Assessing engine reliability for 2007 TL base model having 150K mileage

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Old Sep 22, 2013 | 01:37 PM
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Assessing engine reliability for 2007 TL base model having 150K mileage

I have bought a 2007 acura TL 3.2 Base model. It's a clean title but has a ~150K on it. Looking at this hooping mileage but private ownership, it feels like mostly these are highway miles. What is the engine reliability in terms of mileage? upto 200k/250k/300k??
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Old Sep 22, 2013 | 01:44 PM
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The engine will last a very very long time, it will probably outlive most everything else on the car.
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Old Sep 22, 2013 | 01:47 PM
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Assuming it has been maintained and you will do the same, you should be good for years to come.
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Old Sep 22, 2013 | 02:21 PM
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Should be fine if it was maintained properly! TB service completed?
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Old Sep 22, 2013 | 03:54 PM
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The upside of getting a car like this is that I would assume the price would be quite low. If it was properly maintained and is currently in decent shape with the 105K service done, it can easily go to 300K miles and beyond. In days past, buying a car like this was asking for trouble, but these days, that's not the case.
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Old Sep 22, 2013 | 04:06 PM
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If the car was maintain properly by the original owner you should be fine
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Old Sep 22, 2013 | 07:17 PM
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As others have said, the J series engine in these TL's are pretty bulletproof. I'd be considerably more concerned about the automatic transmission than the engine. However, there are still a few engine related items I'd check at that mileage:

Valves - Is there a significantly amount of clicking coming from the engine? If so, the valves may need to be adjusted. Normally the valves on this engine won't get out of lash enough to cause damage but it's still something to look for at that mileage.

Oil consumption - Start the car cold (after it's been sitting for 24 hours) and immediately head back to the exhaust to look for white/blue smoke. If you see any, your piston rings may be a bit worn, likely due to going too long between oil changes. This would freak me out a bit and probably be a deal killer since any piston ring wear from the lack of oil changes also means a lot of wear to bearings and other internal engine components. However, since you've already purchased it the most you can do is keep the oil clean at that point and probably use 5w-30 instead of 5w-20 to reduce the amount of oil making it past the rings.

Timing belt service - Like pohljm brought up, the timing belt service needed to be performed at 105K. If it's not done, it's not necessarily a bad thing for the engine, it just means you need to get it done ASAP at a cost of $600-$1400 depending on where you take it and what kind of deal you get. You probably should have asked the previous owner whether or not it's been done and request a receipt or service record if they say it's been done. But at this point, get it done if it hasn't already.
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Old Sep 22, 2013 | 07:47 PM
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Your TL's engine will last 1,000,000 +/- 1,000,000 miles!
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Old Sep 22, 2013 | 07:51 PM
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What does it matter anyway? Its around $600 to find the same motor so you could always swap it out if it dies.
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