they would charge the sales dept or another shop,,,
and do the whole job for 4 hours labor--they usually get more time for the removal of the flywheel to access the seal on top of the 4
See if they are willing to do anything to help you out
Being nice will get you more than being pissed and demanding of what they should have done 10,000 miles ago--they will laugh you right out of the office
10k miles after the fact is a long time before seal failure- how could they have known?
There are many many acuras running around with 150-200k miles and original rear main seal.
I understand your frustration (I was a service writer/tech) and you need to look at whats really happening with your car, and fix each thing
Are they the correct shocks? they may say accord on them- but should fit without contact of any other metal parts
Take a look for worn paint or paint transfer and tell us what you see

01tl4tl

my post above is meant to cover all aspects of a problem for others- I know the OP has stated some of the things already

Question to the OP
When the trans was replaced- did the dealer say it needed a front motor mount?
thats very common--you mention asking them about pricing--have you been driving with a bad mount?

Also you say you went to the dealer today- was it an acura dealer- because acura techs know to look for the blue bolts indicating its a warranty transmission, so he would not have asked if any work had been done
Just trying to get the facts straight please

david-s

Yes the dealer i visited yesterday was a acura service tech. Yes I have been driving around with a bad fron mounts and right mount. I didnt have the 400 dollars at the time to replace them. I will take pics of the problem later and show you guys.

01tl4tl

you can forget any goodwill from the last dealer- you left there with a free transmission and without a much needed part!!!-(which went into the file that you needed and declined those parts) yes they misquoted the price, but you have been driving a year like that---

wonder if that movement is contributing to the shock contact issue?

at any rate- based on your signature, you were able to buy suspension mods and many other parts that were for fun, and still not replace the motor mounts!!!
You get no sympathy from me on this

01tl4tl

was that dealer tech the oil change guy or what?
if he was any higher skill level than that and gave you really bad information- tell the manager then RUN far away from there

david-s

Okay. If you want to go down that road, my "FUN" parts were all together didnt cost as much the motor mounts, i buy used. And if i buy new i get crazy hook ups. I beleive it is none of your business what i spend my money on. And for the third time, he was an acura employed tech. Today i called Gillman and informed them of my problem before i drive all the way over there and i told him about the suspension part that needed to be removed to replace the tranny and he said it before i did, THE SWAY BAR, so yes it must be removed to get to the tranny. Anyways he said to bring it buy and and he'll fix it. So hah! lol. And i am gonna get my mounts fixed, and guess for how much.....$136!!!!!

david-s

And besides, when i chose not to replace the motor mounts when advised to, not only did i not have the money, but i thought they were just bull crapping me so thats another reason, plus the motor mounts really started kicking about 6 months later. So again, its my business what i spend my money on.

david-s

Okay here are the pics of the rear main sealer leaking and the missing bolt on the sway bar. Sorry they are phone pics off a moto q. And i could barely fit under the car I had to twist my neck one way i now i got a cramp in my neck. I couldnt get a pic of the tokico's rubbing off because it was to far up and i couldnt get that far under the car to take the pic

This could've been avoided if only they would have told me and i would've paid $25. Instead they have to take off the tranny....AGAIN!




The other side has two bolts, this is missing one.There is suppose to be another bolt directly behind this one.

`ill*tl

..take off your wheel to take a pic of where the struts are rubbing? Literally, it takes a couple mins..

fsttyms1

Ok the first pics are of the inspection cover. Thats all it is. There is nothing to seal there. Its a dry area.

The 3rd pic is of the Radius Rod. Not sway bar. And me personally would NOT be driving the car with just 1 bolt. Get it fixed!

david-s

In the process of fixing it right now. I dont know what you guys are talking about but that thing does have to be sealed. Maybe i took a pic of the wrong part. But anyways i took it to the dealer and he said hes going to put that bolt back on and seal the rear main. And put new motor mounts free labor charge, 136 dollars! I am such a happy camper. I was given a 2008 tsx to drive, its a fun car, not as much as the tl-s, but fun.

david-s

I would take off the wheel but one bolt is stripped and i dont have it with me anyways, ill take pics as soon as i get the car back.

Edward'TLS

When I had my tranny replaced a couple years back, I also had a metal-to-metal contact noise afterwards whenever I drove over bumpy roads. I have Comptech sways, Illumina shocks, and H&R springs. So I bought the car back to the dealership, took one of their guys out for a test drive and showed the guy the contact noise.

So they readjusted the tranny and I have no more contact noise since.

fsttyms1

The part you took pictures of does not need to be sealed. Its NOT supposed to be. There isnt any thing in that area that does need to be sealed. Its either the oil pan or trans in that area which arent things you just seal up. If the dealer seals that small cover dont go there.

david-s

why not?

fsttyms1

Dont know how they readjusted the trans since it bolts to the motor and is pretty much a fixed location and comes nowhere near the suspension???

01tl4tl

ok david- you get great parts hookups, and at the time of trans failure you didnt know about acurazine to learn the motor mount is a standard failure part and the cost, and the importance of not driving with any broken after you know.
Many of us have broken front mount and dont even know it!

The inspection cover between the trans and engine is a removable plate to see if any engine oil is leaking from the rear main seal- held on with 2 small bolts
You dont seal the inspection cover with silicone or any type sealant because you want oil to seep out and tell you there is a problem!

How much oil is your car losing?

01tl4tl

Service writers tell amazing stories~
and techs dont know prices!!

01tl4tl

so they are doing the motor mount for part only - thats very generous
Didnt you originally have a side mount bad as well?
A thank you letter to corp and to the dealer general manager is in order

Does the service manager say the oil leak is an external seal they are going to put something on?, or is the trans coming back out- and for how much $$?

You have talked about a new seal and applying sealant

david-s

He didnt say what was leaking, but he said hes gonna go ahead and seal it. He told me hes gonna have a tech look at the mounts and hell call me to let me know which ones need replacing, im gonna ask him to just go ahead and replace all of them. And yeah, he does deserve a thank you letter.

fsttyms1

The part isnt something that you seal. If your going to take the time to get to the part you replace it, not seal it. If they seal the inspection cover as to stop the leak dont ever go there again.

You asked why not?

Because that is an inspection cover. Its not supposed to be sealed. Its a dry area... Meaning there is no fluid in that area and nothing to seal. You have a leak. The part needs to be replaced.

Edward'TLS

They loosened the engine mounts and actually shifted the whole motor/trans unit a bit to avoid it hitting the aftermarket sways.