Im looking at two 3G TL's tomorrow. Give me your input on which is the better value. Oh and, hi! I'm new here and the TL looks like a perfect commuter car for me.

2008 TL - KBB=$8,000
-115k Miles
-Aspec Rims
-Factory Nav
-Backup Camera
-Meticulous Maintenance Records
-Battery, Timing Belt, Water Pump, & Tires all replaced in the past 6 months.

2007 TL - KBB=$7,500
-77k Miles
-Oem 5 Spoke Rims
-No Nav
-Not a lot of maintenance records to speak of.

 

When you lay both out on the table like that, the answer is obvious no?

 

Pics

 

That silver one is def not a 2007 model.

The 77k one, as long as you are sure enough the car is in great shape, then sounds like a better deal to me.

 

Also those aren't a spec wheels. ..

 

As others have already pointed out...

Both of those are running base 5-spoke rims
-- the white one is the split spoke from I think 07 and 08
-- the silver one is the original from 04-06...although I am pretty sure I see the flat spots around the valve stems which makes me think 2006

The fact that one has good service records to review makes that one way more interesting in general. 25k mile difference is mostly pointless in a car this age.

 

From your initial post, as thoiboi has indicated, it's a pretty obvious answer--the 2008 w/115k, TB work done, and boku service records.

The pics you posted raise more questions than answers about both the vehicles and the sellers.... Do they even know what they are offering for sale?

 

Might be the picture or angle but the driver's door on the silver one doesn't seem to have matching paint???

 

I think we can all agree the silver one is not an 07 and might have issues based on the ONLY picture OP gave us....
I cant tell if the front wheel has the TPMS cut out or not...but the rear wheel does indeed have TPMS.

pass on the silver

 

I just wonder why someone would do the full TB service and put on new tires....and then sell. Great for you if no other underlying issues...

 

My RL actually got the 105k service done at the dealer where my TL service at 4 months prior purchasing. Yeah I know its rare but I glad I was able to use the 105k miles to bring price down also knowing it already done.

 

there are anal retentive people in this world that dont like to sell shitty cars.
I would do everything in my power to sell a presentable car.
Seller also backs up that claim with Meticulous Maintenance Records

 

Wouldn't do the silver. As others have said, clearly 04-06 which means it likely doesn't have the updated transmission. No side view mirror turn indicators and Pre-MMR wheels = 04-06. IIRC, about half of the 06's had the updated 5AT which was more robust than previously. But I wouldn't take that chance.

Looks just like my old 3rd gen though

 

The white car seller didn't list them as a spec wheels. That was my interpretation at the time I started this thtread so my fault there.

The silver car seller did list it as a 2007. I'm waiting clarification from him on the year. If it's 04-05 I'm ruling it out because of the trans issues.

2006 is supposed to be better trans right? With 07-08 being the best trans from 3G?

 

From what I've heard, the "revised" transmission was implemented sometime during the 2006 model year but not necessarily the beginning. As such, some of the 2006's had the older transmission and some had the revised one. I believe there may have been a way to tell based on the VIN but it was forever ago that I was looking into that and I don't remember where it was specifically. Some of the 3G guys might have more info. Mine was a manual so it was a non-issue when I purchased my 2006.

 

The white car is definitely not an A-Spec car, just a run of the mill 2007 or 2008 TL. The silver car looks like a 2006 based upon the wheels; it is definitely not 2007 or 2008.

For the 2006 model year I have heard anecdotally some of the later cars came with the uprated transmission; I would ask the seller of the 2006 to send you a photo of the sticker which shows the build date of the car.

For the extra $500, I would opt for the white car, errr, unless you do not want NAV.

 

Dealer doing the work makes some sense.....can do the job for a couple of hundred bucks vs the cost to owner to have done around $1000....so a good sales play. Tires must have been shot.

 

I would worry about the silver being presented as an 07....either the person doesn't know what they own or being deceptive. As mentioned above the difference in mileage is not very significant for a car from 07 (mine has 246,000), so they will run for a long time if maintained.

