Just picked up an 05 TL, new to the site
 

Whats up everyone, I got an 05 TL a week ago and Ive been checking out the site and it looks like theres a lot of good info on here. I traded in my 03 Silverado SS for this TL, and so far Im very happy with it, especially the gas mileage. The only things I dont like about it are that it looks like the front bumper might have been repainted, its got a few chips in it, theres no Nav and worst of all-- its an automatic... I wanted a 6-speed but I couldnt find one anywhere near me. Im stationed on Camp Lejeune in NC right now but Im from South Carolina originally.

Im not planning on dumping a whole lot of money into this car, mostly cause Im getting married next year and I need to save up. I like my cars to look good though so Im putting some 07 Type-S tails on it, I ordered some yellow 9006 bulbs for the fogs and I might do the reverse HID mod sometime soon. Ill get some wheels for it eventually but no time soon... I already installed my Escort SRX radar detector and lazer jammer- I hate driving without it.

Heres a coupe pics of it now:
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/j...8-04161629.jpg
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/j...8-04161647.jpg

I look forward to being a part of the site and learning as much as I can while im here. Thanks

Congrats!

Welcome aboard =)

Nice pick up!

there was a thread about HID back ups melting.
Might want to look into that.

Congrads on the new ride, and welcome to the AZ. check out the garage, there is a good right up for the reverse HID lights..

alright Ill look into that reverse lights thing. I had one question that Ive been researching- Im gonna do the 100K mile service soon (water pump, coolant, timing belt, t-stat...)- whats the best way to service the tranny? Mines got 92K miles on it now, is it bad to flush the tranny with a machine? Ive never done that to any of my cars cause I heard it stirs up all the old crap and deposits and messes up the valve body... When I change the fluid and filter which fluid is best to refill it with? Its 2.3qts right?

congrats and welcome to the zine!
the best way to service the tranny is to do a 3x3 change. this means that you dump three quarts and fill with three. then cycle through all the gears and do this three times. after that you should be good to go!

Never mind on the Reverse HID's.

I just read the entire thread, and the guy left them on intentionally.
Carry on.


here is the thread:
https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-problems-fixes-114/hid-reverse-melted-my-rear-plate-garnish-787414/

alright sound good- is there a drain plug on the trans pan or do I need to drop the whole pan? Should I replace the filter on the 3rd fluid change? Whats the best fluid? I was reading about the GM synchromesh is that good stuff??? Thanks

the syncromesh is only for manual trannies.

I would replace all fluids and filters if i were you. GM is MTF for manuals, I just put in Redline Type F ATF Fluid and I've been extremely happy with it.

Oh damn, I didnt even realize that about the synchromesh I should known from the name of it... I was reading a thread about the auto trannys, and I think Im gonna do the fluid change and put those 2 new fluid pressure sensors in soon.

:wave: Welcome and congrats! Also thank you for your service.

There is an Acurazine meet in Charlotte this Saturday! You should try to make it out there. Meet some of the local guys and get some ideas for your newly acquired TL! Here's a link:

https://acurazine.com/forums/southeast-318/%2A-official-acurazine-charlotte-n-c-surrounding-areas-end-summer-meet-%2A-784189/

Well I have some awesome news for you guys- I was driving down to Hilton Head friday on I-95 goin like 80 and my CEL, VSA and some other lights came on. I drove for like another mile trying to make it to an exit, but the trans started slipping and I just pulled over. When I stopped it was leaking trans fluid onto the exhaust so it was smoking bad. I could see fluid leaking under the car, but I couldnt tell from where. I bought it 2 weeks ago so I was still under the dealerships 1000 mile engine/trans warranty, so I got it towed to a shop and Ill find out whats goin on with it today. I hope they put in a new tranny, cause I dont know if it just started slipping cause it lost a bunch of fluid and lost pressure. I might have burnt up some clutch packs so I hope I get a new trans. Ill keep you all posted

Ouch! Tough way to start out in your new TL. Welcome to AZ :thumbsup:

Looks like Im gonna need a new tranny

sweeet!!! ... thats like getting half a new car

Congrats, and sorry about the transmission, but at least it is still covered at this point by the selling dealer.

congrats on the new ride...good luck with the the transmission.

I dont have a copy of the contract but should the dealer be required to provide a rental car or a loaner until my car is done? Im supposed to be driving up to PA thursday and its not gonna be done in time

Welcome to the forum and congrats man. I see your apart of the non-navi club too lol. Sorry to hear about the trans. Turbocoop what part of SC are you from?

Im from down near Hilton Head

Well the shop said it just overheated and they flushed it out fine and refilled it and its doing fine now. Im kinda worried though cause I have a roadtrip to go on this week and I dont want it to overheat again. They didnt give me a good reason why it overheated. All he said was it looked like I had it in a lower gear then I was supposed to for highway driving, but I wasnt messing with the sport shift or anything. Im afraid its gonna do it again. Do these have a decent tranny cooler from the factory? What about a filter, I was reading that some Acura trannys dont have filters, does this one?

