ask trans shops about rebuilt TC

 

I recently purchased a 2001 Acura TL with 109,500 miles. Love the car but recently read about the reputed tranny failures. Now I find myself over-listening and being hyper-sensitive to the gear shifts. The only thing I can detect is a slight whining in 1st gear. I hope it's not a sign of future tranny problems. I'm new to AcuraZine. This is my first posting. Not even sure I'm doing it right. I look forward to sharing my experiences with my TL. I've had sports cars in the past but the TL ride beats them all.

 

Forgot to mention I also read that Honda extended their tranny guarantee to 109,000 miles so my vehicle is no longer covered. Hopefully that won't be an issue.

 

did you purchase it from the dealer? If so it might come with some basic warranty for a year or so, but if not it WILL be an issue. Acura nowadays does not give many free trannies.

 

It's possible that you're covered mileage-wise up to 113.5K, but you're long overdue time-wise (which was 93 months since original purchase date).

Anything you get from Honda will be via Goodwill. Customer history plays a huge deal in how much Goodwill (if any) you'll get. May be a good time to start visiting Acura dealerships for service to build that relationship (if one doesn't exist already).

I personally tried and failed and Honda/Acura permanently lost a customer, but if it works for you, more power to you.

 

yeah, but for 2001 chances of getting anything for free are very slim regardless of history and relationship with the dealer. ... Honda is tightening the belt on any *free* stuff on cars that are 10 years old. Its worth trying, but I would be really surprised if you get much, they might throw you some pathetic 10% or something. In which case you just take it to reputable re-builder.

 

Agreed. Honda offered me nothing, after this was the second TL I've owned and had somewhat of a relationship with their dealerships.

That's why I'm car shopping....rebuild warranty almost up and don't wanna have doubts that the tranny will last (because it won't!)....And the fact that I'm anti-Honda now, haha.

 

well, sh*t happens and all manufactures make mistakes and I accept that. I also understand from their point of view that they need to draw a line at some point and stop giving free stuff. However, what makes me upset about Acura that they never redesigned this junk transmission to be up to the standards of reliability you would expect from Honda. You go to the dealer, they tell you to pay $4K and they install same piece of crap? this just makes no sense. I would look for reputable tranny re-builder shop that did rebuilds for TL/CL. I am sure by this time many shops have done dozens of these trannies, so it should be straight forward for them. Just dont go to AAMCO.

 

Yeah, I share the same sentiment. Problem with going to an independent shop for a rebuild is you're still getting the same junk but at a lower price. It's like reinstalling Windows on a physically defective hard drive. Just buys you time.

 

so, is this pretty much bound to happen? or do some of us get lucky

 

first look at your trans for blue painted bolt heads on trans- thats a warranty replacement unit!!
now see if the external oil jet kit is missing,,,that means post 2005 case with better design of oil passages
that helps but they still fail
simply not enough room inside to add more clutch plates--
and why would acura redesign an entire trans for a car that only sold four years?
lucky they got it mostly figured out by 2006 on gen3!!

whether yours last 80, 150 or 200 is an unknown
all you can do is replace fluid and change the external filter, clean the shifter selenoids
also send oil sample to a lab for analysis of whats in it? like shreds of clutch material

 

Hello, My name is Pat and I am an Alco... Oh shoot wrong Forum.

Guess all I can be at this point is positive.. Transmission is shot. Took to the dealer (Mile High Acura) yesterday and received a call today that the tranny needs replacing along with ECU..
READY FOR THE PRICE... $5200

The cars has 102,500 and its on its first tranny. The service writer said he knew it was a lot and immediately told me that he would write up a request for good will and will send it up the chain.

My dealer is also a Honda Dealer so they have all my services between Honda/Acura. So I am hoping to get some goodwill, I can only pray.

The kicker is, I've only had it for seven months of a three year loan.

Wish me luck

Pat

 

holy crap...i bought a used 03 tl last week at 105,300 miles....now 2 weeks later the tranny fails at 105,600 miles...any idea where i should get it fixed at a decent price? i am around sf bay area....

 

Pat, sorry to hear about your situation - but it's all too common around here. I just went through the same thing with my '03.

Do you know if your car was covered by the extended warranty? If so when did it end? Even if it wasn't you might still get something from Acura. I was almost 2 years out of the extended warranty (although well under the miles at 85500) and Acura goodwilled 30% so keep your fingers crossed. Dealer history is definitely a positive for you!

Good luck man and keep us updated - hopefully with the good news.

 

hamsup, sounds like someone sold you a car with a bandaid instead of a tranny - it was probably already on its way out and they pawned their problem off on you - any recourse there?

First thing to do is double check to make sure it's not covered under the extended warranty - 7 yrs. 9 mos. from original sale date and 109000 miles.

 

All 1999-2002 TL were covered. 2003 TL models with the last 8 of the VIN 3A000001 to 3A019558. My vin is 19uua5668a059370 so my 03 tl does not fall into the warrenty category....