 

I see now. He titled it 2007 but in the details he listed 06 so I'm goig tl assume it's at least an 06 model.

Links to listings below.

White- https://sfbay.craigslist.org/pen/cto/d/acura-tl/6238892037.html
Silver- https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/cto/d/acura-tl-miles/6243258134.html

 

Driver's door color still doesn't look correct in the CL for the silver one.. I would go and look at the white one and go from there. Not sure why the pix of the white one are taken from seemingly a mile away????

 

I almost didn't view his whole listing because of that. However if you click on the pics you get nice high res images and the car does look pretty clean.

 

I did click on the pix and the driver's door color doesn't look right. Could be me or the setting on my laptop, but from what I see there is no way the driver's side front and rear doors are the same color.

 

The previous owner work for the Acura dealer, he even did the valve adjustment (which I skip on my TL) the tires are Michelin HXM4 which had 70%-80% tread left. The mechanical sound great all the fluid is done, I just have to iron out most of the minor issue. I would say the mechanical condition probably better than my TL-S at the time of purchased (approx. 5-6 years ago). He got rid of the car because the dealer give him $42k for a 2016 RLX Sport Hybrid (new).

 

I test drove the white car today. It looked and performed very well but when I checked the oil dipstick there was this small piece of what looked to be rubber with a little oil on it that was stuck to the rounded end of the dipstick. The oil itself looked fine and I re-inserted it to check again and all looked well. I wish I took a pic for you guys. Now I can't decide if I should pull the trigger.

 

My advice, although others may disagree: unless you're under some sort of time pressure (need a daily driver immediately), I'd say don't pull the trigger on a vehicle about which you may have some lingering doubt. So many 3G TL's were produced and there are so many out there that you shouldn't have any problem finding another example that is reasonably priced and that gives you full confidence.

Needless to say, if you're still committed to that white 2008 w/115K miles on it, take it to a mechanic for a pre-purchase inspection at the very least. If the seller balks at this idea, walk away.

 

im with justnspace on the wheels as well.......cant tell if the front has the tpms cut out.......the wheel below has TPMS correct?

 

^^^^ Yes - that one has TPMS.

 

I'm skeptical as to what an inspection would accomplish. Wouldn't the best thing to do be drop the oil pan and see if there is any sort of debris or build up?

 

Well.. it'll accomplish peace of mind. The oil thing could be nothing, or it could be something. Inspection will answer that one question for you. In addition, it'll answer every single other question you don't even know you have about it so you know exactly what you're investing in, and whether you're paying $8k or $10k in the next few months, ya feel?

 

I'm having a hard time seeing the seller let you or anyone drop the oil pan as part of an inspection.

 

Much easier and cheaper said than done. You're probably looking at ~$300 for that?

If it was on the tip of the dip stick, it could've just been something off the bottom of the oil pan, dunno. Did you wipe it off before putting the dip stick back in and look at it more closely?

It's probably not a big deal.

One other hint: If the car has been serviced at a dealer, go to the dealer and ask them to pull the service records for the vin# just to make sure you've see all the service/maintenance records.

 

All of this. I had my guy do a Pre-Purchase Inspection on my TL (cost me $130 and took an hour, including putting it up on a lift, pulling engine codes, doing a diagnostic drive, etc.). Identified all sorts of issues that then allowed me to negotiate the selling price downward. Well worth the money spent. But this is all just friendly advice. You should take whatever you think is the best course of action.

At any rate, let us know how it turns out!

 

The the 38k mileage difference is negligible. I'm also willing to bet at 77k very little has been done in terms of maintenance. NAVI with backup cam is a totally worth it. Plus that isn't an 07...

 

...

 

lol at dropping the oil pan. no small feat. especially if the car isnt yours.

 

if the owner have maint record or it show up on carfax regularly then I wouldn't worry about the oil issue, however spending $135 PPI is recommended.

NO PPI won't drop the oil pan but they could find more interesting things like rack and pinion leaking, busted oil pump seal, bad tire rod(s), leak rear main seal, subframe integrity, slow leak bottom radiator and other suspension components. These are things that you won't able to see even you bring a good mechanic with you.