My 2002 -3.2 TL Acura has been a great for for 12 years, but a few weeks ago the car stalled out while idling at a traffic light. Mechanic could not find any problems. Today, the car decelerated suddenly from 65 mph to 10 mph and stopped when I pulled over at an exit. I have read Acurazine posts that suggested tune up items (i.e. spark plugs, clogged injectors and air filter) or either replace fuel pump and fuel filter. What is the least expensive route to find the real problem and point to a solution. Car deceleration on a major highway is dangerous so I have to fix this problem ASAP. Any and all suggestions welcome.

 

Sounds like a transmission problem to me.
All recalls done ?

 

Can you elaborate more on the deceleration as you describe it? Is the car just shutting off? does the deceleration happen rapidly? Did you notice the RPMs jump up when it decelerated?

 

Welcome Tgw001 !!!
So, apparently you've owned this TL since new.....tell us about the car's present miles, PM maintenance history and any recent repairs. There are many things that could be showing signs of wear and possible neglect. Is there any CEL codes ? The problem could possibly be electrical in nature, but it's difficult to help without knowing more background info on the details.

 

stalled at idle = I would look at the idle air control valve being dirty
Have you done the 105 service, replaced the spark plugs with correct NGK?

no CEL light on dash? have parts store test for codes- its free
have same parts store test electrical- battery alternator system

your tech found nothing wrong? no suggestions like fuel cleaner?

hows your history of changing the transmission fluid? is it on the newer DW-1?

 

the other likely is trans failing,
the clutch plates shed friction material which gets into the oil- during operation the crud gets flung onto the outflow filter screens inside the torque convertor
It will cause loss of shifting, no gear grab etc
Parking for 15 minutes will allow the crud to gravity drain off the screens and you can drive a shirt distance until it happens again

for 20 bucks you can have blackstone labs run a mass spectrograph analysis- tells you whats in the fluid and what it means
bad news, ok news ...

 

Unless you are very proficient at "DIY" troubleshooting, I'd strongly suggest that you have another mechanic experienced with Honda automobiles to diagnose your potentially life threatening car's problem, ASAP.

Basic things such as the electrical grounds and relays need inspected. Could be something loose or on the edge of failure. Have the electrical system load tested, check the fuel pressure, check for codes. Things like dirty TB intakes, EGR passageways and IAC can cause idling issues......but, the big thing here is the sudden deceleration at high speeds. That's rather scary.

This could possibly be a faulty ignition switch, ELD, or PGM-FI fuel relay.....just some things to rule out before condemning the tranny. Check all of the tranny's electrical solenoid connections and grounds. Does the tranny seem otherwise normal with no odd occurrences besides this situation ?

 

sounds like clogging of the torque convertor screens to me
get the trans fluid tested at blackstone labs- either know or eliminate clutch wear/imminent trans death as the issue