Hello All!
I've met someone who is selling their 2008 Acura TL Type S. It's one owner, 203K miles and has even done all of the service at his local Acura dealer. Including the water pump and timing belt. I'm only looking at this as a fun car, not a replacement for my RDX. I've always wanted a Type S in blue and he was willing to go way further done in price than what KBB or Edmunds says. Any suggestions? Should I just avoid this since it does have 203K miles or just take the chance for a fun car? The Acura dealer near him is going to do a full inspection, so assuming it all goes well I'll plan to get it.
Thanks for any tips or suggestions.

 

you didn't mention the price....that's a big part of "is it worth it?"

anyways; why are you scared of high mileage...if you say it has been taken care of at acura dealerships and it's getting an inspection to find out what's wrong with it, why are you scared????
Assuming anything that was broken, the dealership fixed...and assuming the inspection comes back clean, the car will go for another 203k miles... why are you scared? possibly because the price is high?

 

hard pass...

and please send me the details for the car...

 

I was going to say that, but I already have a blue one.

 

The reason I’m nervous is that I've always been trained to think 200,000 is approaching the end of a car’s life. I owned a 2006 TL and it got to 160K miles and everything ran great but small things would start to break. Part of that is just age, and out of your control.

I was able to get him down to $6,000. It’s in blue which is the color I’ve always wanted and would only get. I’m assuming you all think this would be a great deal since it’s one owner and been maintained.

 

cars are machines. machines have moving parts. moving parts break.
so, yes...older cars will break more often. especially since it's way out of warranty and one simply cant get the parts or labor warrantied.
however, if you know this going in...and have the funds to take care of any problem that arises.... and know how to fix or know a mechanic that knows how to fix...
then it shouldnt be a problem.

Cars do not just die at a certain mileage.

right now, the used car market is absolutely insane... I wouldn't say that $6 is a GREAT deal. more like that's what the TL's are going for right now...
on paper; the TL's arent worth that much being a 12-15 year old car...but in today's market; people are making out like bandits....and buyers are paying what they are paying..

so, if you have the $6k and dont mind maintaining a vehicle over the years, then sure...grab it! especially since you said it's not a daily...meaning you wont put miles on it and it wont break as often because you're not putting miles on it.

 

6K sounds like a deal for a one owner well maintained color you want ..................these dayzzzzzzz

 

Yeah, the car market is wild. Because this is more of a "fun" car, I'm in no hurry. I guess I was hoping to find one with 120-140K miles, but I do feel better that it's one owner and he's taken care of it.

 

I wouldn't pay 6k for that personally. Hell I wouldn't pay 6k for anything with over 200k on the clock that isn't a diesel

 

$6K wouldn't TOUCH either of mine with 230K on the clock.

You're gonna shell out a few grand more for lower mileage one that may not even have the 'pride of ownership' that many 200K-mile TLSs have.

You'd be cray not to do it!

 

OP how well you are with wrenching on your own car? 200k miles is not alot but be ready to replace wear and tear item do to age. Especially the suspension component probably need to be replace at this point, bushings most likely rotten do to age if they are still original.

 

or just take it to a competent mechanic and have him replace all the rubber bushings.

i'm assuming because it's a fun car, you have fun car money. meaning you got the $6k in cash and can afford the ~$1k or less a year in maintenance.

it's just like house maintenance. when the wooden front fascia boards start to rot, one has to replace the wood. or if plumping springs a leak. or if the A/C unit dies.
one has to shell out the money to fix these items.

same thing with the car. when something breaks or wears out, one has to shell out the money to fix said item.
I would have no problem buying the 203k mile TL given it was in great condition to start.
at $6k tho; it's a little expensive because of the given market.. but if you have the $6k and want a fun car, then you gotta pay whatever it takes to get said fun car.

on paper, these are less than $5k cars. so, sellers are really making out. there's one for sale here on acurazine for $9k, which I think the seller is crazy. no one aint paying that
just gotta figure out what is more important to you, a fun car....or saving that $6k + ~1k/year maintenance + fuel + insurance.

 

holy fuckin shit, this dude crazy as well

https://acurazine.com/forums/market/995675

$14k for 13 year old car. Nutz

on paper; a 13 year old car should not be priced this high...but obviously with the crazy car market, the gentleman thinks he can command that much.

 

I appreciate your feedback.

These are all good points. I know before the market went crazy, most we're still going around $9-11,000. Which, my budget was for $10,000 but I was also thinking I'd get one with relatively low miles. It is wild seeing some that have 50K miles going for $17-20K. I couldn't ever justify spending that on a used car that's 13-14 years old. When I look at a lot of them at dealerships, even if they're in the price range and have lower miles, most still need the timing belt replaced meaning I'd buy it and then have to drop the time and money to get that done.

The biggest perk for this one for me is that he's really documented everything, got the timing belt and water pump replaced within the last year and when it hit 100K miles. He also showed me what damage it had and how it came to be (not accident's, it's accident free).

 

A friend of mine always says, "Askin' ain't getin'..."

 

I was recently offered $5,000 for mine, and I've got 346K! I guess the 6MT's really are worth their weight in gold.
.

 

And it's an automatic. I assumed that it was a manual based off of the asking price.

 

The high mileage wouldn't bother me if it's been taken care of, however I would feel much more confident going in if I could turn a wrench. Small things can and will break at that mileage, and the ability to make even the occasional repair yourself will be valuable.

 

The Acura dealer will be hopefully inspecting today. Hopefully the results are good, but if not obviously willing to walk away.

 

I would not be concerned about the Automatic in an 08. the fact that it has been well maintained by a single responsible owner is huge in this market. I am sure you have seen the other 200K options that have been thru multiple people modding poorly and not maintaining. These are the types of cars to look for. It is up to you how much your willing to pay, but these examples are few and far between.

