Hi Everyone, I have an 06 TL with a 6 speed and about 4K miles. I recently started to notice that when I go into 3rd gear it pops out. If I put it back into 3rd gear it is ok. Seems to happen a few times a week. Anyone have this issue? I called my dealer, Acura of Auburn, and the service manager who has been with them for 15 years claims he has never seen this before. Any suggestions would help. Thanks

 

Yea its a really common occurence, search through the threads and youll dig up a lot on it. A lot of people opted to switch to GM transmission fluid I believe, but not too positive.

 

Just ask your dealer to replace the fluid with the new 2007 Honda MT fluid which they use on all 2007 5/6MT Honda's & Acura's.

My car only had 300 miles when I asked them to do it and they promptly done it without asking a single question. I put 800 miles since and I can definitely feel the difference.

 

Mine does it too. I'm use to it now, happens once in a while.
Next service I'm changing the MT fluid to mlody's recommendation.

 

I hate to disagree but I recently put in the new "improved" MTF and saw no appreciable difference. Perhaps even a bit worse. Mine has never "popped out" though it is just difficult to engage 3rd about once a day.

Definitely try the new Honda/Acura MTF. Also give it about 100 miles before you really judge it. It can take a while. If that doesn't help then you can try the GM Friction Modified stuff or keep pushing the dealer. Just know that others have had there g-boxes torn apart and reassembled with no net change.

 

I changed my mtl and used redline mtl and so far its made a big improvement!

 

I also notice maybe twice a day that my car seems to reject the 2nd to 3rd gear shift. The car seems to push the shifter out of 3rd and I even gear grind at times. Took it to the Leith Acura dealer who told me that they couldn't duplicate the problem. Maybe I'll print some of the posts from this thread and tell them to try again. We all know of Honda/Acura transmission problems of the near past...

 

I'm another one that had the new Honda MTF put in recently at 15,000 miles. The shifts are noticealby smoother and I have not had the 3rd gear issue once since the change about a month ago (knock wood!). Before the change, 3rd gear would be difficult to engage about once every day or two.

 

I definitely would recommend trying the new Honda MTF to solve this problem.

I too had a problem with engaging 3rd gear on my '06 new TL. After reading other threads on this topic, I had the dealer put in the new Honda MTF, and the problem cleared right up. It's like I'm driving an entirely different car.

Be sure the dealer has the new MTF in stock--at first, they didn't know what I was talking about. Once I showed them the photo and the part number (P/N 08798-9031A Acura Precision Crafted MTF, listed in the August service bulletin), they were able to find it.

 

Big improvement or fixed the problem? I'd rather go with redline but I'm not looking for an improvement I am looking for a solution though.

 

Update...
I rescind my "Definitely try the new Honda/Acura MTF" statement.

since the quoted post I dumped the "improved" Honda/Acura MTF and I put in the GM Synchromesh Friction Modified. Not just better, completely solved. It's only been about 8 weeks but not one, none, zippo, issue with 3rd or any other gear.

I'm convinced most trying the "new improved" MTF are just experiencing the initial benefit of getting the factory fill out. When I did that over a year ago I noticed it to. Big difference I thought but then it came back. So I tried the "new improved" MTF. Within 3 months I called it "bull$hit" and finally jumped to the GM. If I had only listened to the other converts earlier.

 

Just did the GM swap today, and hands down an improvement in every gear. I went to every GM dealer in town and quite frankly some were scary. The service dept in the first was like some red necked shrine to nascar and also tried to sell me the non fric while I was still reading the bottle. So after 4 hours of tooling round town and giving up to the internet order, i remembered that Cadillac was GM!!!!! Whoa! Shoulda' went there first cause they had it, they got me in and out w/o B.S. and i went to my local shop/ had it changed for 10 bucks .........

I have to mention that the people there were great and I am pretty sure they had never seen an acura this new there. I guided the mech through the sizes and areas he needed to be and they were great. Not like the dealer. offered 10 dollar oil change if I wanted to bring my own oil. LOL.


Not only did the car drive like never before, i could not believe that the 3rd gear demon was gone. For once, since I have owned this car, It has preformed like advertised. I drove about 40 miles today and still no problems at all.

The only problems are feeling confident that it won't pop out or grind when I shift. But that's just not true now.

So don't hesitate even with the new 07, cause the s2000 guys and nsx have the same prob.

