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If they're speaking of the heat shields I'm thinking of, you should have a really horrible rattle coming from under the car. If you don't, don't bother having them replaced, they cost an arm and a leg. I don't know about your other issues.
Order your hood struts online, any one with half a brain cell can change those.
I went to the Acura dealership with my 2007 TL type S and they mentioned to me the following issues:
- replace all 3 heat shields
- drive belt and tensioner
- side engine mount
- hood struts
- app sensors (acceleration position sensors)
How could I very this to be true? Also, how can I ensure that the price I am paying is good? Is it worth going there or finding a mechanic?
Thank you for your help.
- replace all 3 heat shields ----unless its rusted to shit or broken apart. I would just leave it. Did you visually inspect it?
- drive belt and tensioner - when they said tensioner...did they mean the actual tensioner or the pulley?. Those are fairly easy to DIY
- side engine mount - Very easy DIY
- hood struts - Does the hood NOT stay up when left open? That's an easier DIY
- app sensors (acceleration position sensors) -- this part has me puzzled. Do you have any acceleration issues? From reading other members posts its a part that either works or not. Meaning, if its a problem you will show symptoms with acceleration.
Does your TL have any symptoms-- CEL/error/dash lights. unusual noises or abnormal-feeling operation?
If so, describe the symptoms.
Originally Posted by mr-alexander
Also, how can I ensure that the price I am paying is good? Is it worth going there or finding a mechanic?
Post the estimate or list of prices that the dealership gave you here so we can make a comparison.
As other posters have mentioned before, some of those are easy D-I-Y jobs (hood struts-- $50 in parts and 5 minutes of work total max, unless one is disabled), and other recommendations are questionable in the absence of noise or symptoms.
Thank you very much for your support. I have not done any DIY jobs on my job other than replacing my bluetooth HFL.
Here is the estimates,
I do hear rattling noises and it has been like this for quite some time so I thought I would replace it, I did not inspect them.
As for the APP, I have had the following scenario take place @ https://www.dropbox.com/s/kwj0gj1qgd...%20tl.mov?dl=0 where my acceleration would not work properly; It happened to me only once then disappeared and then reappeared once agin.
The mileage on the car is 110,000.
Last edited by mr-alexander; 06-16-2015 at 10:00 AM.
If they're speaking of the heat shields I'm thinking of, you should have a really horrible rattle coming from under the car. If you don't, don't bother having them replaced, they cost an arm and a leg. I don't know about your other issues.
Order your hood struts online, any one with half a brain cell can change those.
Where can I order the hood struts?
How can I inspect the heat shields to ensure they need to be fixed?
Originally Posted by flyromeo3
- replace all 3 heat shields ----unless its rusted to shit or broken apart. I would just leave it. Did you visually inspect it?
- drive belt and tensioner - when they said tensioner...did they mean the actual tensioner or the pulley?. Those are fairly easy to DIY
- side engine mount - Very easy DIY
- hood struts - Does the hood NOT stay up when left open? That's an easier DIY
- app sensors (acceleration position sensors) -- this part has me puzzled. Do you have any acceleration issues? From reading other members posts its a part that either works or not. Meaning, if its a problem you will show symptoms with acceleration.
Thank you for the info.
I did not inspect the heat shields myself, I am not knowledgable on how to do this. Do I need to lift the car to inspect this? Any guide I could follow?
As for the drive belt and tensioner, I am not sure and will find out (thank you for the reference).
- the hood strut does not stay up, where can I order the parts?
- For the app sensors, they provided me with detailed analysis for this and I could post this here if interested.
Originally Posted by Will Y.
Why did you take the car to the dealership?
Does your TL have any symptoms-- CEL/error/dash lights. unusual noises or abnormal-feeling operation?
If so, describe the symptoms.
Post the estimate or list of prices that the dealership gave you here so we can make a comparison.
As other posters have mentioned before, some of those are easy D-I-Y jobs (hood struts-- $50 in parts and 5 minutes of work total max, unless one is disabled), and other recommendations are questionable in the absence of noise or symptoms.
I take the car to the dealership as I trust their work and I dont have a mechanic I could rely on and really trust.
The car does not have any symptoms other than the rattling noise that I am aware of. The other symptom is the engine light indication with the VSA and exclamation mark triangle.
I will look for the hood strut parts as they are the easiest for me to diy.
I have posted the estimates and will post analysis of the diagnosis for the engine light.
I am also from Canada, where do you recommend me to order the parts?
Last edited by Steven Bell; 06-16-2015 at 07:27 PM.
Reason: Merge Posts
I did not inspect the heat shields myself, I am not knowledgable on how to do this. Do I need to lift the car to inspect this? Any guide I could follow?
- the hood strut does not stay up, where can I order the parts?
- For the app sensors, they provided me with detailed analysis for this and I could post this here if interested.
Yes, the heat shields are inspected by putting them on a lift if a rattling was heard while the car was stopped or barely moving.
