The shop that is proposing a rebuild wants roughly $600 to evaluate the work that needs to be done. As usual, they apply the $600 to the cost of the rebuild.

 

Hi Folks,
I'm a new member here - joined yesterday. I'm looking at purchasing an '03 tl with 125,000 Km (77,500 mi) to replace my trusty old Legend. I checked with the dealer for the service history of the car. It's been in for all of the scheduled maintenance but no transmission problems yet. The VIN is just outside (newer than) the extended warranty cut-off.
Is the tranny doomed to fail or is it worth chancing? I've been reading a lot on this forum and it appears that the design flaws make it inevitable to fail.
Any idea on the percentage of problem units vs good ones?
Your input would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.

Don

 

its supposed to be ~3 percent of the country, but among members here its much higher--being a tech help forum~

an 03 -out of vin- with no trans warranty offered??? --not unless they knock $2500 off so you have a trans reserve fund for that rainy day
that vin end number thing has nothing to do with a fix- it was to settle a court case and get the extended warranty
trans from the next 2 years have the same problem--low oil flow to certain parts allows early wearout and failure of trans

maitenance on the whole car is one thing- trans service is another,, and not really done much --a 3 qt change once in its life if its lucky

you could get an oil analysis done at blackstone labs for 25 bucks (or similar lab- see internet) to ck for clutch particles- that will tell you the trans health --its fluid

 

77kmiles is ripe for a trans failure

 

You know its not true, this number was reported in 2004 by Honda. at that time a lot of cars had small mileage ( < 70K miles). The bigger wave of failures came few years later when more cars started crossing 70K miles mark. Was this number only for 2ng gear problem (for which they installed oil jet) ? Or was this a combined number for 3rg gear clutch pack wear out?

 

I have no idea- you are correct I was using early acura number--the only one ever released --no idea what it represents

I do know at many dealerships its 1-4 trans per week at a high, to 1-4 per month at a low,,for failure--this was a few years ago on gen2s
hopefully gen2s all got their freebie and just 03s are getting them now
that 7 years plus 9 months is nice! my next car will get 10/100 for sure

In a shopping center with 5 (non ziner) TL's parked next to each other- the other 3-4 drivers will be unaware of any problem!

Lets just figure if you are here and looking at a TL- it will likely have a failure~
ck goodwill info and warranty expiration date

the best way to get it to fail: come here bragging of your high miles and no problems--tends to start the azine curse `death clock`~

 

I am sure the failure rate starts increasing after tranny has more than 100K miles on it, there is got to be at least 10-15% failures over 100K miles, if not more. Maybe now with redesigned tannies they reduced it a bit. Yeah, if you are that 90-80% of people you see on parking lot, they won't know a thing. My budy had 160K miles on his 2001 TL when he sold it, he was very happy with the car and bought new TL because he wanted a new car, when I told him about transmission problem he did not believe me, but then he recalled geting oil jet installed, so he was like "they did a recall on mine, so it was all cleared". I was like "sure, whatever"

PS. I believe that 90% people seriously believe that the recall (oil jet) they received from Acura solved all the potential transmission problems that may have

 

now THATS a fact!!

according to the head tech at my dealer- `anything after 50 is right on schedule`, with most going in the range of 60-80
If its past 100 its a great unit- keep driving it!

 

many believe they got a new trans at the recall-- ~when all that car has is the oil jet kit~

 

yep, I know one girl who thought they replaced her transmission while she was waiting for 1 hour in the waiting area

 

The oil jet made my car drive like new.

 

well here we are again I got 23K out of my replacement trans and it is burning fluid, intermittently slipping, and rare jerk when coming to a stop and then accellerating away again without a complete stop.

my trans was replaced in 2008 sept at 71K miles and I am now at 94K and needing a new trans. I had reported this problem to my dealer while the car was in warranty (started having problems at about 8K on the new trans) and now they are saying that I might have to pay for it.......if this is the case I am selling the car

 

They should give you a good break on that yeu4ever, because you only put 8k miles on the new transmission.