Our trans has a "permanent" filter. Its really not meant to be replaced. The trans in these cars are not supposed to be flushed also its not supposed to be overheated like that, I know its not your fault but I'm pretty sure your trans has damage now. I would take the car back if possible. :2cents:

welcome and congrats on the new TL

alright thanks, I already picked up the car but I have the receipt from the dealership that shows the mileage when I got it towed there that proves it was still under warranty. I have a gut feeling that its gonna overheat again on my next long trip, so if it does Ill probably have to go to court to get the dealer to pay for it. I know they wont be willing to help cause now its over the 1000 mile warranty they gave me when I bought it

Oh yeah, I also took some quick pics of the yellow Nokya foglights I put in, and the Escort SRX radar I installed. Im puttin on my type s tails this weekend. Does anyone else have those little cracks on their headlight lenses? It looks bad in the pic but its not that noticeable unless youre up close to them. I guess Ill need some new headlights sometime too...

plus the tow truck messed up the little plug on the front bumper for the tow hook(see pic). Ill be calling them tomorrow. Im not having very good luck with this car so far.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/j...a/phone203.jpg
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/j...a/phone205.jpg
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/j...a/phone214.jpg

Crack's in the headlight?

That doesn't sound good!

If you mean scratches, then a headlight polish such as Meguiar's Headlight Restoration Kit can clear them up.

Also, please take a picture of the headlights when the lights are off?

It makes it so difficult to see the "cracks" when the beam of light is shining...

Cracks can't be good. Please post of pictures because from the look of it the headlights looked to be blacked out but a horrible paint job.

It's so damn hard to see the cracks with the headlights on.

I'm pretty sure those are "stress cracks", though.

I would definitely have them replace the transmission. I had the issue with my Prelude and it went out a few weeks after.

Well thats unfortunate, where you able to do the recommended transmission maintenance before this happened?

Yeah the headlights look like they have stress cracks, maybe from sitting in the sun too much cause the tails have similar cracks... No big deal

I never got a chance to do anything with the tranny before this happened. I think its pretty well f'ed now, it was shifting like shit this morning, jerking and stuff. It also takes a good 3 seconds to get into gear when going from park or reverse to drive, is that a sign of something??? Im calling the shop again today to tell them is isnt gonna fly. I know its just a matter of time

Definitely get that transmission either repaired correctly or replaced. And you might want to stay away from reverse HIDs because the short time they are going to be on, and or the constant on/off when parking or pulling out, is going to shorten the life of the ballasts and the lamps and those items ain't cheap.

If the front lighting enclosure is fractured or cracked, that is bad. The cover could let go and then you will loose your headlamps and probably fogs and parking lamps.

Down by Hilton Head, eh? Around Beaufort or Port Royal maybe?? Beautiful area - I love the low country of South Carolina.

Yeah Im from Bluffton, right outside of Hilton Head- it is nice down there... The tranny is definitely done, they put new fluid in it Monday, and I drove 50 miles and its already dark grayish red, plus after its barely warmed up its about 3" above the fill hole on the dipstick. Its burning the fluid like crazy. The guy at the shop is pricing a new tranny and now its just between me and the dealership to get them to pay for it... Anyone know a good lawyer around here?

:wave: Welcome to the forum! Looks like the "cracks" are almost condensation. Maybe they were tinted at one point :2cents:

Redrain the tranny and refill atleast 2 more times and see if that solves your problems. Doing it only once leaves alot around the torque converter and only gets something like 30% of the old fluid out. Search for 3x3 ATF drain, surely the tranny isn't going out already :sad:

That bumper definitely has been repainted, look at the plastic piece on the bumper and you'll notice that its still the original color of the car and the bumper is not. I guess someone painted it and popped a new piece in. It could have been repainted due to rock chips witch means it has mostly hwy miles so its not all bad.

Welcome to AZ and THANK You for protecting our Freedom !! Good luck on the TL . Sounds like tranny is toast ! CHris

I just picked up mine also ('04 w/ 103K miles, SSM w/ Nav & Tech package). If you don't mind me asking, what did you pay for it? I'm wondering if I got a good deal or not...seemed like it at the time.

yeah I wish, it actually looks like its a different color cause its at a different angle from the camera as the bumper is cause when they were towing it they screwed it up. Just another thing thats gone wrong since I bought this pos. Im pretty pissed right now, the dealership is saying they are only gonna cover half the cost of the new tranny install. This is bullshit.

How hard is it to rebuild these trannys? Ive done chevy and nissan automatics- but not an acura

I paid $15K for this, big mistake