There was a TSB (B07-026) for the intermediate shaft heat shield rattle; the TSB fix was installing a replacement kit of nuts, bolts and new shield for about $450.
Most owners resolved the problem by having the nuts and bolts retightened after realigning the existing heat shields.
Buy the struts through Rock Auto, Amazon or your neighborhood AutoZone if you really want them the same day. I bought the Sachs struts because they are the OEM manufacturer and have a lifetime warranty; the Strongarms are cheaper. Regardless, it'll be less than $40 including shipping for the two struts.
Since you replaced the HFL, you'll be able to do the struts easily. For steps and part numbers, see https://acurazine.com/forums/third-g...struts-862266/ .
The struts will take less time than the HFL; get a stick or someone to hold up the hood for the minute it'll take to swap out one strut (which will hold up the hood while you replace the second strut).
Originally Posted by mr-alexander
I take the car to the dealership as I trust their work and I dont have a mechanic I could rely on and really trust.
The car does not have any symptoms other than the rattling noise that I am aware of. The other symptom is the engine light indication with the VSA and exclamation mark triangle.
The AAA (Auto Club) maintains a list of trustworthy independent mechanics. You can also search Yelp for good Honda and Acura mechanics.
Yes, it sounds like you have an APP issue-- about $150 for the APP sensor. A few owners had similar problems without codes, and resolved it by adjusting the cable. That and APP sensor install with photos- about 30 minutes- are at https://acurazine.com/forums/problem...sensor-730958/ .
Originally Posted by mr-alexander
I am also from Canada, where do you recommend me to order the parts?
Go with wherever price + shipping + customs is cheapest. Do a Google search of the part number and "Canada." Your local Acura dealer might match some on-line prices-- some of the US dealers do.
Oh, and every amount I mentioned was in USD.
G/L!
Last edited by Steven Bell; 06-16-2015 at 07:28 PM.
Reason: Merge Posts
seem like dealer give OP a bunch of running around list to do. Take your time and reinspect all the thing I would say stay away from this dealer from now on.
HOLY HELL - $173 for hood struts? That is just insane. They are $12 each from Rockauto - and it LITERALLY takes about 3 minutes to change them out. Talk about some margin....
HOLY HELL - $173 for hood struts? That is just insane. They are $12 each from Rockauto - and it LITERALLY takes about 3 minutes to change them out. Talk about some margin....
Order two of these, strong as hell (you may get away with just replacing one of these) I did two and it feels like my hood is going to go flying off every time.
I'm in Canada too and got the hood struts from rockauto. They cost around 50$ for both and are at your door in around3-5 business days. They're super tight too, couldn't be more satisfied.
I know it's already been commented on, but the dealership wanting to charge $170 for hood struts is disgusting. You can get them on Amazon for around $15 and do the job in 5 minutes.
I asked the dealer to provide me with all the parts for this repair and they provided it to me, to make sure I have them accurate when installing.
How can I verify whether I need to replace the side engine mount?
How can I verify whether I need to replace the drive belt and tensioner?
I don't know about the engine mounts unfortunately. It's something I'd like to tackle myself someday. Search for signs of worn engine mounts on Google and perhaps you can match your symptoms with what you find. Sucks that you don't live closer to Quebec, I could have helped you out a bit.
If you did the HFL delete yourself, you can do the app easily. It takes no more than 10 minutes to do and 8 of those minutes is used looking for the wrench in your tool box. Like everyone else, I also threw up in my mouth when I read that hood strut install is more expensive than an alignment. :thief: = dealer
Do the hood lifts yourself. They are so easy to replace and you can find videos on this site or youtube to guide you through it.
I ordered a pair of Sachs S2-SG365001 for my 2008 TL from RockAuto , received them in two days and had them on the vehicle in 10 minutes.
Total cost: $29 with shipping. Do you even need to think about this any more? Just order it !!!
I hope you guys commenting on the price of the work also realize those are Canadian dollars.
And as a Canadian, the prices quoted to him are still sickening to me. There's no need of it. OP, they quoted you $3,059 to do this work. $149 for an alignment when you're buying tires from them? Really?? Here is my take on the situation:
Buy your tires from a tire dealer, not an Acura dealer. Get your alignment done there as well. They do wheels and tires all day long and will know what they're doing and you'll save money on labour at the same time. Do a little internet leg work and buy the hood struts, side engine mount, drive belt/tensioner from Rock Auto.
Type in these part numbers or just pick what car you have and the parts will display.
-ACK060841-Drive belt (with tensioner) $89.13 CAD
-Motor mount $24-$104 CAD depending on the mount needed.
-SG365001-Hood strut $16.21 CAD.
The heat shields, I can't really comment too much on. I had a noisy heat shield on my '07 TL-S a couple of years ago but I bent it with a large flathead screwdriver so that it wasn't touching anything and the noise went away.
06-15-2015, 11:18 AM
So I went to the Acura dealership...
