virafp

OK, so I got a call from Power Acura today. The service advisor said that they drove a "few TLS that came in for service" and they all are the same - so, basically it is a characteristic of the car, and there is nothing they can do.

Not only that, but even the third gear notchiness was not detected. Additionally, there was something loose and sliding around under the dash - the tech heard it when we went on a test drive, and now they say they cannot find anything.

All I can say is that this in not the same Acura that built my 1998 and 2001 Legends. This is a poor quality car, and Acura is looking the other way.

Viraf

ltkaufman

HI Viraf,

I hear you. I had the DSP test drive my car and they gave me the same crap, it is normal noise (yeah for their crap struts). I have been in communication with ACS and filed a lemon law claim. As the 09 is a whole new suspension, my guess is they dont want to invest the money to fix it for 2 model years.

I finally got ACS to give me a 7/102 mile extended warranty as I think those struts are going to fail.

Unfortunately it is what it is and we have to live with it. If we change the the struts out they will claim we modified the car and will not cover repairs. What crap.

I will tell you this, this is my LAST Acura I will ever purchase

Sal's Type S

iTrader: (1)

I have an 08 Type S that was manufactured in late August of 08 i have a little over 2000 miles on it i have not heard any noise coming out of it yet am i safe or should i start waiting for the clunking to start, i did get the extended warranty though. Hopefully this helps, just a hassle taking in for service.

juniorsir

Have a 2008 TL-S with 5000K miles. Starting hearing "the clunk" around 3000K miles (I think). Brought the car in today to a dealer in LI NY. Took one of the techs for a test drive .... before we got out of the dealer lot he said "yup I hear it", there's something wrong. Bringing the car back next week for service. We'll see what they say.

Bender

This car has as many diy projects as my 82 jeep on 35" tires. I got tired of always working on the jeep so I went and bought a luxury acura LOLOLOLOL!
Well it's very sad indeed that we are all getting the shaft with something we took so much pride in with a reputable company.
I have an 05 tl mt and have had the clunk since I bought it late 06. I took it to the dealer with a few tsb's I printed out from here. The had my car all day long with no loaner and all they did was change the oil.
They told me they could not replicate and of the tsb's I brought to their attn. I called and filed a complaint with acura but there is not much more i can do but live with the clunks and rattles i guess.

rear clunk = living with it
3rd gear grind = gm fluid
failed driver door actuator = turned of auto locking feature still living with it.
chrome coming off steering wheel emblem = living with it
fake metal coming off shifter knob = living with it
Incredibly squeaky brakes when at slow speeds = got new breaks, rarely does this now
can see the air bag outline in dash = doesnt really bother me

What really pisses me off is the rear clunk. I read that there is a way to tighten the pillar maybe through the back of the seats in the rear.

I recently moved and hauled lots of weights in the trunk when I removed the weights the clunk was almost gone. LOL WTF. Something is defiantly loose.

should have gone with an infinity.

Bender

Forgot about the creaking clutch = living with it

Minarets

crap! this thread just scared the living hell out of me (potential new Type-S owner)

juniorsir

Dropped the car off this week, they replaced both rear struts. Took a bit more than half the day, they gave me a loaner for the day too (a new TL). No questions, fixed under warranty. I don't hear any noise now from the back.

In speaking with the tech, he mentioned this issue is not limited to the TL-S. They've fixed base TLs too, one right off the truck...

wizardjjr

I just took my base 08 TL in this week for this issue. This is the second time I have had a clunking noise coming from the wheel area. The first time it sounded like it was coming from the rear only. The dealer replaced the rear driver side strut the first time. Now it sounds like it is coming from the front. The dealer ordered another strut. Now I am waiting for the dealer to install a new strut on the front passenger side. I hope this fixes the clunking issue. I am very annoyed because this car is very new. Where is the friggin quality control?

Bender

I hope it gets resolved. I have one in the rear pass. Been there since 06. No problems just sounds like crap over bumps. Funny thing is dealers couldn't replicate the sound so it never got fixed. I will eventually take it apart and fix it. It just doesn't bother me anymore.

It is a very common problem though. Give the search a try you may be able to fix it yourself.

clsbuyer

I just purchased a preown 20008 type s. Is the rear shock problem an issue with this year model and trim?

lowd77

Has anybody had a recurring problem with the rear dampers after having them replaced?
Do the "new" dampers develop the thud/clunk noise?

korrupted

I haven't had a recurring problem.

sskillett

I just bought a 2007 TL-S as well. There is a little bit of clunking coming from the suspension. I thought it was because of the Type S stiffer suspension.

