Can I ask OP, how frequently did you change your transmission oil? Not trying to point fingers. Just trying to gauge how strong these transmissions are.

 

The previous owner handed me receipts from a shop in Glendale, Honcura where the ATF was changed (3x3) at about 62k. I'm not sure what the history was before that. When the car first broke down, 10k miles later, the first thing I did was drain and replace 3qts and the oil was really dark almost like engine oil. Not sure if it was the type of oil that was in there or if the oil was really changed in the first place. Now I know to look at the ATF when buying a used vehicle

 

Wow...I had almost same exact issue with my 2006 automatic. Tranny went out on the highway with 76k miles. Acura quoted me $6k to replace. I called Acura headquarters and also explained that I was a loyal Honda customers and that I expected Honda's to live up to their name. Honda should be synonomous with quality. I explained that this car was primarily driven by my wife around town and was never abused. Acura stepped up and paid the majority of the repair. I ended up paying $1600 out of pocket and received a 3/36k warranty on it. This was two years ago. As an FYI...I had a 96' accord tranny fail at 96k, 01' accord with 99k tranny fail. None were modified or abused. Hondas have this problem...or i'm just unlucky in that regard.

 

Has anyone gotten a reasonable price quote for a tranny swap in the NYC area? I'm trying to figure this out right now and I'm trying to figure out the smartest decision. Of course nobody wants to spend $6k and that seems to be the general ballpark number (Even from Honda dealerships). But I am willing to pay up to $3k-$4k (total price) with a rebuilt Acura tranny and 3yr warranty if that is possible. Anybody?

Yea I know the options of rebuilt or junkyard, that's last resort and a huge risk imo. I'd rather look at the best options first. Yes Acura corporate MAY help me, but I doubt it and I'm not counting on it. If I can start out with a low quote I can see if I can work the cost down further through Acura Corporate if possible.

 

If my tranny dies AGAIN, I'm going to find a 06-07 accord tranny (make sure there's warranty on it) route then having a tranny shop install it. This seems like the cheapest route.

 

Man, I remember your story. Don't want to go through that pain. You had someone rebuild your tranny right?

 

So far the Acura estimates I'm getting are as low as $5200 and as high as $6800. And no luck trying Honda dealers, still $6k+

 

See post 43. I made a big stink two years ago and they covered most of it. I Paid 1600 out of pocket with a 3 year warranty. Compel them to stand behind their product and share this site and our stories with them and your district manager. 72k on a Honda is a big no no. I think your year was known to have issues. Good luck.

 

Btw... any tranny you get at this point will be rebuilt. Even from Honda. A reputable shop will do it for half that price. In cali we have amco. They rebuilt my dad's 01 4 runner tranny 4 years ago. Still running and cost less than 2k.

 

Rocky- have you tried contacting Bruce? He's in NJ I think.

 

Funny you suggested that, already did that yesterday, thanks ggesq. Just looking into 100 different options and what will work best.

I have open a file with Acura Corporate already. I have no problem in negotiating with them. So it's not that much of a problem of proving my car is well maintained if they argue that. I've gotten 7 people to buy TLs too. I can talk about my loyalty and passion for the brand etc. But that is just one part.

If I blame this as an engineering defect they won't buy it. They will always deny responsibility, it will get me nowhere.

Their perspective is that they are willing to do good will gestures (out of warranty) for the customers that give them the most business not only in their sales dept but their service dept. The problem is I have only has a dealer service history when I did my big 105K service. I did a number of things there. But all other maintenance (documented) was done by me. So in their eyes, I'm a person that watches my wallet and does what's best for me. That doesn't make me a "loyal" customer that blindly hands my wallet over to their service dept. (like most customers). That also makes me more likely to switch brands next time around. This may in fact be true.

But there is no denying the fact that how this ends up handled will determine my future decisions with any Honda product. Yea, I heard it before; trannys are designed to wear and break down etc. They should go at least 150k-200k. I would understand then. Not 75k-125k. That is not reasonable.

Now if they DO work with me on this, at least a portion, that's all I'm asking; that will keep me close to Honda. But just not with an automatic again.

 

Yep that was me. The tranny still shifts like shit it always has and yesterday I experienced my first slip shifting from 1st to 2nd on top of the on-going shudder from just about day one of the rebuild. I have about 2,000+ miles on the warranty so good thing the slip happened now. I seriously hate dealing with this independent tranny shop.

 

No, they did not, I sold the car the very next day after I got it back the fourth time....back in 2006. I have had my Acura 9 years now

 

Definitely a smart move. I want to keep the car even though it needs some suspension and steering work badly but i can't see me doing that when I know the tranny is crap. May take the same route as you if they rebuild it again.