I called my asshole dealer and he just said car is sold "AS IS"...such bs...paid 7000 and it breaks down after two weeks....

 

Usually there is a state law that required every manufacture authorized dealer to give 30 day basic warranty on major components. Look into that.

 

as is sticker in the window means just that
If you called sales of course they blew you off

Its time to call corp and tell them the situation, ask for a real acura manager to call you back 1 800 382 2238x5 gets a human-- need vin in hand
there is a `trans only` number too- search azine 2nd gen for that if needed

acura KNOWS there was not a fix at the vin cutoff- merely for court case.

Make sure to spell out you honda brand loyalty on other cars and use of honda dealership next door to the corp rep..
the first phone person is just that-dont take their NO as anything real
just give them the info and ask for a manager to call

never accept 5200 thats way way way above full retail price!!

trans shops will do it for 2500, acura will often meet that if not beat it for the right reasons

 

service writers are so full of $%it, Im surprised they dont wear wading boots (I was one)

they have nothing to do with getting goodwill..
but one thats trying hard for you as a valued long term customer will get your history and figure a reason for goodwill--
most dont,,, as they dont make commission on warranty--like they would on retail

its their manager that makes the phone call to regional rep- has authority to do what they want as a dealership if corp wont help--

if they sold you the car, a call to the general manager is in order
Or park in front of the sales lot with a sign on car--dead trans car for sale here!!! great deal!!

Call your tv station consumer helpline -point them here if more info on the problem is needed

 

Thanks for the comments.

I agree about the price being way above retail.. I will wait to see what Acura says.

So, question; if Acura agrees to goodwill, should I check with another dealer for a better quote on the repairs?

Pat

 

there is some law in NJ that has 14day or 30 days basic warranty if you purchase used car from authorized dealer and if car is not older that certain number of years. Not sure about your state, or if it applies. I am surprised you bought used car from acura dealer "as is", when you want to buy something "as is" you look for private seller.

 

They typically work with one dealer, usually specific dealer and corporate work out how much dealer gets paid, how much you pay, and how much corporate pays. See what offer you get from them, anything less than $1500 take it. But if they only give you pathetic 10% off, then go elsewhere.

 

I will do that!! I will let you know what deal they offer, if any.

Anyone knows of a good trans shop in Denver?

Pat

 

there are area/regional reps for acura,,one person will handle several dealers
If that rep is a pita who flat out says no help-
and you can find a different dealer with a different rep,,to try again
but thats unusual to need
corp is going to help you or its not

I would speak with the General Manager (often the owner) of the dealer,
let them in on whats happened to sour a used car sale--and put their dealership on discussion on acurazine.com,,,
that person talks to the service manager- who calls the regional rep and pleads your case
the SM does have influence with the corp rep- as they say if you have history and a good story

in this case- the dealer GM can be directly involved with the goodwill request

How is it possible their techs test drove a used car and approved it for sale,
and not notice the symptoms--- a trained person experienced with these trans failures knows how to spot and ck on test drive
600 miles and ptttt,,not good

 

Taking to dealership for the dreaded diagnostic test today - although I know what it will say. I have no customer history with the dealer - my only possible leverage is my immediate family ( brothers and sisters ) has 3 acuras and 12 hondas = 15. Some were bought at this dealership. Low mileage at 85k. Wish me luck

 

As much as I hate to have to post in this thread, here I am. 2002 TL-S transmission failure at 167k miles. I have a separate thread with more details about my situation here: https://acurazine.com/forums/2g-tl-problems-fixes-117/do-i-know-my-car-better-than-acura-tech-does-807019/

The summary is that I ended up getting a new tranny, front motor mount, and oil pressure sending unit for just under $3k from my Acura dealership, no corporate goodwill involved.

I wanted to post here for the people who look at this thread because they are considering buying a second generation TL. I was one of those people about a year and a half ago. And I could have used this advice:

Only buy it if:
a.) You have $3-$4k that you are totally willing to spend on it after the purchase.
b.) You don't mind tremendous stress and negotiation that drags on for 2 weeks
c.) You understand that, no matter what you do to try to avoid it, the odds are very high that your tranny will fail at some point.
d.) You understand that, no matter how much you fit the "goodwill" profile, Acura corporate will probably not help you and, if necessary, will make up reasons to not help you (that you will know are not true, based on the other goodwill reports you have read).

In my case, I had read this entire thread prior to purchase. So, I knew that the tranny had been replaced with a post-Feb-2005 "improved" case. I knew that the PCM was replaced at that time also. I test drove it hard to try to produce tranny problems, but it was just fine. I checked the fluid prior to purchase and the level/color/smell were good. The previous owner had all the maintenance done at Acura, including tranny fluid drain/fills (and I got all the service records printed out from the dealership). The previous owner had no problems with this tranny and wasn't even aware that there were widespread problems (in other words, he was not selling the car because of the tranny, like some people do). I brought the car to the Acura dealership for a pre-purchase inspection, particularly asking them to check the tranny. Thumbs up from them. 20k miles later, the tranny was dead.

