georgeny

I am new to both Acura and Roadside Assistance, however, a friend just had occassion to call Acura Roadside Assistance and he has absolutely NOTHING
GOOD to say about them. I was considering finally getting AAA even though I always drive a car under three years old. Just because I am at that point I would not be happy about changing a tire in the snow on some highway at 2 am and because friends that are AAA members usually rave about them. When I got the 04 TL with Roadside I figured save a couple of pennies not joining AAA
but now may rethink that.

Friends interaction with Acura Roadside Assistance:

Couple of weeks ago, Putnam County NY, Cold Spring NY. Driving his 03 TL, 18,000 miles on odometer, transmission failed. Felt like had come out of gear, vehicle would barely move. Many know that previous years transmissions
have been of concern, hoping personally that 04 has corrected the problem.

7 PM on a Friday, calls 1-800 for Acura Roadside. Advised that shows no tow service listed in that area. Will be happy to dispatch local Cold Spring Police to Assist. ( Hell can call cops himself ) Okay, this is not farmland!
Not top of some mountain! He is 20 miles from his Acura dealer, Heart Acura Poughkeepsie. Maybe 40 miles from my Acura dealer Curry Acura Scarsdale. I point that out because TWO Acura dealers not all that far away. Although
Putnam County is for most part bedroom county his location is well within reasonable distance of several major metro size areas. I can't believe they have no contract for tow. Certainly his Dealer 20 miles away from where he
is stuck should have either thier own flatbed or a local contract I would think. Calls his dealer HEART Acura and is advised that only sales on site at 7 pm and can't help him accept graciously agree to wait for him to arrive
so they can issue a loaner car. He managed to pray the car into his dealership slowly but surely and did get crap loaner. Told to come back Monday and he could get Rent a Car.

So Much for ACURA ROADSIDE in this case. He has already sworn off Acura and is getting a second Lexus in place of his TL.

This is only one case but one I knew about recently. I too would be interested in anyone else that has had occassion to use Acura Roadside Assistance. It was given good play by my dealer during purchase and I would like to know also if I should consider it BS sales tool and go ahead and
join AAA.

George in NY

narnia

Don't have any experience with Acura's roadside service, but I decided to keep my AAA membership when I bought my TL. I've always had positive experiences with AAA, and it's not expensive, so the peace of mind makes it worth having.

I drive new cars too, but you can always run over something and get a flat, etc. so I've always had AAA.

soljc

I, too, kept AAA when I bought my TL.

roadman

Remember that AAA belongs to the driver, not a specific car.

There are many other AAA denefits as well, we worth the $45/yr

UminChu

I've never heard any ARA horror stories like you've just posted, but I had AAA before buying my first Acura, and I kept it to cover my other cars. I'd thought about allowing it to lapse for the TL; maybe I need to rethink that (or at least ask around).

mobilezen

In Texas, we have Texas Patrol...our tax dollars pay for that. So I never used Honda Roadside Assistance all 5 years of owning my Accord.

TLGator

I have AAA also, and have never used it for roadside assistance. Nor have I ever needed Acura's service. But I'd like to think that, by having both, I'm increasing my chances of getting someone to help me if/when I really need it.

jshih57

Never had AAA, could've used it a couple times when we used to have older cars. Now we have 3 Acura & 1 Honda, I think the cheaper &/or older models do not come with roadside assistance, maybe an option?

Anyway, I used roadside assistance last Nov, was in NC on business, my 03 TL-S was struck in the rear & totalled while pulled over for a prior accident. I called roadside assistance, after providing the details, the tow-truck came within 15 min, that was not bad consider there were heavy traffic (people stop to look at the accidents), realized my car couldn't be towed (broken rear axel, wheel flew off), called for a flatbed truck which also arrived within 15 min. They transported my car & me to City Chevrolet, I guess the nearest repairshop on there list. The transport charge was paid by Acura Roadside Assistance. They offered to pay for hotel if needed, but I rented a car to go back. Normally, if you have full coverage for your car, which I believe all of us do for the 04, the insurance will pay for the towing/rental/hotel anyway. So I'd say if the car is new, there is overlap in coverage; but as the car get's older & we drop comprehensive coverage, the Roadside assistance which is valid for the life of the car, comes in handy. As for the other stuff, AAA offers similar deals & probably more, but I can't see the justification for additional fee.

Side note: 03 TL NAVI has Onstar (no more in 04), which was helpful in the accident. They called the car seconds after the collision, they already know the location (thru satellite tracking), asked if any assistance is needed. They called the police & sent an ambulance & tow truck for the other driver/car. I have since bought the 04 TL to replace the 03 TL-S, I kind of miss the onstar, among several other things. Also, I purchased lojack (additional cost) for the 04, because it does not have the satellite tracking by onstar in case the car is stolen.

VTEC=happiness

TLC sucks....took over an hour the one time I called...after waiting an hour, I called my AAA who got there 5 minutes before the TLC guy. TLC contracts out to some random tow compaines that due a shi**y job

Modeler

Since I've started buying Honda and Acura new cars 6 years ago I have NEVER EVER had a need for roadside assistance. The only time I had a trouble on the road was a flat tire, which I quickly changed myself.

