So, this is my second thread on the 2nd gen because i just got my 2003 tl with 109k miles and ive had a bunch of concerns. Transmission freshly rebuilt. 2 mounts done.

What are some other common repairs for this car? Id like to get all the basic stuff done so i dont gotta worry about much besides the problematic tranny.
Only spent like a 1k on the car so far, so im willing to do some work to
Keep it running for a few years!

 

Other than shoddy tranny and oem mounts not to much. But

After 100,000 miles the car is up to you to keep up the maintenance.
A few things:
~check all fluids radiator, brake, power steering etc. replace if needed
~check battery
~seafoam cleaner (check DIY section)
~check brake pads for wear
~switch over to synthetic oil if you haven`t yet
~put a new set of spark plugs in
~check the air filter and cabin filter

If your going to mod it in the future make sure you do the mechanicals first so you always have a fresh running car.

 

Common? Well beside trans?


1.- Leather Seat Heat Element (About 90% Chance of going Wrong)
2.- A/C Fan will stop working (About 50% Chance?)
3.- Headlight Condensation will lead to burned HID ballast (??%)


If somebody remember more be my guest.

 

- Inside rearview mirror leaking
- Bracket for trunk lid springs breaking off
- Front rotors warping
- Front seat belt buckle failing and tripping an SRS light (free dealer fix)
- IAC valve getting dirty
- Ignition coils failing
- Fuel injection relay flaky (aka main relay)

All of these have happened to my CL-S, except the mirror leaking, so looking forward to that....

 

That's an interesting one! How does that failure mechanism play out?

 

^ Headlight Gasket failure leads to condensation, Then it gets into the Ignitor Ballast chamber which then it becomes water and dips into top of the ballast where it doesn't have any gasket or liquid gasket at least (The Cables that come out from the ballast into the igniter) and makes it short...

 

Oil leak... Most likely due to PCV valve. Easy fix unless you have my luck. Everything else has been covered for the most part

 

thanks guys!

A lot of that has been done on mine already it seems. brakes are incredibly smooth, felt brand new when i got the car.

Im putting in aftermarket Hids soon because i love to do electrical work, so i can get that out of the way for sure.

Pcv valve oil leak? i have to check my oil again soon. looked low but the car was on a hill when i parked it so i have to check again. I have to look into this

 

Well theres one more, the Interior door armrest opening up. Just fixed mine up

 

well that just sounds inconvenient!!! how did that armrest open up?

-OEM mounts
-New HID
-Timing belt(whole kit)
-Possibly tranny mounts
-look into PCR valve

hoping if i do all that, it'll last a while!

Anyone have a good synthetic oil to recommend? i was thinking 5w20 royal purple.

 

^ Glue fails and the Black Plastic part separates from the pseudo leather thingy.. Its a common failure, even more now the car is +10 years old.. Expect it to Fail.


Royal Purple is good if you have deep pockets and you are planning on racing.. If you want something a Little more close to the earth Mobil 1 Syntethic is the way to go.

 

I'm going to go half\half on a case of it with my bro. Heard its good stuff, and he wants to put in his jeep.

Will definitely look into mobile 1 for the future though

 

Also look into valve adjustment and cleaning the egr ports and valve if not already done.

 

Not to be a debbie downer but another trans failure is likely in your future. Going with a rebuild is always a mistake because it doesn't fix the issue of why the transmission failed the first time.

 

Damn Debbie Downer. I wanna add weak ass swaybar links. When I installed my eibach swaybar set I had a broken link, didn't matter cause I was replacing all 4 anyways. But then doing brakes on a friends TL he had a broke link too. Anyone else??

 

I'd say one of the number one annoyances is the Interior Clock light going out. Can't see the damn time!

 

Ya... why the dash clock all the time!!! I went led because of it But if you live north then rust. Check around all door seals,the side view mirrors, behind both bumpers and of course the wheel wells. use POR or another paint inhibitor so if it hasn't started then it wont soon.

 

Hey man, have ya tried giving the clock a gentle whack yet ?

Worked for me !!!

 

That has worked for me a few times.
Till I got the navi setup.

 

The PCV from hell. lol

 

Windshield wiper arm ball linkage (plastic ball cup cracks and the arm gets wobbly).

 

good one ! Had the worst experience with this one on the highway once

 

I bought my 2003 S type 2 years ago with 124,000 on it. It now has 156,000 on it.
Owned a 99 TL before that was totaled by an Oak Tree that fell on it. I bought it with 36,000 miles on it and it had 158,000 when totaled. So I knew of most of the issues. Lots of good information on this site but also lots of BAD information on this site. Beware of what you read here.
Here's my list so far.
1. Clock Light out
2. Drivers side seat no heat
3. Wiper rods replaced/plastic connector wore out
4. New timing belt/tensioner/water pump. Bled brake lines and replaced warped rotors and pads (bought bremo blanks)
6. Replaced the caliper bracket on right front due to some lame mechanic over tightening the bolt and stripping the caliper threads
7. New tail light bulbs
8. New HID bulbs
9. New engine spark plugs
10. Both electrical harnesses are rattling under the dash. Need to fix them.
11. Radio controls don't work on steering wheel.
12. Passenger side top engine mount replaced.
13. Replaced dome light bulb.
14. Cleaned throttle intake body.
15. New battery
16. Replaced the rubber O ring on the power steering line. It was sucking in air and foaming. Drained and replace most of the power steering fluid
17. Drained and replaced engine antifreeze fluid.
18. Clay bar and waxed with (Liquid Glass) The best stuff ever for waxing your car.
19. New engine air filter. K & N.
20. Did a 3X transmisson fluid change and drain and replace every 10,000 miles of less.
21. Sea Foamed the engine twice.
22. Idle is starting to get eratic so I need to clean the idle control valve.
23. Oil change every 4K. I don't use synthetic. NO NEED TO.