In my case, I also had a lot of reasons to be hopeful for at least some goodwill. Certainly, I wasn't expecting the world, due to the car's high mileage, so I had some $ saved up just in case. However, this tranny only had 88k miles on it when it failed, so at least a small amount of assistance from Acura seemed reasonable. This is my fifth Acura (I've only owned Acuras). I plan(ned) to buy many more. I bought my previous Acura from this dealership and had maintenance done there. All 5 of my Acuras had most of their work done at Acura/Honda dealerships. I'm not a stranger to this particular dealership. Also, the original owner bought the TL from this dealership and he (and I) have had all of the maintenance done there. Shortly after purchasing the car, I had a tranny fluid drain/fill done there. In general, all the things I see people reporting that Acura looks for to goodwill I had: owned multiple Acuras, had relationship with the dealer, did proper tranny maintenance, etc. Didn't make any difference to Acura corp.

Luckily, it did with the service manager of the dealership and he did what he had to in order to keep a good customer that rates his service well. I was lucky that this SM was willing to take a hit on this. I'll keep bringing my car there for service. After the 36mo/36k mile warranty on this tranny is up, I'm not sure whether or not I'll be buying another Acura. This experience has really soured me on the brand. I'd been thinking I'd get a 2006 TL to avoid the tranny failure years, but now I'm seeing reports over on the gen 3 boards that those are failing. Guess I'll wait three years and see if, at that point, I trust Acura to make a reliable transmission.

 

I purchased a 2003 TL-s last August and have put about 10K mile since then. The transmission has blue bolt, but I dont know where to look for the oil jets. The transmission was replace at 47K miles. Also, Since I have pusrchased the car I have been doing ATF changes at the same interval as the oil, is this over kill?

 

blue bolts is a warranty unit
look on top of trans- there is either a large bolt with ATF stamped on it- post 05 unit
Or
there is a small oil line going to a fitting that drops into that same filler hole on top of trans,,thats the oil jet kit installed external on pre 05 replacement

the new case design it went internal,, and that has nothing to do with the clutch wearout

3 qts every 7500 miles wont hurt,,or yearly,every other oil change

some are having luck with different atf improving hard shifts and fixing or band-aiding our trans shudder shift

 

there is an external trans filter you can replace--thats a good plan
and cleaning the shift selenoids
see DIY section, 3rd thread down the gen2 master list

 

01tl4tl, I checked the transmission and is has a bolt stamped with ATF. I will look into the filter, and selenoid cleaning. Thanks.

 

01tl04tl, I found the filter replacement on the following thread, but could not find the link to the solenoids cleaning.

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...mission+filter

 

ck the diy thread list

 

It's not in there.




Try here: https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...olenoid&page=2

 

Hey Pat! Hopefully you've already received some good news from Mile High, but I just wanted to give you my . I went through the same thing a few years ago when my car was at around 123K. I had been taking my car to Go Honda in Westminster for all service (close to work) but when my transmission went out, they wouldn't work with me on it.

I ended up taking the car to Courtesy Acura in Littleton (along with 4 dozen Krispy Kreme ). After a day or two, they called me back & said they got Acura to cover 1/2 the costs. Overall, it cost me 1,653. They were very uh... Courteous too. I'd recommend them if Mile High doesn't do anything for you.

On another note, I've put ~31k miles on the new transmission. When would you guys suggest I get the first flush & fill on the trans fluid?

 

now would be a good time, then once a year do 3 qts

you know we dont `flush` right--just a manual drain and refill

 

Prinze,

Thanks for the advice.. I bought my first TL from them back in '03 and you are right they were Courteous with me back when I was looking to buy.

Back then, Kuni Lexus pissed me off when I was looking at a ES300. They would not give me a good deal and let me walk out screaming after 4 hours. I was so mad, I drove to Courtesy Acura and got a straight deal from them on my first TL.

I have not heard anything for Mile High yet. I feel I will jinks things if I do. Maybe tomorrow.. I don't know if no news is good news or what... we shall see.

Pat

 

On another note, I was quoted $2800 for a re-build at a local shop. NO ECU.

What is the feeling on that??

Pat

 

Warranty on the rebuild? Probably 12mo/12k at most, right? If you're keeping the car for a while I would definitely try to get the newer case (i.e. hold out for the replacement unit from Acura) and the 36mo/36k warranty.

Based on your previous post and my own personal experience I'm thinking you'll get down pretty close to that $2800 including the new ECU from the dealer. If they come back with something like 25-30% (30% is what I got last month - $3600 total out the door for tranny, ECU and front motor mount) and you really want to get it lower it won't hurt to keep fighting for more. If they really want to keep you as a customer you might get down to 50/50.

 

only certain VINs require the new ecu,,
there is a list-possibly at bottem of our diy list?

 

a few days of waiting means corp is talking about it
monday was a holiday
keep thinking positive about it