Alright I'm having a problem with my trans. When i bought the car i had to tear the trans apart to replace bad diff. bearings. No big deal. Three months later I'm sitting at a red light and the trans bangs. Great. The TCS light comes on and D4 light starts flashing and I only have 2nd and 4th gears. Tear the trans back out of the car and take it apart again. I inspected everything but the clutch packs and replaced the accumulator body, pistons, springs and o-rings due to wear. All the solenoids checked out ok so I put it all back together. I'm still having the same problem. If anyone has a suggestion to what else could be wrong with this trans would be great. Thanks in advance.

 

Your clutch packs. They are known failure issues with these trans (especially 3rd). The trans is a 3 shaft design much like a manual. When 3rd goes first usually wont operate either. Also the torque converter is a place to inspect/reolace as well. What codes are you getting.

 

Go figure. I didnt think to really look at them considering I wasnt having any slipping or goofy shifting. Its giving me a p1768. I'm getting an o2 sensor heater code too but I dont think that has anything to do with it. Thanks for the help

 

Ok I finally got around to pullin the trans back out of the car. I tore down the clutches and haven't found anything that stands out as being worn or malifunctioning. I will have to wait till tomorrow to take the baskets apart since I don't have a press to get the sirclips off. Any ideas of what I should be looking for would be great.

 

i thought the third gear clutch pack was only a prob on the 5 speeds he has the 4 speed its a 99

 

but its the same problem in his car,, he replaced everything BUT them!!!
a fairly standard part to wear out in Acura auto trans and others

the 5 speed TL has it worse due to low oil flow to that exact area, and not enough clutch disc to handle the power of the larger engine it came with

imagine them stuffing a 5th gear and all its parts into a 4 speed case,,how much extra room was there to start? not enough !

 

I'm thinking the trans was rebuilt at some point considering the clutches look to have minimal wear. It must not have been a dealer job since the bolts aren't blue. I'm thinking the problem is inside the clutch basket, maybe bad o-rings or something. I haven't had the chance to take it apart yet since I dont have the proper tools at home to do it.

 

i finally took my 99 to the shop this AM to have the transmission looked at. it has been slipping randomly for 50k+ miles...yes I just learned how to drive it smooth enough and it never really got much worse. but I am sick of it and want a smooth shifting car again so she is at the shop now. I will update with exactly what they say to see if it matches

 

That's exact opposite of what happened to mine. It wasn't slipping or shifting funny at all it just shit the bed without warning. I am curious to what they tell you. Is it at the dealer or private shop?

 

it is a transmission only shop. if you go to the dealer all they will do is put in a rebuilt unit for $3500ish. the guy called me today and said nothing was "broke" really but simply worn out big time therefore slipping. the only way it lasted this long was because I learned how to drive it smooth (enough) and extend the life so much. so they are replacing all of the necessary parts with the new updated Honda parts, the torque converter, clutches, seals etc. it seems Honda redesigned quite a few major parts. I will update tomorrow or this weekend when I get it back with more exact details.
cost is going to be $1950 total

 

that's exactly what I wanted to hear. My 03 has the same problem with 230,000 miles on it and the dealer wanted to charge like 5 grand to replace it. I'm definitely going to try a small dealer now for sure.

 

Has anyone used LEVEL 10 for there rebuilds/parts? I'm thinkin about giving them a try and see what the results are.

 

Had the same issue with my 99TL few years back. It was replaced by the dealer for free. I was told there was an extended warranty/recall on the trans by Acura. You can check with any Acura dealer for more info.

 

I highly doubt they would honor a warrenty on my trans considering this is the third time I've had the thing apart. Just finished a total rebuild and new torque converter. Just waiting on 6 quarts of new dw-1 trans fluid and I can finally put it back in the car. Hopefully I have a winner this time.

 

Ok got the trans back in and I'm still having the same problem. I am getting codes p0753 and p1768.

 

How much trouble is it to change the transmission? Any special tools needed?

I have changed out several rear wheel drive units, but never a front. I'm having issues now.

A guy I work with works on cars on the side. He said he could swap out the transmission for $300 if I find a used or rebuilt one.

I have also read of people replacing the 99TL tranny with a 06 accord trans. Anyone know where I can find a crossref of which transmissions would swap with mine?

 

The only special tools you will need is an engine support bar to hold the engine up after you pull the trans out and a ball joint splitter. Everything else can be done with regular hand tools. I'm not to sure about the 06 accord trans but I think they may be five speed and the 99 tl is a 4 speed.

 

Hey for what its worth my tl has 220k miles on it and the trans started slipping so bad that i couldnt drive it at all it would pop out of gear and nothing but cars honking at me.So drained it cut the return line start drained pretty much all of it and put a med size inline filter in the return i had cut and its been perfect ever since,no joke put dex3 trans fluid not the bs acura/honda 9 bucks a quart stuff I figured if this didnt do it I would donate her but now she's rockin again.Good motoring

 

what kinda noise did the bad diff. bearings make? ive got a knocking that increases at speed, no difference in neutral. have replaced sway bar end links,tires,bearings. HELP

 

Mine made a slight knocking. What really got my attention was leaking trans fluid. Get under your car and see if you have any play in the axles where it enters the transmission, if there is excessive play there is a good chance your bearings are shot.