It shifts like a hot knife through butter now. Huge diff. Th e GM stuff worked just like was mentioned in all of the posts.

THANKS YOU GUYS VERY MUCH!


I just wish I could say the same to ACURA

 

i juts had mine changed with normal acura fluid and it feels a million dollars better in the cold, i
've've only put on about 500km since but every shift feels super smooth!!!!

 

LOL... The GM dealership I went to was like some time capsule from the 70's. Crappy paneling, yellowed linoleum and dust everywhere. All that was missing was the hot-girl tool calendars. What freaked me out the most was how little crap I got from the parts guy. Oh, sure he asked "What's this going in?" and I thought "Here it comes". So I just said "A Honda application". He smiled and said "I've heard that a lot" as he handed over the goods. He then followed up with "I've worked at lots of dealerships for lots of makes and I think GM fluids are the best I've seen, good luck and have a nice day". Yeah sure he might not be able to back up that statement with an real evidence but the dude sure was genuine and nice.

If that's the first time you ever did it you will notice a big difference. I wish you all the luck but I fear we will hear from you again about this in a few months.

 

Another data point on the other side of the time spectrum.... I replaced my tranny fluid at 3,500 miles on my car with the GM Friction modified Synchromesh fluid. 50,000 miles later the tranny is as smooth as butter without even one bad shift from 2nd to 3rd. It never has popped out of 3rd gear.

What I can't understand is why this issue is debated anymore. In all the threads I've read on this issue:
a) I can't recall one person saying the GM FM Synchromesh fluid doesn't solve the problem 100%.
b) There are several posts claiming that their Acura service department actually replaced the Acura fluid with the GM fluid.
c) No one has reported a transmission failure warranty claim that has been denied by Acura because they used the GM fluid. (and if transmission work were necessary, just change out the GM fluid with the Acura fluid before you brought it in for service.)
d) Heck, no one has reported the need for transmission work after putting in the GM fluid.
e) The GM FM Synchromesh fluid was endorsed by Road Rage, God rest his posts. Road Rage was the most articulate, knowledgeable and informed board member ever. If you have doubt, read his posts. (Ok, you can pretty much ignore his floorjack posts)

 

Has anyone done this themselves. Does the fluid need to be re-filled thru the bottom transmission filler (6MT) or can it be filled thru the dip stick. Owners manual shows three plugs: a drain plug, a check plug (if fluid runs out it is full) and a seperate fill plug. It does not say anything about filling thru the dipstick?

Thanks

 

Fill from the top of the tranny through the fill plug. It is right on top and takes a 3/8 ratchet to undo it. You can access it without removing anything. All you need is a really long funnel.

 

It's easy to do it through the fill plug. Here's a good post from the Road Rage Journals . The post walks you through the process step by step. There are many here who have done it themselves so I'm sure you'll get lots of help if you run into problems.

Oh, and personally I didn't bother changing out the crush washers. I just reused the originals without any problem.

Good luck if you do it yourself!

 

i have the 07 tl-s and mine still kicks me out of 3rd and i have the fluid.... right?

 

You have the somewhat "improved" Honda/Acura MTF. See post #11 above.

 

I hate to be a negative Ned but.....


DOO DOO DOO another one bites the Dust!
At least the stereo sounds great!!!!!

 

2006 TL with 6k miles. I have been experiencing something similar especially these past couple of weeks here in Boston where it's been extremely cold. The shifter doesn't smoothly glide into 3rd and a couple of time I actually released the clutch and found myself in neutral which is telling me that my normal effort is being rejected. A harder push seems to make it work, bodering grinding once. This has happend with 2nd gear also but not as much as with 3rd. I have not yet experienced it popping out of gear once engaged. Has anyone noticed this problem to be more or less sensitive to external temperature?

 

It is generally worse with colder temperatures. What actually happens is it not fully in 3rd gear. After driving for the car for awhile I was able to determine that the shifter would not engage 3rd gear from time to time when I thought it was popping out. The only effective solution is to double clutch when you feel that the shifter is not where it is supposed to be.

 

OMG - I cannot believe that I just found this now. I have had this problem for 8 months, and have been ready to lemon-law my car for the problem. I've taken it to two dealers in the WashDC area for the same problem, both said the same thing: Our techs found nothing, and could not duplicate the problem.
What is the actual name/part# of the GM fluid that everyone here is raving about? I need to get this fixed pronto.
Also, what do the dealers (in your experiences) mark this as - covered/warranty or expensed labor?
I can't tell you how happy this thread has made me today, I thought I was alone. God bless all of you.

