Hello, my last Acura just crapped out, and I am trying not to run into a similar situation again. How can I verify the car I buy has a healthy transmission?
1: Should you be able to feel when the car shifts? My friend's Acura has no movement when shifting (unless you floor it), and the cars I have been looking at often have a slight feeling when upshifting, not quite a jerk, but you can feel it shifting and engaging the next gear.
2: Given how old these cars are, is it okay to see a bit of dark material in the fluid, if it mostly looks reddish-orange and not dark, or is that a sign the transmission is failing?
3: Is slight whining a sign of a serious issue, or just a quirk with these transmissions? I'm also trying to make sure I'm not just confusing it with engine noise.
Sorry if these sound like stupid questions, I'm trying to make sure I'm not being overly paranoid and ruling out perfectly fine cars. I'm shopping in the problem years (04-06) so I know it's very important to inspect the health of the transmission before buying to make sure it lasts a while into the future. Thank you.

 

Why not shopping for 07-08?
07-08 are almost bugs free.

 

My personal experience:..
1) You should feel the trans shifting. Firm shifts are a good thing and replacing the shift solenoids likely prevents failure. If the clutch packs are already on their way out changing the solenoids will not help.
2) If the fluid has been changed regularly you should not see any dark material/fluid.
3) When mine was failing it whined. After a rebuild it does not.

 

I like how the older ones look plus the 07 and 08 are out of my budget

 

Okay, thank you. If the owner has not changed the trans fluid, should I avoid that car altogether, or is it okay if the fluid looks good (orangey color)?

 

Gotta be honest, if like an extra $2,000 is out of your budget, you should look at civics or something lower maintenance and/or cheaper.

These car requires maintenance, more expensive than a civic, which can add up if you don't do your own work, and it also requires premium gas.

 

True, maybe I should consider civics. I just like how nice the TLs look and feel plus a civic would be kind of underpowered.

 

trans fluid should be red not orange.

 

My 06 TL is in great shape but is still a money pit because things get old.

 

First thing to do is check the fluid color, but also, give the trans dipstick a 'sniff' from a few inches from your nose. It should be a pinkish-red under normal service intervals. If it smells burnt or like a fire pit, it at minimum needs to serviced. If its black or cloudy with particulates, run for the hills.
When driving, make sure the shifts are direct & there are no 'flares' between gears. I like to use manual mode when test driving, and try to up-shift both under low load & under wide open throttle to see if it slips or flares like previously mentioned.

Most any car that's 10+ years old will need maintenance, because 99% of owners just do the absolute bare minimum, or less than that. After owning two Infiniti G35's, believe me, the TL's maintenance cost & ease of doing so is much easier/cheaper, and on that.

A Civic will certainly be cheaper than a TL to maintain, BUT, that's more on what you as a vehicle owner are willing to spend on a used car than anything else. In my opinion, I think you will have a very hard time finding a clean civic vs a clean TL