Is there still issues with this? Could my car be one that has not been fixed? It is a Certified Pre Owned car, so it has warranty. May have to talk to the local Acura dealer.

Bender

I didn't think the 20,008 even had tires.

blueridger

Add another one... my '07 TL (not S) with 30k miles is clunking in the rear... call to the dealer coming up

Bender

I agree.

DjKapella

whats up everyone? names mike and i just picked up an 07 tl type s wth 50k on her. certified up until 100k. car drives amazing but there is a clunk coming from the suspension over small and large bumps. ive read all about it on here and i know theres a long thread about it. i brought it to the dealer and they finally replaced the rear struts but the noise is still there. they didnt do the front but i know its coming from all four. is there anything else that would be causing the noise or maybe the struts they put in were bad?? any help would be great!! could it b the sway bar?? or a specific part in the suspension?? i drove 2 other tl type s' they had on the lot and they all seem very loud in the suspension.

thanks
mike

Bender

I have read some where on this forum about a bolt on top of the strut tower that you can tighten down. You have to go behind the seat in the rear but I dunno about the front.

wizardjjr

Update -- They fixed my '08 Base TL. The clunking noise I was hearing coming from the rear continued even after they replaced the rear left strut. After getting the car back I noticed the clunking noise was still there. I took the car back to the dealer and they noticed the noise was coming from the front passenger side strut. After the dealer replaced the front passenger strut, the noise went away entirely and hasn't come back. It's been over 5000 miles now and no noise. This really makes me happy because now the car is perfect with no issues. My advice is to make sure that you have all the struts thoroughly checked out if you have this issue.

I also own an 08 TL Type S and there are no problems to report other than an occasional rotten egg smell at WOT. And after I switched gas from Shell to Chevron the smell is almost completely gone at WOT.

TJD2007TLS

iTrader: (3)

Got just under 60k on my '07TLS and the clunk in the rear over small and large bumps is getting worse. Dealer stated it is something in the rear suspension, not the trunk lid or body panel in the rear. Have to take it back. A real PIA on such a great car. I just looked through Ron A's list of Service news from 2007 to current and there is not a TSB but I heard there is one. Anyone know what the number is?

wizardjjr

Have the dealer check the front struts too. The clunking noise I had going over bumps was fixed after the dealer replaced my driver side rear strut and passenger side front strut under warranty. It took a few trips to the dealer, but all is well now.

TJD2007TLS

iTrader: (3)

Today dealer told me he has to order rear struts and other parts for my 2007TLS with just under 60k and will be done under warranty. The Acura TSB for this is 07-039 dated July 20, 2007 and shows the parts needed.

DjKapella

hey guys thanks alot for all the info! I still havent taken it back to the dealer yet but i plan on soon. the noise is still there and its still coming from both the front and rear and the rears were just replaced!? TJD you said your dealer ordered rears and "other parts". What were those "other parts"? and yea theres a sticky in problems and fixes that has all the tsb's

lokijibber

I know I'm reviving an old thread, but was wondering if anyone has had this issue after running a set of coilovers or other aftermarket spring/shock setup.

Doing some pre-purchase research.

Beat-Freak...

I have a clunk after installing full coilovers. Been lazy to have it checked out. I just turn up my music.

Russell B.

My 03 has the same clunk, noticed it before I bought it & the dealer diagnosed the right rear strut. Mechanic said they are gas filled and the seals go bad over time or are sometimes installed incorrectly. Got some $ off of the price.
Just dealing with it for now.

dj5

Bump to an old thread.

My '08 TL-S with 40k miles just started having this rear suspension clunk when going over small bumps. I'm taking it in on Wednesday along with a copy of the TSB. Hopefully they will get it fixed on the first attempt.

D Loke

Does anyone have the TSB or ACTUAL fix for this issue? I have the annoying clunk coming from the rear over small bumps as well.

4drviper

i'm curious if that clunk hurts performance. if it doesn't, it won't bother me.

ideraid

I'm having this same issue on my 2007 TL-S, so far I've replaced the center stabilizer bushings to no avail (cheapest fix first, right?) and completely disassembled and investigated the rear trunk and back seat area for noises. The noise does in fact appear to be coming from the struts as indicated in the TSB - every other suspension joint appears to be in good working order, no evidence of bushing deterioration, etc.

I bought this car used a few years ago and I think the clunking has gotten louder, also noticed the rear struts still have part number ending in SEP-A17 so it looks like the previous owner didn't have them replaced with the "fixed" SEP-A18 ones.

