I just bought my 99TL from a private owner about 2 weeks ago with 66k on it.

All these transmission failure issues worries me, but I also saw that the transmission issue typically occur to 2000-03 model. Does that mean MY99 is worry free?? anyone with 99 TL had tranny issue?

I called Acura and was told that the transmission extended tranny warranty covers 100k miles or 7 years whichever comes first. clearly my 99 is out of the 7 years mark so it won't be covered so I'm thinking about some 3rd party companies that offer extended warranties. Can anyone recommend some good companies?

There's one recommended by Carfax is call CarCheck.. and they quoted me $1700 for 3 years of coverage (45k miles I think). it's one level lower than bumper to bumper coverage but everything else is pretty much covered..any thoughts??

many thanks in advance.

J

 

I also own a 1999 TL. It's a great car!

And welcome to Acurazine! This is the place to learn all about your TL!

The 1999 TL transmissions are not 'worry free". According to Consumer Reports subscriber surveys, the 4-speed transmission in the 1999 TL gets a "worse than average" reliability rating.

In contrast, the 5-speed transmission used in the 2000-2003 TLs gets a "much worse than average" reliability rating. That's the lowest rating they give out.

So the 1999 TL transmission tends to be more reliable than the 2000-2003 transmission but it still has reliability problems.

The original transmission in my 1999 TL made it to 173,000 miles. So you may have over 100,000 miles left on yours.

On buying a 3rd party warranty, there's no way I would pay $1700 for three years of protection. The transmission is the only big ticket item I would worrry about. If your transmission doesn't fail in that time you're guaranteed a $1700 loss. If it does fail, you'll only save $1500 or so on a new transmission. (The replacement transmission for my 1999 TL cost about $3200 through an Acura dealer.)

Also, the extended transmission warranty through Acura was recently bumped up from 7 years to "7 years + 9 months". Check the original purchase date for your TL. You might still have some warranty coverage left. My TL already passed that time limit but some 1999 TLs are still covered.

Bob

 

what year is ya car? cause the tranny is covered to 109,000miles.

 

everyone should be registered at www.acura.com
click the ownership experience link
Have your VIN number at hand and make a free account for your car
That system knows what warranties are in effect for your car
and can store the ever important radio security code for later use.

 

Bob, thanks for the info. the $3200 tranny replacement is including parts and labor right? are there other problems I need to be aware off on the 99 TL? if tranny is the only weak point then I don't think I need the 3rd party warranty. ($3200 for a brand new tranny replacement from dealer doesn't seem too bad)

I'll check with Acura about the 7 years + 9 months tranny warranty. Hopefully it's still under cover.

ps. I was trying to PM you regarding some other questions but it didn't work. is that because I'm too new?

Jack

 

Yes, the $3200 cost included all parts and labor. The transmission was considered rebuilt in the sense that they reused the outer housing. But every other part in the transmission was a brand new Acura part. (Some transmission shops will just replace the worn items.)

The original owner of the car had this done right before I bought the car. He managed to get a two year unlimited mileage warranty on the replacement and that stays with the car.

As for other problems, here really isn't anything that approaches a transmission failure.

You can't send a private message until you hit a certain number of posts. (I don't know the number.)

Bob

 

Thanks Bob.
I'll contact Acura to find out more information about the tranny warranty coverage on my car.

 

so u guys are trying to tell me that i just bought a money pitt.so shouild i get rid of it its an 03 tl-stype

 

Wow, I have been a member of the 2nd Gen forum since the 9th of March and I have put less than 1K miles on the car and the tranny went yesterday. I am having it towed from my In-Law's house this morning since the dealership was closed yesterday. I can't wait to get the Service guys on the phone....One great thing about this site and being on it for so long, I knew exactly what was happening and I knew exactly what to do and I did not panic. This site is more important than people realize. I couldn't imagine not knowing anything about this problem and driving along and the car starts bucking like that. My wife was terrified, but I could calm her down by telling her everything that was about to happen. We were a few miles from Her brother's house when the trans slipped out of gear and revved. She asked what that was and I told her that the trans was about to go. I immediately got off of the highway and took some surface streets to her brother's house and it started bucking/downshifting. I took it all the way in in 2nd gear....crawling.

ACURAZINE FTW!

 

That's generally true. But not every 2nd gen TL is covered. Some 2003 TLs are not covered. And cars with salvage titles are also not covered.

Bob

 

Sad but I think I may have a faulty new transmission. My car is going back to the dealer this friday. Supposedly it was new. I only had it for about 3 weeks now and it's gotten 600 miles on it so far.