 

I just had my car into the dealer yesterday for this same problem. After reading these comments I'd called the dealer and they knew exactly what I was decribing and with absolutely no problems, they suggested changing the transmission fluid. I got it back last night and so far it does seem to make a difference and they told me to give it a few days for it to really work its way in sort of thing and it will improve. No cost to me. Mine is an 06 with 6k miles. I don't know what fluid they put in becuase the person at the service desk didn't know and the invoice printer was jammed so I'm waiting on the paperwork in the mail. Get it done and it should be a warrenty item - they know about this!!!

 

I also have 06 TL and while having 300 miles I asked my dealer to put new MT fluid. Currently my car has a little over 4000 miles and I am sad to report that the problem still exists even with the new and improved fluid. I have not experienced a gear popping out yet, but from time to time, shifting from 2nd to 3rd is not firm and secure – it feels almost like something is blocking the 3rd gear.

I will give my dealer a call to find out what is the next step to fix it. I wonder if they will mention GM fluid or not?

Has anybody complained to their dealer after getting a new fluid changed?

 

Oh... my God. I am having EXACTLY the same problem as yours. Precisely, and accurately, when you mentioned "from time to time, shifting from 2nd to 3rd is not firm and secure - it feels almost like something is blocking the 3rd gear.

That is exactly it. The other gears(1, 2, 4, 5, & 6) are almost like you push the gear light enough and it just engages itself, but the THIRD gear.... is so f#@k'ed up... it feels like somebody put a sheet of metal in it, or something so you can't engage into 3rd. What's even more rediculous is that it happens sometimes. Some other times it's EASY to engage into 3rd, as if it's got its own mind. Moody is a good term here. I am so glad to find out that it's not only my car. I thought I was going paranoid.


In addition, "sometimes" I get to the point where the 3rd gear pops back out when I try to engage it. I have to force it reeeeaaaaaaaalllllllllllllllllllll hard to put into that gear.


This is going to be the last Acura for me.

 

I like your statements... so well written.

I too want a "solution", not the "bull shi.t fix". I want the real solution that will wipe out face of the earth.

I'm afraid that the other guy who said it made a big improvement meant it has not fixed the problem, but just feels a little better. I don't need that. I need the powerful solution my friend.

 

I like your statements... so well written.

I too want a "solution", not the problem reducer.

I'm afraid that the other guy who said it made a big improvement meant it has not fixed the problem. I don't need that. I need the powerful solution my friend.

 

After getting my 06TL in for a MT fluid change I remembered a situation that friend of mine had abut 10 years ago with an Acura Legend that he had. He had this same problem with the transmission popping out of 3rd gear. I don't remember if there were other symptoms like the ones we've been discussing here but absolutely I remember "3rd gear popping out". After several attempts to get it fixed they just gave him a new car since this happened from the first mile driven. That was a long time ago and I'm amazed that Acura still has this problem. For all of us looking for a permanant solution I think we could be out of luck. Or as an optimist I guess we can hope that after 10 years they might be getting close to an answer.

 

Who knows, it could even take 30... 40 years, or never!

Even if it takes 1 year I don't want Acura anymore. This is going to be my last Acura. Byebye

Not that I'm trying to flame anything, but I just don't understand it. Why are Acura engineers designed in such way that causes 3rd gear to not engage/pop out? From what I heard it seems to happen in other models of Acura too. Did they do this on purpose? Are they crazy or something?


I guess this is what I'm going to do:

After I get free "New Improved 2007 Honda/Acura MTF" from the dealer and free car wash, I'm using them to get free car wash, basically, and then a month later go over to Cadillac dealer and get the GM Synchromesh Modified MTF and replace it every 2 months, to keep the oil ultra fresh and lubricant, to keep from 3rd gear to not engage again.

 

Wow,
You've got about 25 posts (in few threads) in about a day on a really well documented item on this board. I would suggest that you probably need a bit less caffeine in your life.

Seriously, just search and read and you will see that this has been gone over and over and over and over again many times. It is perhaps one of the most posted issues on the board over a very long time (if you ignore all the rattle whining)

So, AGAIN, get the dealer to do the new MTF under warranty. If it comes back then find someone to put in the GM fluid. This could be a local dealer or independent mechanic or a friend that has the right tools. If you end up with the GM fluid I seriously doubt that you will need to change it every 2 months. That's just insanity. There are lots of people with GM fluid that is well over a year old with many miles.