 

I guess you only got 12/12 warranty on it? I think your unit was defective from the beginning if you had problems at 8K miles.

 

Okay. Thanks Folks for all of your input.
I decided to pass on the '03. It was a bit scruffy for what I like anyway. Needed about $1500 worth of bodywork and that wouldn't even take care of the scratches (black car).
The search continues.
Are the 4 speed Accords (2000) as flawed as the 5 speed TLs?

Don

 

They're very close.

 

I think 2000 4speed Honda transmission is more reliable than 2001-2003 5sp, yes it has some problems, but far less than 2001-2003

 

Not too far off, i rebuilt alot of Accords 98-02 too.

 

if my memory serves me right the 4speed that is used in the 98-02 Honda accord is the same transmission that is used in the 1st gen TL and RL I dont know though

 

Believe it or not they're not the same. Close though, but the code of the transmission are all different, as well as internal parts.

 

195,XXX km's, still original transmission.

 

oh no!!!! the noob is unaware of the azine curse--never come here bragging of your high miles/kms and perfect trans,,especially in the tranny failure thread~

It starts the transmission `death clock` just like some bad horror movie!

 

Some time ago I read a brochure about a product that would make changing oils a lot simpler and less messy. It's a replacement for the drain plug that has a capped plug that, when you thread the drain adaptor onto it, opens a valve that allows the oil to drain through an attached tube into your catch pan (or jug). By using this system, you may not even need to jack up your vehicle to drain the fluid. If you can slide your arm/hand to reach the plug, you just have to attach hose and the oil drains without spilling/splashing.
I'd really like to try one but I'll be damned if I can remember what it's called or who makes it.
Anyone here know what I'm trying to describe?
I imagine it would make draining tranny fluid a whole lot easier, especially if you don't have a floor jack etc.

Don

 

Draining the tranny fluid is easier than motor oil. The bolt is a lot more accessible, no lifting of the car needed. Just a 3/8" drive ratchet & drain pan.

 

wtf they should cover that, you brought the issue to their attention while the car was still under warranty and they ignored it...lawyer up

 

haha. im hoping it blows before my warrenty is up.

 

I am changing my fluid in a few weeks and sending a sample to our company's SOS lab to see what they say

 

Hi dude,

Thanks for your input.
I found a similar product to what I am after. It's made by 'Fumoto'. Not quite the same as the one i was after, but should do the trick. You can attach a hose to the nipple on it and avoid dropping the hot plug and having the fluid spashing into (and around) the drain pan. No need even for a wrench, once you've installed it. You simply turn the tap.
Now, does anyone know the size of the plug and the thread pitch? I'd rather not have to take mine out and measure to order one.
Thanks.

Don

 

Im at 142k miles and im pretty sure im on my stock tranny..startin to slip a little here and there, how do i check to see if its been replaced before??

 

i called acura canada (because i live here lol ) asked them about warrenty, gave them the vin code, she stated no oil jet or anything was installed.

 

Well my tranny went out about a month ago and figured i would call my local Acura stealership and get a quote. The rep iv dealt with for years is no longer there which sux. The rep stated I had until 115k miles for the warranty and seeing im at 130 stated its all on me. Asked if he could please try and help me out so im waiting to hear back from him with a quote. I love this car with a passion even at the miles im out the car still puts a smile on my face.

When I think about all the trannys i have been through about to be on #4, the ignition switches, the busted rear view mirror ect ect i had some pretty close calls safety wise from those failures. Im stuck I what i really wanna do with this car. Guess i will what to hear back with the ridiculous price he is gonna quote me, keep you all posted!

 

factory replacements have blue painted bolts.

 

I had to bring my 03 TL-s into the dealer today since the trans was slipping b/w 2nd and 3rd gear, and the d5 light no longer came on.

I found out that my car already had a new transmission put in around Sept. 2005.