1violinist

I've been a member of AAA for 5 years now and I'm extremely pleased with the service. Here are some of the benefits:

1) I get roadside assistance for ANY car I drive, even if it's not mine
2) I get good discount on my automobile and other insurance policies
3) I do all my DMV transactions thru AAA comfortably without standing in DMV lines
4) I get travel agent services and free road maps wherever I travel in north america
5) I get "Westways" and many informative publications
6) I get discounts at many businesses and auto shows

All for $44 a year! What else could you ask for?!

Modeler

Well, I would ask for some benefits that would actually be worth having! I haven't met anyone in several years who still gets AAA triptix maps, because it's much easier to get information on the Internet. AAA sponsored insurance policies are a REALLY big ripoff, but it does give lazy people a warm and fuzzy feeling that they got a "discount". And I've never been in a situation where a better than AAA discount wasn't available for hotels, parks, shows, etc.

neuronbob

I've been a member of AAA since 1990 and will always be a member because nothing beats the level of saturation for tows. End of story. TLC is a nice marketing tool but it's clearly not enough for me to give up AAA.

Besides, that AAA discount on hotel rooms is too much for me to give up.

jshih57

Please tell me what % discount you get on hotels? Compared to the regular price or online discounts? I found online booking thru such sites as hotels.com etc (a bunch avail in mapquest.com, yahoo travel etc) gives tou about 25% discounts, depend on the hotel, as compared to the rates on the hotel's own website.

Also, 1violinist, what kind of discount do you get thru AAA on insurance?
Thanks.

lindros2

i found that AAA also gives great Hertz rental discounts. Thing is they've never checked my card. When you book use CDP (Corporate Discount Plan) number 00022

neuronbob

Depends on the hotel and time of year. 10-25% is typical.

danno

As for AAA, they suck, when you break down. Happened twice with another car I had. Waited over 2 hrs. On a major hwy. Had to keep calling them one time because they changed shifts, and the last operator didn`t notify the next person coming on! :banghead:

Mrike

I had AAA for one year. The only time I needed them was on a Saturday traveling on a major interstate through TN. on a very long trip. I called and they didn't have any member garages within 100 miles. Told me they could not do anything for me. Useless!

I did not renew.

neuronbob

Here in Ohio AAA has very good coverage. I've needed tows in the city and country and they've routinely gotten to me within an hour.

Norse396

I've had to use them twice for my wifes RSX, the first time they were great, the second time it took them 12 hours to pick up the car because of some office screw up.

The experience will depend on who they have contracts with in your area, in my area they are batting 500 right now so aren't doing as well as I would have thought they would considering it is Acura paying the tab.

scottt

I used TLC once for my '95 Legend LS Coupe (found the hard way that "E" really means empty in that car).

Time from call until I was back on the road, 41 mins.

Worked great for me.

georgeny

Judging from answer here and on newsgroups it pays to have BOTH for added coverage. Thank yo for all the replys and valid expierences.

George in NY

caball88

kept my AAA, been a member for 2 years now and they are great. the longest i waited was about 45mins because i was upstate in a rural area. also when i am not driving my TL i can still use AAA when i have a problem.

rajenmelwani

Called TLC last night & they were very polite / helpful. Furthermore their automated call to let u know when help will be arriving was very helpful. The truck did not show up on time, they called me & put me thru the towing company in minutes.

AAA sucks, too many members & too little service. Carry it just in case. Had it for over 6 years now, used it twice. just my 2 bits

bluenoise

Years back, I used my AAA membership to get a tow, but it took more than an hour for the truck to arrive. I recently signed up again, though, but not for the roadside assistance aspect. By being a AAA member, I got $180 off the price of my home security system and I save $60/year on monitoring costs. The magazine I get is a nice perk as are some of the other discounts, when I remember to use them.

If I need their roadside assistance, I'll give them a call.

rets

AAA to me is only for the trip guidebooks and maps... IMO.



Edit: Plus, the hotel discount when traveling... good point, neuronbob.

neuronbob

I don't use AAA maps so much anymore when I travel, since I have a navigational system in the car.

Have I told you how much I like my navi?

Even if you don't like AAA service, the hotel discount alone makes membership worth the money.

Slinks

Just a note: acura roadside assistance towing is only free if the car broke down because of a warranty issue. ie: if your tire goes flat and your on one of those many highways thats too risky to stand on the side and change the tire yourself, roadside assistance towing won't be free.

vp911

Acura Roadside sucks - I had to wait in Gary IN for 6+ hours to get a tow truck for the TSX when the dealer left the radiator cap loose and the engine overheated.

jdone

I agree with Bob. Interestingly enough, in our area, my Lexus roadside assistance is actually AAA.!!

MR1

TLC was not a consideration for me in purchasing my TL or my MDX.
I've had AAA for a very long time partially because it's required for their insurance coverage which I am also very happy with.

I was raised in Chicago and know from experience that none of the emergency road services are worth crap in bad conditions. Times like when your car won't start cause it's zero ouside @ 7AM and you have to go to work. You and half the people in the area are calling and it might be hours before they show up. Same when it's raining and cars are being towed from accidents.

Rarely are any of the contract service people just sitting waiting for us to call. It's for emergeny service only and there might be a wait involved. They get a flat rate per call and can only take them one at a time. They don't work for Acura, Lexus, the dealer or me.

Take the service for what it is. That said, AAA does have more contract people than most others most places.