 

I am from toronto canada and I also had the same problem. at first when i took my car in the dealership said we can't copy the problem but i knew there was a problem. A family friend works at honda as a mechanic and i explained to him what was happening. He told me it is a problem with my syncro ( I think that is how u spell it) in my tranny. I took it to another dealership and did not mention anything about the syncro. and they came back and told me they have to order a new syncro and new main gears for my 2nd,3rd,4th and 5th grear. it has been 2 months now and I have not had a problem with my 3rd gear at all knock on wood. the friend that works at honda told me there is a bulletin on it but when i called honda canada they said there was not any. I don't know if there is or not but i jus know that my syncro and my gears were chaged and i have not had the problem anymore. hope this helps. I was also advised by acura not to use gm tranny fluid in the car forgot there explanation why though.

 

if anyone want a copy of my service bill i can fax u a copy so you can show ur dealship if they give u problems if that helps.

 

My dealer is a bunch of tools. My 05 has 23K and they said that without a service bulletin it wouldn't be covered under warranty and they would charge me $80 (!!!) to do it. They weren't even aware of the Acura Service News bulletin mentioning the new fluid till I faxed it to them. Then they ignored the part about it having OLD fluid and said it shouldn't have Aftermarket fluid in it. I hate these guys. They had the nerve to tell me I can't powershift it, cause its not a sports car. Maybe cause I'm young, and they were all next to death?

 

Excellent. That's pretty interesting since others have had this done and their problems didn't go away. Perhaps your dealer is on to something new, the other guys just had bad luck or you had good luck. Either way it's good news for you since the car is shifting well. Enjoy and keep us posted.

Of course they told you that !! I seriously doubt that Acura will "officially" ever say it is OK to run a GM, or any other MTF, in their MTs. Sure there will be some dealers that do but Genuine Acura parts and service... that has to be their mantra by design.

What's curious to me is that motor oil, brake fluid, power steering fluid are all by "specification" (e.g 5w-20) but MTF is by "brand". I've seen other times where "fluid brand" is called for over "fluid specification" and I can't recall an application where it was a big problem to use an aftermarket product with an equivalent specification. That said, I will often try and use "fluid brand" when it is called for but with the MTF it just wasn't working out so hot for me so I opted to try the GM fluid before tearing the MT apart.

 

After the dealer changed my fluid the problem still existed. Their lead transmission mechanic took it for a test drive and said the syncros needed to be replaced. It took them 1.5 days to replace and when I got the car back it was better but still not totaly smooth. I stoped by the chevy dealership in town and picked up 3 qts of the syncro mesh and replaced the fluid. Happy to report that it now is as smooth as babys bottom. Acura needs to get with the program and fix this issue. This is just not acceptable with a 36K car!

 

Today I took my 06 TL (w/ 7k miles) to the dealer and had the transmission fluid changed for the 2nd time. The first time they used the Acura fluid and this seemed to provide some improvement but certainly not a solution so I took it back today. They put in the GM fluid and claimed that this should be more effective. When I left they tried to sell me that they already noticed a big improvement on the test drive but when I got in the car I think it might actually be worse. To give it a fair chance I need to drive it more than the 2 miles back to my office.

The dealership has been helpful and they're doing what they can but I'm getting a little concerned that they might tell me to live with it at some point. I didn't pay $31k for a new car so that it could be "not bad". If this problem continues I was thinking that I might request a new transmission but I'm wondering if that's inviting a whole new set of problems. Any opinions on that would be welcomed.

 

My first transmission was very notchy in 3rd gear and would pop out from time to time. I would often have to double clutch to be sure it was completely engaged. My dealers first attempt to fix the problem was to put new Acura fluid in and the second attempt included new 3rd and 4th gear synchros. After they rebuilt the transmission it was far worse than before they tore it apart. The next step was a new transmission with Acura fluid. This one is much better than the first although it is still a little notchy. I plan on switching to GM fluid to solve this problem.

 

just did the gm swap yesterday. it makes a night and day difference. i am always picky about keeping everything in my cars stock and using oem fluids, but after a lot of research it seemed like this was the best choice, and it absolutely was. it is expensive stuff, $12/bottle but worth every penny.