 

F*****G CLOCK!

Mine is only losing a few pixels right now, so I have to guess if its 7:30 or 7:50 most mornings on the way to school.

Seat heater. Mine only heats my right butt cheek for the first 10 minutes. My passenger seat heater is completely gone apparently, I havent tried it yet so I dont know.

Mirror leaking. Ive avoided that so far, hoping to keep my luck going.

 

wow... 220k on my 99 and I've not experienced half of this stuff...


I do however have a list to accompany the others;


1. Rearview mirror-isnt leaking but the liquid does move in there
2. Trans has been rebuilt once and replaced once (Gma finally clarified the confusion)
3. Rattles in the dash
4. Drivers seat back heats whilst butt-pad does not, pass. side only has low
5. HID bulbs replaced
6. EVAP Solenoid stuck open, throws code, leaves fuel system open to atmosphere, fuel smell emanates from drivers rear wheelwell
7. Catalytic Convertor throwing a code as well
8. SRS light from belt buckle issue, and I have beef with my local dealer, so I ignore it
9. Armrest separation or 2 door panels, the DIY thread on that is quite awesome and the end result looks great
10. CD Player eats cds or just wont play them, no one mentioned that so far...


BUT!! I cant help but notice that nobody mentioned the dreaded and inevitable IGNITION SWITCH Hiccup that soooo many Hondas/Acuras of these years had problems with. That was a fun day, 75mph and the engine, gauges, and everything else just blink out. $80, 10 mins, & 4 screws later it was changed, replaced it in the rain to boot!

 

(03 base, 135k)- Xenon Ballast (left lamp for me), heated seats problems have already been mentioned (passenger side does not function at all, drivers is fine), and the stock CD player as well, but there is one more thing. I've run into the steering wheel mounted volume control unit becoming confused, working intermittently, or rarely, fail to work at all. Just annoying if anything. Of course, you'll also run into various dash lights going out, as in all cars. Mine started in the climate control knobs and worked its way out.
This has also been mentioned but I'll say it again, timing belt. Don't let that get away from you. Other than that, for the brief 21k I've had mine, it has been running like a champ. It is on a fresh transmission, though (110kish).

 

Every repair I have done on my TL has been to say the least relatively easy to do. What ever issue you have, doing it yourself will save you a lot of money. Your time is the only thing that will cost you anything and the part of course.


Note: After 100,00 it`s up to you to keep up the maintenance. Keep track of your oil changes and other fluids and replace worn out parts with the best available replacements.

 

THAT CLOCK!!! it just kicked out on me yesterday. I put in an aftermarket Touchscreen pioneer unit because my radio was completely dead, so that gives me my time now!!

Has anyone ever found out what that stupid rattle is that comes from the front passenger side of the car? Its driving me nuts every time i hit a bump!

 

I didnt know that was a fix. I need to try this when i get off work!

 

I was just complaining to my wife that there isn't a good clock in the car...

I have a Nav system, am i supposed to have a clock?

My nav is... sun burned. It's really hard to read in the sunlight.

 

Yes the clock is the green digits, check the settings for the brightness and the setting for Day Night or Auto. Most likely is in night mode not letting you see the screen at day.

 

It's the wiring harness in the dashboard. A common problem. The insulation craps out after so many years. I'm trying to figure out how to get to it. It involves tearing the dash apart. Any help would be appreciated. You just have to get to it and insulate it with some foam padding.

 

Now have 115K miles on a 2002 TLS. Items that have been repaired:
Clock Light - worked for awhile after banging on the dash, then went out for good and the bulb had to be replaced
Odometer cluster/gear selection indicator went out, then fixed itself and has been fine for three+ years
Warped front rotors, multiple times
CD player eats CDs (one is stuck inside somewhere)
Engine mounts - multiple
Ball joints
Replaced shocks preemptively at 80K
Transmission replaced at 89K under warranty
Two batteries (latest is from Wallmart, a good value)
Replaced rear view mirror preemptively
Routine maintenance: Timing belt, plugs, etc. at 100K, brake fluid changes at specified intervals, cabin filter, transmission fluid changes more frequently than specified intervals
Using full synthetic changed at approx 9 months, 3000 miles
One HID ballast went out; repaced it with an OEM equivalent
Dome light doesn't come on when driver side door is opened; probably the switch
HID bulbs - shop broke retaining clips on both sides, and when the low beams are aimed correctly the highs are pointed at the ground. Still working this one out...

Have to concur about clay bar and Liquid Glass.