Hey Ziners, me again. Still haven't found my dream WDP tl type s, but I'm kind of scared of the maintenance once I get the car. Heading to college soon, so I don't want any unexpected costs. Say the 105k service was preformed. How much would I be looking at for maintance?? I heard brembo brake pads wear extremely fast and they're pretty expensive... Almost considering opting out for a 2003 v6 accord with about 150k miles for 5k.... Saves me a lot of money up front, plus they are pretty reliable. What do you guys think??
Really want to go for the type s but having such a nice car at 17 kind of scares me... Thanks!
PS. I know I could save money by doing oil changes and such myself but I'm not really savy with all that. Thanks!

 

High mileage maintenance between a TL and V6 accord will just about be the same. The TL is basically an Accord after all.

 

if you have to ask...go with the accord. since you're still in HS theres no rush to get a nice car yet

 

My Brembo pads had ~67K when I changed them and they still had at least 10K left on them. I'm at 185K and I still have the original rear pads.

 

i dont know about ya'll but I spend a lot of fucking money on my car.



if I didnt have this kush ass job, I wouldnt be able to afford the TL.

maintenance(tires are a killer), mods, registration+inspection, insurance, and plus, I keep breaking shit....

i couldnt afford a car of this caliber when I was 17.

but if you can pull it all off, i tip my hat to you, sir! good luck

 

^^^^ fixed

 

Are you paying for your college education yourself? If so, I recommend you look at other cheaper cars. I'm sure you've been told and probably seen the price of a semester or quarter at college...it isn't cheap my friend. However, if you got a free ride or some help, try to not rack up so much debt. A car is essential in the college experience, imo, so maybe something a bit more fuel and maintenance friendly would be more towards what you should be looking for.

Yeah you save a good chunk of change if you opted for the Accord, but it'd still be a v6 and be a few hundred cheaper for the big jobs. You'd still be paying basically the same amount every time you fill up if you were to opt for it.

For me, I noticed oil change prices between me and dealer only vary by a few bucks, so I go to the dealer (I used to work there a few years back so I get employee pricing still). Power steering fluid I changed myself (2x3 only) and that saves a ton of money compared to what dealers charge, but again with my connections over there I just had to pay a bit of labor as I had already supplied the ATF.

I admit I've only done those two things independently maintenance wise to my TL as it hasn't needed anything else. But just the ATF change saved me well over $100 already from typical dealership rates. Nowadays for me, it's about finding the time to learn and try another maintenance service, which I really don't have much time or need for, right now.

 

The type S is pretty reliable even with over 100k. but things do break and age. so afford what you can afford

 

I would also take a look at what insurance is going to cost you driving the TL-S being that you are 17 years old.

 

WOW! Brembo is doing just fine! does the brake dust harm the car in any way? and wow 185k........ are you sure a family member didnt get them switched at least 5 times???
The only mods Im planning on doing is tinting and Stage 3 exhaust!! I actually ran into a really really really nice deal... ill keep you guys updated on it.
im doing a thing called running start so i dont pay for my AA but when i switch to a 4 year tuition is gonna be 12k a year, i can take care of that easy with the field im going into. I have no clue how often to change ATF tbh.. it notifies me right?

insurance is about a 70 buck difference but thats because I have 100/300/500 limits. if i lower it down the insurance will be the same if not less.. I really want the tl type s!!!

 

What year? Mileage? How much? How many owners? Maintenance records?

I just bought a 2005 TL one owner with 173k for $4250. Im 20 btw.

 

Found one with 130k miles, white interior, new tires, new timing belt and water pump for (drumroll)........10.5k!!!! Im trying to get a hold of the owner but so far no reply... If it is indeed a clean title.. I'm going to jump on it.

 

Damn that's a lot. But if it was maintained I guess it's a fair price. Whats the KBB on it at your location? What year is the car?

 

2007 Mostly highway miles, kbb is 10.5k at a dealership for 150k miles but there is are type S's anywhere near this price. For a nelicoously serviced vehicle with new tires, its a steal! Just hoping it isn't sold yet, and it has a clean title.

 

Dang I wish I had a TL when I was 17 LOL! I was driving an 86' Jeep Cherokee that was carbureted!

I bought my first car which was a 98 Civic for $4500 with 98k miles when I was 18 and just about to start college because the gas mileage was horrible on the Jeep and trying to start that up in the Winter was a PITA.

I had the Civic for 8 years and it served me well! You gotta love 4-bangers and the great gas mileage!

Wear-and-tear will happen regardless of what car you buy, it just depends on how you drive it. If you beat the shit out of your car then you bet that you'll be fixing it more often but if you take it easy then you'll be spending less money fixing what you broke.

To save money I would go with the 2003 Accord for 5k and keep your extra money aside for future use, just my 2 cents.

 

The accord is definently the cheaper route... But the tl type s is a beauty ;( Idk I'll sleep on it and see where things go from there. Thanks al!

