I own an Acura TL 2007 Base.
Currently at 58K miles. Got this car used around 35K.
I currently perform my own cabin filter, air filter, and oil/oil filter changes, mainly because they are simple changes. I've also done the brake fluid flush every 3 years.
Have any of you guys ever had the MID pop up regarding anything related to transmission fluid prior to 60K? Should I buy into the hype of the 60K service plan offered by the Acura dealer?

 

to provide some clarity on the type of driving...
80% of the miles are highway. 20% of them are local roads/stop and goes.. and going from coastal to 100 miles in-land...

 

If the MID is telling you it's time for the tranny fluid change, I'd get it done. As far the service contract.....hmmm. You can probably do the fluid change yourself.

 

there has been a debate of when to change the transmission fluid-some do it every 30k miles while others wait until the MM shows the code. My tsx is MT and code 3 for transmission fluid change showed up for the 1st time at 126k miles. since i had it changed at 110k miles it was not needed again.

 

My MID hasn't informed me about any transmission changes. I've just been getting the maintenance callouts for the filter and oil changes.
Note: I bought the car at 35K from private party.

 

When does it say to change the transmission fluid in the owners manual?

 

Well that's a good question. Manual says to do a drain and fill when the MID says to do so. The question is, I got the car after 35K. I don't know what the MID said prior to 35K. So under the worse case scenario (besides the engine being a bad engine from day 1), would the MID ever mention any transmission fluid change prior to 35K?

 

Why was the engine bad from day 1?

 

do not worry the code (3) did not appear in that 35k miles. The first time others reported 60k and over. when they do the change at 30k they are not following the mm..

 

If your even remotely worried about the trans fluid, just do a single drain & fill. You only need 4 qts (You can only buy the new Honda ATF DW-1 now) and a drain plug crush washer. Usually they give you a crush washer if you buy the fluid at the dealer.

The real question is......What is the "60k service plan" the dealer is trying to sell you? There is no such thing as a 60k service plan according to the engineers that designed the car. First major service is 105k miles.

 

Welcome to AZ.

The Trans fluid code on my TL's Maintenance Minder didn't come on until 60K+ miles.
I had a 1 X 3 done @ 30K miles, in an excess of caution.

 

I would do it early for some peace of mind...especially if you do a lot of stop and go driving. My dealer charges a reasonable 75 dollars for a drain and refill. Very reasonable for a wear and tear component of the car.

 

The 60K plan costs 450$.
Fluid top off
Inspect entire system: belts, hoses, brakes, fluids, coolant system, exhaust system, fuel lines and connections
Rotate tires
replace oil filter and oil change.
replace cabin and air filters.

i asked how much would it cost if I remove oil change and all the filters.
They said 350$...

Dot. dot. dot.

 

^^that sounds an awful lot like a B12 service to me. and WAY overpriced.

A B service with tire rotation should not cost more than $180. your filters (air and cabin) at the dealer will cost $120 parts and labor. or $40 DIY.

your dealr is trying to rip you off. i'd find a different dealer. any Acura dealer offering a 60k mi service.... should know better. all newer Acura's since the mid 2000's have been using the MID for service reminders. my dealer NEVER offers mileage interval services. they offer coupons for maintenance service based on your MID. i have yet to see one for a TB though.

 

Ya I agree with above ...my car I just bought at 60k and had the "service" done before buying but didn't stop them from emailing me this morning saying I should schedule an appointment when I was just there last week for something unrelated and they said nothing then. I am going to wait for a light or a code to flash before I even consider it because after barely a month of owning there should be nothing needed that's my opinion

 

Are you a Do-it-yourself type of persone? If so, there is lots of writeups on this forum to show you how to change/fix things.

If not, you may consider contacting Honda if/when you get codes that appear on your dashboard. The car has a built in maintenece schedule.

If your worried about the transmission (like many of us are), then have the fluid changed as a precaution. That should be good enough.

 

Got hose replaced under warranty. Also did an oil change (very nice special). They serviced/inspected my car for free. <3

Quoted from Acura:

Services needed soon
Transmission Flush (trans fluid down 1 quart, fluid brown, flush needed): 210$
Power Steering Flush (perform PS fluid flush with hose replacement, near min levels): 120$
Brake pad + rotor: 450$
brake fluid flush: 70$

taxes and fees... total 920$

Is the PS flush needed? I thought we don't want to flush transmission?

 

power steering fluid and hoses cant be that expensive...

do you lack the tools to DIY?

brake pads and rotors can be done DIY cheaper than that (and i have brembos).

3x3 tranny fluid change would also save you some $$ there.

this might be cliche, but if I can do it, you can do it if given the proper tools. I'm not crazy technical.

 

I would find out EXACTLY what the trans flush is. Honda (not the dealer, but Honda engineers) literally says NEVER to do a power flush of the transmission. They only recommend doing a drain & fill three times in a row with a short drive between each fluid change. This is the best way to get most of the old fluid out. You need about 10 to 12 qts of fluid so that's about $80 right there.

The dealerships rarely know what Honda actually recommends because they are only trying to sell you parts and services.

PS doesn't get a flush. They just let it pump all the old fluid out, and then they refill it. It's a pretty simple process. May as well do it if they need to replace a hose anyways.

 

I agree with the trans flush. I've checked the trans flush myself, it's not brown, still reddish. Probably need to fill it up (missing that 1 quart). Regardless, the price is on the high end for the trans flush.

For the PS flush, they already replaced the hose. They also added some fluid, but they recommend a flush.. not sure why.

In terms of lacking the tools to DIY, it's more access to the place and not knowing exactly what to do... and what not to do. That's why for the brakes, I'm not going to mess with it.

 

the dealer I go to recommends a PS fluid change only if the fluid is contaminated. I did have the PS recall done where they added fluid but never a change. I have never paid over $100.00 for the oil/filter change, tire rotation/balance and the multi-point inspection.

 

change the PS fluid ONLY if it's contaminated/dirty. or your steering doesn't feel right. otherwise not really needed.