I guess I'll add a few questions that anyone can answer. Is there any reason for the caution "!" light to go off during turns or braking when driving conditions are normally sunny weather? I don't take fast turns while this happens.

Also has anyone noticed any lag in transmission from a dead stop? It's happened to me 3 times where the car wouldn't accelerate until a couple seconds and then the car would jerk forward like you mashed the gas sort of?

 

quick question? my vsa,check engine, triangle lit up and the car shift like a drunk tranny all over the place 1st,3rd,2nd,4th,2nd, in d5 butin d4 the car drives fine is that normal?? for a tranny that goes out??

 

Yeah I would diffenently have that checked out some thing is diffenenlty wrong there.

 

the Automatic Transmission Warranty Extension is 7 Years and 9 Months or 109,000 Miles from the original purchase date. it qualifies to most 99-03 acura tls and cls, but NOT all. only applies to certain vins

 

Just for clarification, the extended warranty applies to all 1999-2002 TLs. The VIN number criteria just applies to the 2003 TL. Acura apparently thought they fixed the problem at some point during the 2003 manufacturing cycle.

And, as always, cars with salvage titles are not covered.

Bob

 

Just found out that I have 8 more days left on the extended tranny warranty...that sux. hope it doesn't die on me.

 

You might want to have the dealer check the transmission out before the warranty expires in case there's something they can diagnose now. It's possible there's something they can pick up that you can't notice yet.

Even if they only find something a little off, it might give you some leverage in case it fails down the road.

Then again, you have a 1999 TL with the more reliable four speed transmission and you may have many miles to go. As I mentioned above, the original transmission in my 1999 TL made it to 173,000 miles. So you could have over 100,000 trouble-free miles ahead of you! :-)

Bob

 

for those with 03 tl when u see the d4 light blinking do not take it to the dealer if u dont have a warantey get it diagnose at a regular shop first it could be a senser and if u dont change that senser thats when your tranny will give up

 

I have an '03 TL Type S. I'm the original owner. I did have the car services on the recall for the oil jet kit back when I had about 30,000 miles on it. The transmission began to fail at 70,000 miles last month. I first took the car to my local guy. And he advised me to just take it into the dealer. There were a number of codes indicating transmission failure.

Before I contacted the dealer, I phoned Acura in California, and they informed me that the VIN wasn't covered. I still had the dealer tow the car into their shop. The mechanic went into their computer system and entered the service call. He told me that he received a warranty authorization for the work electronically. They even picked up the towing charge. When I asked the dealer how this all happened, they explained that Acura probably covered it as a "courtesy". I had passed the 50,000 mile warranty, but it still isn't 4 years old.

I'm guessing that Acura is well aware of the design flaw and they want to keep customers. Oh, by the way, I do have two other Honda cars in my garage. I don't know if they knew that, but you never know.

My advise is to take the car to the dealer, otherwise Acura won't do anything for you.

Good Luck!

 

Well, I didn't think it could happen to me, but my tranny dropped a couple of days ago at 77,000 miles. I had it towed in to an Acura dealer and I called Acura USA to check on warranty coverage. I really hope that the second one doesn't go as well. Does anyone know if the 3rd generation models have these issues? I'm thinking of trading it on one of those.

 

Do you really think they fixed the problem between the 03s which are still failing,
and the gen 3 cars the next year? If that were true, all the replacement units since 04 would be perfect. We have been getting post 2/05 replacements and there have been ISOLATED failures, like 3 reported on this board so far.

Yes there are 04s under 50k reporting warranty trans replacements too.

Usually if the rebuild had bad parts or labor involved- it dies within 1000 miles.
So what do you care?- they comp you a loaner car again and try another transmission-
cost you nothing.
Take a box of donuts and get better service!

Read gen 3 threads and they have poor gas mileage, severe rattles, brake issues and more.
Stick with a known good car

 

ya i just got my car fixed 2 days ago for the transmission because it wont shift into gear properly there was a recall for it so i got it done. after they fixed it, it drove fine but once my engine gets warm from driving it starts doing it again what does that mean i need to change my whole transmission? NEED FEEDBACK PPL

 

The RECALL was for a different issue and installed a spray bar. The replacement units have the spray bar built inside
The EXTENDED WARRANTY on the trans to 7 year/109 thousand miles is for a differnt problem and a blessing for so many of us.
Yes thousands of these cars have no problems
Some of us have to be test pilots

 

so i got my transmission replace. picking it up tomorrow. it was covered. so how long would the new one last for.