 

Pretty much this, things will break and mechanics are expensive.

Wow, I'm lucky to have snagged mine fall 19 just before covid. I hardly paid 3000 with 190k on it. I plan on 300k+ as well.

 

car prices are rising, honda and other auto makers have cut production. Less supply of new cars means less supply of used cars. Prices have gone up a lot....

A crashed TL-S in black sold for 5K with around 150K miles a while back. Same car recently sold for over 7K....

 

Yeah, it's getting wild. And like I mentioned before, this is purely a fun car and not meant to replace my RDX as my "daily" car. I don't mind waiting. I saw a blue one a month or two ago posted for $15K that had been in an accident, and had 130K plus miles. It looked great, but there is no way in any universe I'd ever consider that.

 

waiting? for this car to be gone, orfor the price to go up?

 

I just picked up a 2008 Acura TL (no NAV) with 152K miles. It was maintained at the Acura dealer all its life, bought and sold to the same dealer where I bought it from. Carfax and some dealer records (which they shared when asked) showed timing belt, oil changes, water pump, new battery a few months ago, suspension related items like control arms, etc. all being maintained and replaced as needed. I paid $8K including TTL. I would have never paid that pre-COVID and this was replacing an RL (2006) with 135K miles which was totaled due to a storm (tree fell on it). I ended up getting $6K from insurance (decent enough but I wish it was more). Luckily, no one was hurt and that's what matters.

It needs a rim straightened out ($100).
One of the rearcalipers is stuck and I am too lazy to do the brake job so the rears will be done with a caliper rebuilt or replaced.
There's a small leak just above the oil pan, cleaned it up as it was hard to see exactly where it was coming from. Will reassess in a few days.
Door cylinder was stuck, a couple of squirts of WD-40 cured that problem.
Replaced struts on the hood.
Other than that, it runs like a Ford with 30K miles on it, i.e. an occasional rattle or two.
Budget is another $1K to sort out these issues and I believe this will be a reliable car.
I priced many in the Chicago area and found a lot of deals around $5500 to $6500 (plus TTL) but no records, accidents, rebuilt titles and dealers that wanted to just flip these cars.
Love Acuras and $6K is a great deal considering you won't pay the dreaded tax (in IL it's 8.25%) if Private party. Good luck in your decision.

 

Thanks!
I actually just moved out of Illinois, near the Charleston area. The taxes in Illinois were terrible!

 

Waiting meaning that I don't need a new car ASAP. I wouldn't personally buy a car that's been in an accident or had one reported on CarFax.

 

Just went for $8400, 188K KBP Type S with mods:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/19432322580...53.m1438.l2649

 

I passed on a couple of Type S 6MTs because I thought prices would keep falling, and I was not in a hurry.

 

don't let the Carfax accident scare you, I would buy one in a good condition that has accident history in a heart beat. Ironically mine red TL was clean carfax report until a few years ago where it report an accident prior to my ownership. Does mean its bad? no it drive like a new car.

As far as sleep on the Type S MT for the price drop, sorry but the drop has been hit the valley around 2018 - 2019. From now on its gonna be increase in price for the clean examples, part thanks to the new Type S short deliver in term of driving dynamic.

 

Being a Type S trim, that car has been driven the hell out of. I wouldn't touch it at 6k but it's your money.

 

I'd agree if it was a clapped out Type S, but OP says the owner has the paperwork to show it's been taken care of.

 

For anyone who is following along, the Acura dealer called me and went over the inspection. I asked about the common issues i.e. engine mounts, suspension (front lower control arm bushings) etc.

They thought it looked like it was in great shape. No issues with the engine, transmission, brakes, tires or other parts. He did say it has a small leak in the power steering, but he walked me through on how I would know when I need to do that service but he didn't think it's anything I need to do ASAP. I asked him if he would trust it driving it thousand mile road trip, and he said he didn't have any concerns that would leave me standard. Obviously he doesn't know for sure, but he said it seemed like it was well taken care of.

I also asked him what he thought for the mileage and this model, and he said he wouldn't have any major concerns since all of the major service had been done through this Acura dealership service office. Looks like I may be picking up a second Acura after all! I'll keep you all posted.

 

Just a fyi, if it is the steering rack that is leaking, it isn’t a particuarly cheap or easy part to replace. Mines been leaking since I got the car, Ive been topping up the fluid every couple weeks. Really need to replace it but I’m pretty sure the subframe has to be dropped so Ive been trying to put it off as long as i can. I looked into a rebuild/seal replacement but IIRC I didnt find much/ it didnt seem practical and most people just replaced the whole unit.

 

great on the update, what people kill me most is the idea of long road trip, "If i can go x,000 miles" let say avg 70 mph on the highway the engine living a much happier life than NYC or Chicago rush hour. As far as the PS leak I am assuming it leak either from the pump and/or by the reservoir?

 

Thanks for the heads up! I'll have to look at my notes from when he told me, but he said for them to do that service was $341. Which, I'm sure my local mechanic who's familiar with Acura's could do it cheaper but it was still obviously good to know.

 

No kidding. This will not be a rush hour car. That's what my RDX is for! And I'll have to look at my notes, I don't remember off the top of my head but I think it's from the reservoir since the pump was recently replaced.

 

Well... for anyone who is wondering. I got it! Thanks for all of the help!

I've always, always loved this blue.

 

[QUOTE=AcuraTypeSFan;16758012]Well... for anyone who is wondering. I got it! Thanks for all of the help!

I've always, always loved this blue.
[/QOTE]

Congrats! Get some pictures of it in sunlight. KBP is stunning.

 

I will! It really is. My favorite color.