Given that my car has almost 97k miles on it now and out of warranty, has anyone tried calling their district manager to have their struts replaced out of goodwill consideration?

I doubt this clunk impacts performance, but it really is annoying as all hell.

jon2000

I also have a 2008 Acura TL Type S and have an annoying clunk/thump/rattle sound in the rear drivers side suspension over large'ish bumps. I had new A-Spec suspension installed around 5000 miles ago. The sound is high up in the deck lid area. I was figuring it was a stabilizer link so I ordered some new Moog stabilizer links and tossed in a Progress rear sway bar (includes new bushings). The car is making the same sound. I read in another thread that someone had an issue with an air bag cylinder having an internal rattle - this was in the rear deck on the passenger side if I remember correctly. Any thoughts/updates?

Thanks,
Jon

ideraid

hey jon2000, the clunk I hear also sounds like it's coming high up in the deck lid area. I completely removed the rear deck lid and rear c-pillar panels for investigation, but didn't see anything unusual...of course, I put everything back before I thought to inspect the c-pillar airbags for rattles, we might have a similar problem outlined in this thread:

http://www.nissanclub.com/forums/200...-inflator.html

I'm hesitant to replace the rear shock assemblies after reading many posts in this thread from people who HAVE replaced them or installed new coilovers, etc and still having "clunk" issues.

jon2000

Ideraid, yes the link you posted in very similar to the one I read on here.

3G Garage #F-079: https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-2004-2008-93/rear-deck-rattle-finally-found-source-pics-inside-3g-garage-f-079-a-574264/

In the thread linked above, the OP said the dealer found the ratting was caused by the XM adapter in the trunk being loose. Maybe they did something with the air bag inflator as well but didn't tell him. I'm going to try to check this today. Just for clarification, I didn't have the rattle until recently and that was with new shocks/suspension already installed. I thought the sound was a bit high up to be the stabilizer links - at least I got an upgrade out of the whole ordeal! lol

Jon

ideraid

I tried recording the clunking sound, please let me know if you can hear it and if it sounds similar to your noise.

http://www.filedropper.com/clunking

I agree that it sounds too high up on the strut to be stabilizer bar related, I'm still hesitant to purchase new strut assemblies on a prayer that it will fix the problem.

jon2000

hmmm....that is a different sound than I have. Mine isn't a constant rattle like that but more of a "thunk" on larger bumps like a speed bump or very rough surfaces. I took the c-pillar cover off and hired the wife to drive my car around while I sat in the back. Definitely seems less noisy when the suspension is more loaded from someone sitting in the back seat. The noise also was not coming from the airbag inflator area. It seems to be coming from the top of the shock tower. It sounds like a loose bolt but I would be surprised if it is since everything was tightened properly by my mechanic/buddy when he installed it. I think the rear deck will have to be removed again when it's warmer out and more troubleshooting done.

Jon

ideraid

That recording was over a stretch of segmented concrete often found in subdivisions. I hear that sound constantly throughout the day, welcome to my nightmare. When I had a friend drive the car and I sat in the back to listen, it seems like the sound is coming from on top of the strut tower too. I took off my left rear tire to get a better look at the strut assembly and did NOT notice any leaking of any kind.

The sound I'm hearing is very similar to the one in this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...=bNIuqOJgc3M#!

jon2000

I was driving around this morning and the more I think about it, the more I think my sound is the same as yours (just a slightly different tone - think it's just the recording though). I was driving over some railway tracks and I could hear the sound continuously for a couple seconds. I'm thinking next step is to pull the rear seat back out, remove the rear deck and have a look at the shock tower bolts.

Jon

ideraid

Well, I broke down and ordered new shock assemblies. Believe it or not, the shocks themselves were only $19 cheaper than the whole assembly ($111 vs $130 - includes all the gaskets, dust covers, spring) and they come fully assembled. Not having to dismantle the old assembly and mess with the dangerous spring just to replace the shock will not only potentially be safer but it'll save some substantial time during the install - worth the $19 in my opinion.

I've had my rear seat out for a few weeks now, thinking of new stuff to help identify the cause of the clunk. Everything looks normal from above, but I still believe the noise to be originating from the top of the shock assembly, or at least very near it. I'm thinking either the rubber gasket/noise dampener between the upper shock mount and the spring is deteriorated or the upper shock mount itself is the culprit, I guess we'll know when I dismantle the old assembly.

jon2000

Well worth the $19 is right! This will be interesting to see if it fixes your problem. I'll be pissed if my is blown. I bought my A-Spec suspension (came assembled like your shocks) in July and have put around 8000 km's on them. Not impressed! Please keep us posted.