 

got a 2001 Tl, but my title is rebuilt, am guessing am not covered by anything, it has 59,000 miles, and driving back from Miami i was going 65-70 and the car went down to like 2ND gear all of a sudden making the cars behide me brake hard almost taking me along with theme, and then it did it like 10 more times. got to the point i was afraid to drive it, stopped at the gas station and had it towed to the house, seems to only happen after the car is on the road for about an hour, anyone got any real solution for my problem ?

 

If by "rebuilt" you mean that you have a salvage title, you are probably out of luck on any warranty coverage. But you might as check with Acura. I'm not sure, but I think I read one report on this forum where a TL with a salvage title was covered.

Bob

 

My updated tranny with 1400 miles on it is failing. It slipped on me twice and the "!" light has been comming on quite frequently during turns. It's going in the shop tuesday.

 

How does the warranty on the replacement tranny work? When I had mine replaced, the service manager didn't provide me any warranty information on the replacement transmission.

 

It would be best to contact the dealership for the exact details.

But you're covered as long as you're within the original warranty coverage limits.

Beyond that, there's typically something like a 24 month warranty that provides coverage regardless of the original warranty's expiration. But that seems to vary from dealer to dealer.

 

so some dealers do this and some dont?? which ones do, ill make the drive

 

My wife's Acura TL is a 2002 model year, bought in May 2001 (I think). At 25K miles the oil jet kit was put in due to the recall. Now she has 55k miles on it and she is noticing that it occassionally will suddenly rev up high while she is driving - like slipping out of gear??. Could not get her to pinpoint at what speed/gear etc. Am I covered still by the warranty you describe? SHould I take it to the dealer or start by doing a drain and fill 3x? If warrantied - I am opting for the dealer route - let them fix it.

 

Just saw this on the acura site - I should be all set - don't think they ever sent this letter they mention, but then again, back then (October 2002) I was probably still under the misconception that I would have no problems with this car

RECALLS

(This is an electronic version of the letter that has been mailed to you.)





BACK TO RECALLS LIST



October 2002



Dear 3.2TL and 3.2CL Owners:





American Honda is announcing a warranty extension for the automatic transmission on all 2000-02 3.2TLs, all 2001-02 3.2CLs, and some 2003 3.2TLs and 3.2CLs. The automatic transmission and torque converter are now covered for a total of 7 years or 100,000 miles, whichever occurs first, from the date of original sale. We are providing this warranty extension because a higher than normal number of automatic transmissions in certain vehicles may have problems due to defects in material or workmanship beyond the 4-year, 50,000-mile new vehicle limited warranty.



How do I know if there is a problem with my vehicle's automatic transmission?

If you think your vehicle has a transmission problem, refer to the operating characteristics below. Understanding these characteristics can help you decide if you need to call your Acura dealer.



These characteristics are normal; they should not require you to call your Acura dealer.



Quick downshifts. The transmission has a computerized control system called grade logic. When going down a hill, even a light touch of the brake pedal can cause grade lobic to downshift to the next lower gear. Downshifting helps to slow the vehicle through engine braking.



Does not always shift through the full range of gears. This can also be caused by the grade logic system keeping the transmission in the optimum gear for different driving conditions.



Mechanical noise when selecting a forward or reverse gear. It's normal to hear a slight mechanical noise when moving the shift lever from one gear to another. This noise can sound abnormally loud if any of the windows are down and you are parked next to a wall or another vehicle.



Vehicle may not hold its position when stopped on an incline in gear (may roll backward when the brake pedal is released). This can occur on most Acura-made vehicles. It is one of the measures used to improve fuel economy.



Hard shifts before the engine warms up. By design, the transmission shifts a little harder when the engine is cold. It returns to smoother shifting when the engine warms up.



These characteristics are not normal; if you experience any of them, call your Acura dealer.



While driving, the D5 indicator on the instrument panel flashes.



D5 Indicator









An abnormally loud noise from the transmission.

Extremely slow or delayed gear engagement, upshifts, or downshifts.

Abnormal gear slippage during upshifts or downshifts.

Erratic or excessively harsh shifting.

Automatic transmission fluid (ATF) leaks.



In the next few weeks, owners of potentially affected vehicles will be sent a copy of this letter along with reimbursement instructions in case they previously paid to have the transmission repaired or replaced.



It's important to maintain your vehicle's transmission according to the maintenance schedule in your owner's manual. Not maintaining the transmission properly can void the warranty coverage.



Thank you for your understanding and cooperation in this matter.



Sincerely,



AMERICAN HONDA MOTOR CO., INC.

Acura Automobile Division

 

Call Acura with the car's VIN number and they will be able to tell you immediately if the car is covered. You can also get the warranty information by registering the car online on Acura's OwnerLink site.

