Seriously,

How do you like your car? I've got a 2006 TL as a loaner tonight and my wife and I are pretty impressed with it.

Problem is, I currently own a 2002 TL (Type S) and is having the motor mounts replaced. More specifically, I've had a few quality problems with this TL . A few more than I would expect for Acura. So far, I've gone through 3 transmissions in addition to the motor mounts.

I really liked my '02 despite the problems and I like the '06 even better. I just can't seem to justify buying another Acura right now though with all of the problems.

Has Acura improved greatly on the 3rd generation over the previous generation?

Tell me some good news.....

 

Loving it!

Theres quite a few threads on "how do you like your TL" and such. You should try a quick search. I think there was a poll recently too.

Here is the poll: https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=131535

 

Here is the poll: https://acurazine.com/forums/showthread.php?t=131535

 

I totally love mine! No quality issues so far. Tight as a drum. I have 05 AT abyss blue/camel.

 

ur gettin sold and you dont even know it hahaha

its an awesome car.

 

Actually, I kinda did know it. But I played along....because......there are worse things in life than owning an '06 Acura. LOL

 

I love it.

 

No problems for me and I'm approaching 10k miles.

 

I have had my TL since Nov 03 and have over 41K miles and clocking.. Its an awesome car... Yes, there have been some issues with my TL but they were all fixed by Acura...

 

Consumer reports showed the TL's having poor transmission problems up until the 3G came out, after which all reports have been rosy aside from some minor rattling issues

 

FWIW, I went through the same "reward a bad transmission" agony that you are suffering. Okay, so the 2nd gen had a trans problem - I appreciate AHM standing behind the product. But I was really displeased with the re-engineered replacement. Even more displeased with the horrible customer service I received from Acura Care (a big misnomer, as far as I'm concerned.)

I felt like the world's biggest hypocrite buying another Acura. But we couldn't find another vehicle that delivered as much value for the dollar.

That being said, we are quite pleased with the 06 TL. No problems to report. And based on a long history with Honda products the 2nd gen transmission seems to be a fluke. I do suggest staying on very good terms with your dealer - they are the folks that can get odd problems fixed - not Acura Corporate.

 

I love my '05 TL and I hear all the little rattles in '05 are much less prevalent in the '06. As others have said, the TL is the best bang for the buck.

 

we love our new TL. after many months of research into many different vehicles, some comparable to the TL, others not, it came down to the feeling we had with the car itself, the looks, features and expected reliablilty. face it, you are not guaranteed a perfect car, no matter how much money you spend, and a little research on infiniti, bmw, lexus and other forums such as this, show that no matter what you buy, if you are expecting perfection, you will be disappointed.

the TL is one of the best looking cars made, imho, and has the features we deemed most important to us. since this is primarily my wife's car, it was most critical it fit her needs but it is probably the choice I would have made for myself anyway. the fact that the price was right, sealed the deal.

other major variables you need to consider concern the dealer experience, sales and service, in your area. I have been on both sides of the counter, so to speak, and can relate that many of the issues reported here as negatives to the TL ownership experience result from a poor dealership experience, more than from the car itself. and I hate to say it but most negative issues result from the consumers attitude than any other. there are just some people who will never be satisfied.

remember, there are no perfect cars, and knowing that will lessen the stress and disappointment when problems do arise.

what is comes down to, after you have done all your research, and have made all of your objective decisions, is this:

"if it feels good, do it"

 

i had a 02TL wdp until it went for service at acuracarland and i got a 05TL loaner, the sporty look and the power compared to the 02TL that was it ! my car within a months time did some research and picked one up had to have it, so far its been an excellent drive, and everytime u get in it u just adore it, JUST GO FOR IT

 

I've got 26,000 miles on mine, had it since 12/04. I drive the sh!t out of it and it can take my lead foot. I also have lots of mods and have since it was new.

 

I had an 03 Tl Type-S with 1 tranny replacement and feeling the second one coming on. Also had several rotors replaces or turned due to the rotors warping. I traded in after 85K since the tranny warranty was up at 100K. Didn't want to risk fixing a tranny after 100K.

I bought an 06 TL in January 06 and haven't looked back or had a day of regret. I loved my 03 but was afraid it was gonna become a money pit. From what I hear over the last few years, the 3rd generation TL is a huge improvement. That also comes from my service rep at Acura who was sad to lose a paying customer to a repeat warrantied customer.

 

ehhh
im a bit disappointed with the quality

some of the things that bug me:

- paint quality is pretty crappy
- rear bumper piece doesn’t fit properly with the rear sides of the car (on any 3g TL)
- no lower fog lights
- doors seem to close cheaply - they also creak when u touch any trim piece near the window on the outside
- a lot of the vents and plastic trims don’t line up very nicely with the rubbery dash
- the cig/power outlets are both hard to plug anything big into (ie power converter) and there should be more (maybe one near the rear passenger vents on the center console)
- ride quality is pretty crappy
- a lot of small driving gremlins (vibrations /rattles / tires follow the road to easily)
- steering wheel feels cheap (and the audio controls on the wheel are a bit hard to use - mainly the placement)
- really cheap and hard to take care of leather
- if you set the seat warmers on low it’ll take FOREVER to warm up (so you have to set to high and then back down to low to maintain the temp)
- the fake manual shifting on the auto models uses UP to shift up and DOWN to shift down really pisses me off – im used to the inverse
- the rear pillars on the outside of the car where it meets the trunk you can see the actual metal indentations from the tool that bent the sheet metal
- the trunk nets are pretty shallow and a bit too lose

Electronics:

- no auto lights (ie turning lights on when gets dark via photo sensor – pretty cheap to add)
- sub par stereo speakers
- the info display on the instrument panel is cheap and designed pretty crappily (TSX is much better)
- No CD-TEXT on the stereo (even corollas have this)
- OLDer generation Honda navigation system (never been upgraded since 04)
- steering wheel adjustment isnt power (there’s like no point to have memory seating when the steering wheel doesn’t change with it)



overall it feels a bit cheap inside - especially when you’re driving - i guess this is mainly because of the ride quality

and there seems to be some oversights in construction - body pieces dont fit tight...etc.. probably because the car was designed in America - and only for the American market (therefore maybe less oversight from Japan)

Really what bugs me the most is the construction quality and the ride quality some of the rattles could be cause of the colder climate up in toronto

but you get what you pay for - the TL is pretty cheap for what you get - its just that none of the components are really high grade - im not really disappointed with the purchase, its just that im not as happy as i thought i would be

 

i should mention my other car is a 2005 530i w/ dynamic handling pack - which among many has been said to have the best ride / handling of that size car .. it also has the L7 audio system,

which could be why im not to satisfied with the acura's ride, handling, construction quality, and paint

 

JustinZ - It sounds like your TL was made on a Friday after the assembly crew took a 5 hour liquid lunch.

Sorry to hear about all the fitment issues you have. I guess I'm lucky I don't have most of those on mine..