I looked at a 2004 acura tl with 145k today with nav. It was black with tan but was kinda rough on the outside, ie scratches and a couple of dents. He had the 105k mile service done and we agreed on 8500. I check the trans fluid and it was not red but had a dark tint on it so I walked and told him I would think about it. It drove and shifted "ok" but was kinda firm shift so I was weary the trans might give soon...What are your thougts?

 

Firm shifts are not bad. What would be bad is a slip between the gears followed by the hard engagement.

 

How's the condition of the interior?

 

It's tough to say. You will not really know about the transmission until you drive it a bit. I would suggest test driving a few other ones at about the same mileage and seeing if it shifts the same as this one.

 

8,500 isn't a bad price for an '04. Does it have Navigation? You said the body is in rough shape; leads me to think that the car may be neglected or not cared for. 100% make a trip to the mechanic to check under the hood to see if there are any hidden problems. IMO, if someone doesn't care about the exterior of their car, they don't give a rats ass about the engine and the regular maintenance.

Good luck with your hunt, though!

 

CLOSELY and I mean CLOSELY examine the front bumper, hood, mirrors, rocker panels, and front fenders. With a high mileage car like that, you have to examine the exterior very very closely to make sure that the exterior is not *too beat up*. I would expect to see some rock chips, just make sure that it's not so bad that you would need to get the hood, mirrors, bumper, and fenders resprayed to make it look good.

Check all of the fluid colors, read the manual how to check the tranny fluid and oil.

Check the condition of the leather seats.

I would be a little weary about purchasing a high mileage 04 like that to be honest. Chances are it has had the old Honda Tranny fluid in it the entirety of its life and plus the 04s were more susceptible to failing trannys than the 07 or 08 TLs.