The car should be covered since it's a 2002 model. All of the 1999-2002 TLs were offered the extended warranty on the transmission. The only exception might be if it has a salvage title but that doesn't seem possible since it looks like the car was purchased new.

Don't delay too long on having it checked out to avoid a breakdown on the road.

Good Luck!

Bob

 

Took my 99 in yesterday to Baranco Acura. Had to wait an hour for them to test drive it and when they finally did they said there was nothing wrong with it and it was not slipping. I had to tell them again that it was double engaging in first gear and not slipping while driving. The service advisor then said that it sounded like low tranny fluid, which it was not.

I finally took the car out myself and drove it for a couple of minutes, brought it back, and had the mechanic sit in the car while I shifted it from park to drive and was able to verify the double engagement symptom. Right after that I told him I belonged to Acurazine and was aware of the issues etc, etc. He then told me "I guess we can replace it".

Hopefully they will have it ready for pickup by tomorrow; I hate this Pontiac G6.

 

When my tranny died, I was in Griffin which is not that far from Baranco (I bought my 1st Gen from there and my mom bought a Legend back in the day from them too) I had the tow truck pull my car right past them to Duluth. The car ended up at AcuraCarland. The service guys there are some of the most professional guys that I have ever met. I have never had a good experience dealing with the Barancio Acura Service people. I am glad that you are getting taken care of though.
That is the most important thing.

Oh, and my brother in law had his RL towed down there last year because the alternator went out on the highway (he lives in Griffin) and he gets a call the next day saying that he needs an oil pan. He went down and took a picture of it and there was a gaping hole punctured right through the middle of it. Baranco blamed the tow guy, the tow guy blamed Baranco. My Brother in law had to go to court and his car sat on the lot for 6 months before they fixed it. That's how great those guys are. My Sorry for getting a little off topic.

 

Well...I'm am pretty pissed off right now. Just this past Friday, I took my car into the dealership to have them check on a squeaking noise coming from the front driver side. So I dropped it off in the morning explaining to them the problem plus that its started to feel like the tranny is about to go. But when they had the car, they wern't able to duplicate the problem, but they did find out the my front engine mount collapsed. (Got that fixed)

Now, just this Saturday morning, I get into my car and start driving on the freeway when I notice that my RPMs jumped from 2000 to 5000 out of no where. I thought it was me, until when I parked and got it into R, that gear also slipped. So I called the dealership and I told them that I was on my way back there. The moment I get off the freeway, the VSA light kicks on. From what my buddy told me, that means that its in "limp mode" where it will still to second gear and 3rd ONLY! When I finally got in there, I told the service agent flat out that I am not planning to pay you guys another $100 so that you guys can tell me there is nothing wrong with it. After a bit of venting, they gave me a RDX to take home. As much fun as that is, this BS still ruined my whole day. I vent off some more, I went to the shooting range and let some more steam off! My Transmission!!!......

 

Acura Customer Care is useless. I recently contacted them about a 01 TL that had 112K on it and the tranny went out. They said they won't fix it because it's 3000 miles over the warranty limit even though they admit the odometer has a margin of error of +/- 3.5 percent. They offered to pay for parts, but that means I would still have to pay almost $1500 for diagnostics and labor. Screw Acura, they suck. Never buying another POS Acura again. They do not stand behind their product and they weasel out of their warranty any way they can. I will tell everyone I know to avoid Acura/Honda like the plague.

 

Honda/Acuras offer to go 50/50 with you is very good and comes with an extended warranty on the replacement trans.
Your car went 112 thousand miles with no problems at all, how does that make it a POS you want to tell all to avoid?
Have you even done the timing belt and spark plugs yet?
Most car makers are out of there at 50k miles for any problem- amd most of them would never offer to cover half cost on anything at 100k!
Make the best of it and enjoy how well the new trans makes the car run for only $1500!!
Thats less than a brake job on any BMW- grin and bear it

 

Acura Customer Care phone reps only have a paper to read from and cannot be relied upon for certain things

Many az members have had CC turn them down and the dealer get them approved on a "courtesy replacement"
Always work with the Service MANAGER at the dealer- if not happy, ask to speak with a District Warrranty Mananger

 

I'm sorry but I used to own a Ford Taurus and even that POS went more than 112K without the need for a new tranny. And I dont see what the timing belt and spark plugs have to do with the transmission??? Acura sucks, plain and simple. They refuse to admit there is a design flaw and try to blame you for not changing the tranny fluid and filter, as if THAT would have anything to do with 3rd gear failure. Typical of a corporation that values $$$$$ over safety and reputation.