Hello all,

Just put a down payment on a 2004 TL today: Private sale, 81K miles, original owner, Acura dealer serviced with all service records. The sale is contingent upon a satisfactory inspection performed by the Acura dealer. Any common problems with this particular generation/year that I should be aware of and pay special attention to? The dealer does have a record of all service performed including any recalls or TSB's applied to the vehicle. The inspection is on Monday 2-22, so any quick advice you could provide would be greatly appreciated.

Some of the things I'm wondering about:

-original exhaust system on this car. How long can they potentially last in northern climates/salt?
- suspension issues - are there any? Ball joints, tie rods, suspension parts, etc.
- Are these transmissions (5 sp.auto) bullet proof? Any issues there?

This is my dream car, so I'm really psyched to get this thing home and DRIVE. Can't wait to do some serious long range sport touring.

 

No problem. Can’t say forever, but a visual inspection will be able to tell the present condition.

Nothing out of the ordinary, but check the tires to make certain they are wearing evenly across the tread, and run you hand forward and backward over the tread to see if any feathered edges. If uneven, a problem may be present, or just an alignment might be needed. If a vibration in the wheel is noticed in the 65/70mph range, not uncommon with these cars, have them balanced on a Hunter Road Force machine.

No transmission is bulletproof, as there have been trans replacements on ‘07’s. Some say that the early ’04 TL’s can have, or are more prone to have a trans problem, but once again, a thorough inspection will prove to be the best.

Don’t forget, when that car reaches the 100/105,000 mile mark, it will be time for a timing belt replacement @ $1000, unless you can do the job yourself.

Good luck

If it's a silver/black good price, no Nav, but check the OE wheels and tires for proper size.

Also, check the CarFax for any body damage repair.

 

See if you can get the 3rd/4th gear pressure sensors changed out with an ATF flush and you should be good on the tranny. Since the car is at the dealer, see if the owner could pay for that service since the sensors are not part of regular maintenance but have been vindicated as the issue behind the transmission failures. There's a huge thread on this subject. I'll be changing mine at 50K miles so 81K is pushing it on the sensors and the ATF assuming it was changed at 60K.

 

The dealer can check the VIN to see if you have an early or later model 2004 as the tranny was modified with a 2nd gear lubrication line after a certain date. You can also search for that thread here in the 3G garage sticky.

Acuras handle extremely well for FWD cars because of some radical geometry in the rear suspension which corrects for understeer. But, on the down side, if you carry heavy weight in the back seat or trunk for long distances, the rear tires will wear quickly. So check for that.

In general, if you go to the Problems and Fixes thread, you will see all the nit-picky problems some owners have had. Acura owners (like me) expect nothing short of perfection from Acura. That's not very realistic, however. Up until this car, I had Nissan Maximas and swore by their quality. I have now switched allegiance to Honda/Acura. I'm nearing 6 years with mine and the only expense I've had is routine maintenance and one new battery (recently).

Oh, yeah. Check the leather on the driver's seat. TL leather is thirsty for conditioner regularly, especially in hot weather. If you keep it conditioned, it'll be fine for many years. I do mine about once every other month.

 

Bump stop TSB to deal with rear suspension tire wear when there is lots of weight in the rear of the car, perhaps-- the TSB is 05-050, and the 3G Garage has links to all the TSBs.
See https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-tires-wheels-suspension-97/too-many-04-05-owners-unaware-critical-tsb-have-done-601284/ for the thread on this.

Welcome to AZ!

 

any car is subject to wearout of steering and suspension bits

Make sure the fluids- ps, brake have been changed- at 60 is the book time
brake fluid do every year- its worth the time or expense

Beware the word `flush` with trans fluid- acura uses a manual drain and refill thru a drain plug, not like old cars, and calls changing 12 qts thru a method called 3x3 (it only drains 3 of the 7.sum -rest is in the torque convertor) a `flush`
while shops will use a machine and pressure pump the systems- with dex3 no less...goodbye trans
book ONLY requires that 12 qts if you ever add Dex3 to top off `in an emergency`- that kills the TL trans!

Most people are going with 3 qts with every or every other oil change year/15kmiles, thats more often than acura says but gen2 trans dropped like flies anywhere from 50-90kmiles,,,bad oil flow to 2nd and 3rd gear clutch packs, and your 04 has an 03 trans with external oil jet kit installed (recall)

Use ONLY honda atf and honda PS fluid- no, they dont flush out the ps when they replace the hose under recall

Car will like a seafoam treatment thru gas and manifold vac port DIY 20 bucks, and new NGK Iridium spark plugs now will make it like new- 60 bucks for parts