American Honda agreed to goodwill 80% of the cost of a new trans, leaving me with a bill of ~$900.

At first, it seemed like a great deal, but now Im reading these reports of replaced transmissions failing...
Did Acura not fix the issue with the transmission? The dealer said the new one that will be put in has new internal parts and isnt likely to fail like the original.
I bought the car with ~67k about 2 yrs ago, and it now has 87k.

on top of the transmission issue, they told me my ABS system is broken, and that I would need a new ABS modulator, which they quoted at about 2k in parts, and 2k in labor.
ugh, what to do...
I also have new front brake rotors that I am waiting to get installed..maybe that will compensate for the lack of ABS?

 

Even though we have no official statement from Honda, it is believed that the last design/parts update was made in Feb 2005. It supposed to be more reliable than previous transmissions, but as you can see your supposedly "redesigned" transmission also failed. I have seen on this board about a dozen failures of post 2005 transmissions. Your dealer is correct, the remanufactured transmission is really an old transmission with all soft internal parts replaced and all hard parts inspected... but it will still be pretty much the same thing they installed in 2005.
This sucks, I might consider selling my car before my transmission goes out again.

 

Sorry to hear about your trans Andrew, sux! I have no idea what a new ABS system costs but i do have a few friends that work at dealerships. I hear storys from them all the time. Sometimes in your case they take care of you on goodwill crap but then try to make that money back on another repair.

At times they will refuse to do the original repair unless you do the other repair saying its a safety issue. Im in no way saying thats the case but iv heard far to many stealer ship stories in my time. I even had a buddy who was the head service advisor at Ford who quit because he got tired of having to lie to customers on a daily basis on just about everything like repairs that weren't even a problem.

Anyways, i got my 3rd tranny replaced under warranty years ago and the manager stated the problem has been fixed and it should not prematurely fail, WRONG. The first two trannys both went out at around 35-40k miles, the 3rd one just failed at 75k. The updated trans did last twice as long as the other two but come on.

Rep at Acura just called me back with an estimate to fix the tranny. I told him let me hold breath while you tell me this ridiculous number, $3500 for parts and labor and comes with a 3 year 36k warranty. He kept pressuring me to make an appointment to get the work done even though I explained i dont have that kinda money right now. Asked him if there was anything he could do to reduce the cost but no dice.

Should i give up, call another local dealer, do a honda oddy tranny swap or call Acura HQ and try my luck?

 

Was last one installed after 2005 feb? yeah, they made them a bit more realiable... because at some point they were dropping like flies, but its still crap...

 

what is wrong with your modulator? is it leaking? if it is get the kit and re seal it yourself for cheap. My trans was replaced in November 08 and here we are 24K miles later and it's toast

 

I think in your case it was defective from the start if you experienced problems 8K miles later (like a bad rebuild). I know its impossible to prove to Acura, they will only replace when its totally toast.
I'd expect it to last on average 60-70K miles at least.

 

Yes it was, I believe it was the end of 05 or early 06. I asked the manager, are these trans better cause this is starting to get old. He assured me the problem was fixed and all the trans in 05 and beyond are the updated versions. When i asked what exactly did they change and why are my trans going out at an alarming rate. He couldn't give me a clear cut answer and could tell he was lying through his teeth.

 

dont think he is lying. Service advisers don't know much, the best information they get is rumors (reading this blog?) or something they overhear from corporate and what not. Remember that dealers don't open transmissions, they are just trained monkeys that remove old tranny and put a new one they get from their Honda supplier. they probably get the same story you get from 800 number. When my tranny got replaced, I kept asking over 800 number if the new one is improved, you know what they told me "no, its exactly the same as the old one". I was like WTF?! what a nice way to encourage a customer dealing with a major power train failure. so this business of "2005 feb is better" is nothing official, for all I know it all could be a big lie... had Honda really made some significant improvements in 2005, I am sure 800 number and dealers would start bragging about it, but they don't, so I smell something fishy...