 

Just my 2 cents... Someone right by my house is selling their 2008 TL with 73k for $12000. So it's up to you but with that high mileage you aren't really getting such a good deal as you might think. Key rule is to always get a car with at least $500 off of KBB fair condition price

 

I was in your position not too long ago. I am a senior in high school this year, and I will be going to college next year. Last summer, I could no longer afford a BMW, so I went back to an Acura. Although Acura's are great, reliable cars, things do break. I bought my 2007 KBP TL Type-S with around 90k in July and now have right at 104K on it. Since purchasing it I have had the timing belt and all of that stuff done at 98k. I also had to transmission fluid done at that time too. In the past month I have replaced the oil gasket, and I also just had to put on a new set of tires. So since purchasing it I have spent over $2500 on maintenance. I absolutely love this car, but for being so young it can tend to be difficult to pay for things. With me going to a rather expensive college next year, I am a little worried how I will afford any major expense if it occurs, but hopefully I've gotten all the major things out of the way. I will say that I times I do wish I would have saved the money and not of bought a nicer car than I truly needed. I do plan to keep it for several years though, so I will get my moneys worth, hopefully.
Regarding the 03 Honda Accord, my step-dad has one and a lot of the things seem the same as my car. However, I do know he just spent $3k this week for the transmission to be replaced, so that is something to really watch out for.
I wish you the best of luck in your search for a car!

 

I am currently in a pretty pricy college, I'm 19, and honestly, if you're smart about your finances, you might be fine about the car. Granted, I'm not paying for my whole education, I have a scholarship, and my parents help, so I pay for the car myself.

Overall, I've saved up enough money to pay the car off every month, I have a decent student job, so I save my money. I've done the typical oil change, brake change, tire change, and basic things like that. My most expensive repair was a $2,000 repair when I skid into a pole and it damaged my bumper and headlight, so that cost a bit.

I think if you're smart about it, then you might be fine.

 

Is it a type s? What color? Where are you located?

 

Thank you! Yeah i knew those accords had bad trannies... Ill just assume im going to be paying for a tranny down the road for it so if a tranny is 3k thatll be 8k for the car.. And im not about to buy a 2003 accord over a 2007 type s for a difference of 4k.... Thanks for the advice!

Yeah i will definitely be driving cautious for a while ahaha, im only paying for the monthly payments , amd any maintenance so ill def be fine. Monthly payments are like 200 a month after a hefty down payment. I have a job and minimum wage is 11 an hour here... All im worried about is the maintenance but by the looks of it the 07-08 trannies and engines are bulletproof! So i guess im good. Thanks!

 

Wait till the tranny goes and then you'll see true maintenance cost.

 

It's base model. Grey exterior. And it's 2007. I am in Northern VA.

 

I though 3.5 Gen TL's were solid?

 

Honda auto trannies aren't exactly best known as being solid. The only 3G TL that came with the 3.5 is the Type S. The base TL's all had 3.2's. However, the newer 07-08 base/type s auto trannies come from an improvised version of the RL tranny. It's not solid, but it's more reliable than the 04-06 auto trannies.

 

I think he's talking about the 3rd generation refresh from 2007-2008, where the TL's started using the transmission from the RL, both base and Type S. You can call those 3.5 gen, in a sense.

 

10.5k is a bit high. when i was searching i came across the kinetic blue type s 2008 with 135k give or take a few miles for 10.5k and it was manual!!!…. but the milage is a killer and the salt… and no maintenance papers. so i passed

plus as others have said insurance isn't going to be cheap. i know my subaru sti wasn't when i was 17 I'm sure the type s is the same way compared to a base tl…

it all comes down to how much you want to spend and how tight your going to be on cash…

 

^135k miles isn't that much..well, if maintained

 

how can i tell if i live in a salt state? I live in Washington State. I already have the insurance taken care of, my folks have very very good driving records so under their plan my insurance is pretty low for a 17 year old. around 220... Yeah 10.5k might be too much other places, but around here its UNHEARD OF! idk why cars are so expensive out here... oh yeah maintenance papers are a deal breaker. I went from a WDP lover to in love with KBP haha..

 

you'll know if you live in one of those states haha

never been up to washington up in the winter time. but by salt state i meant a state that destroys your car with rust caused by salt and such. it eats your undercarriage alive then when you wanna do say a exhaust mod you can't even take off your bolts… all my cars I've owned have been owned rust free.


its washington i heard that prices up there for cars are insane (especially subarus)

 

VERY. It rarely snows here so if you mean salt they put on the roads to dissolve the snow yeah we don't really get any.

 

I would get a 03 AV6 with MT, the performance number is par with TL-S MT but yet it cheaper for you to own in the long run, don't take everything you have and putting faith in a used car.

 

My yearly maintenance costs are pretty inexpensive. Two oil changes (I drive less than 8,000 miles a year in my TL), and that's about it. I'd have to amortize the tires and brake pads. Although I do have Brembos, since mine is an '04 manual, I use Rotex Gold Kevlar pads to cut down on the dust.

 

When do people switch out their suspension or sub-frame mounts - 100k, or 200k, or usually not? I've already changed the motor mounts.

 

i think OP should be ok with maintenance...

.... treat it well, and it will reciprocate

don't be drifting and stuff obviously ... just drive it responsibly

 

yeah, at 17........
I dont think that's happening.


I'm 28 and I still hoon the fuck out of my car.
only difference now; is that I CAN AFFORD TO.

 

Hehehehe I know better than to drift a fwd car... I will be WOT'ing it quite frequently though >

 

It looks like I'll be fine! I've been eyeing one with 140k kbp for 12k... I'll try to get the owner to lower the price a bit, but it has a "binder full of service records" (he posted a pic on cl it legit is a binder full) so yeah I'll see where that goes from there

 

My type s has 152,000 on it and the only major problem was a waterlogged ecu, doing all your maintenance yourself is way cheaper. You won't be driving the car much one you're at school

 

took me 7 months to find this beauty, but wouldn't trade it for anything