Can anyone help me figure out what this might be? When starting my TL after it has been sitting for at least 2 hours, it makes this horrible sound. It goes away like 2 seconds after the engine starts. I have been searching the forums for days now and can't seem to find anything close to it. Is my starter going out? HELP Please!!

 

It's hard to say for sure, but it sounds like it may be your starter. It sounds like the starter gear isn't meshing correctly with the engine flywheel. Assuming I'm correct you will want to get that looked at ASAP as you do not want to break any of the flywheel teeth.
Again, I'm not positive, but based on your video, that's my guess.

 

Sounds like a maybe weak battery to me. I'm not really hearing any "grinding"...

 

It tends to be a little intermittent. It's the worst when she sits over night. After warming up, the sound becomes faint. It's gotten progressively worse over the past week. its been doing it for about 8 days now. I dont drive her everyday though (3-4 days/week). I was thinking that the starter was not disengaging properly.

 

The sound seems to go away when the starter stops

 

The sound is mixed in with the normal starter sound and just after it. That battery is not even 2 years old. Although, I do have a warranty on it through Nalley Acura so I might have them replace it when I take it to get checked out.

 

Have you heard anything even remotely close to this before? I mean I'm not a master mechanic but I know a good bit about cars and this is a first for me.

 

I have but it was a REAL long time ago and it was a GM vehicle. There is a decent DIY for starter replacement here on AZ if it does turn out to be the starter.

 

Ok, well I'm going to have it serviced today so if they tell me its the starter, I'll get it either today or tomorrow. It will be my first DIY so do judge it too intensely. That being said, if/when i do post a DIY, should I post it in a new thread?

 

Not sure you followed what I said / meant. There already is a DIY here on AZ and can be found here - https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-2004-2008-93/diy-starter-replacement-853757/
You can use this as a guide and/or add to it. If you are going to create your own, I would start a new thread and not post in this one. That way you can put a proper/correct title on it and it can be added to the 3G garage and/or make it more easily searchable.

Good luck and let us know what the diagnosis is.

 

Oh, ok cool. Yea, that's one of the best DIY's i've seen on here thus far. Thanks for the tip! And Acura was booked yesterday so I had to wait until today to take it for service, but ill let you know what they tell me.

 

Sounds good and interested to hear what they find. I hope the intermittent nature of this and/or the fact this it seems to be more prevalent in the morning won't prevent the dealership from hearing and being able to sort this out for you.

 

So I showed the mechanic the same video that I posted on here and he told me that the starter is "hanging up" and that I should replace it. They tried to get me to replace it there, but I'm not going to pay $500+ to them when I can switch it out myself for $77.00 and an hour of my time. The new starter should be arriving tomorrow and Ill change it out on Wed. Ill let you know what happens from there

 

Sound good. It's almost like the starter gear isn't fully extending or fully retracting. Either way you now have a diagnosis and what should be a relatively easy and inexpensive fix.

 

$77.00 for the starter on Amazon and 30 mins of my time = PROBLEM SOLVED! What an amazing difference. It actually sounds like a 2014 TL when i start it now. I'll post a video of the new sound it makes within the next few days.
One another note, do you know of any links to good posts about 05 TL's losing major power, super sluggish, and jerky acceleration? It only happens after ive been driving for atleast 15 mins in combination with driving aggressively or using the Tiptronic shifter? That has been an ongoing issue for about 10 months now and its totally changed my opinion on the TL. Ive tried everything from O2 sensors, air intake, battery, resetting ecu, octane booster + (Only used Premium fuel since day one), etc.. Im running out of options and ideas. My next step will be trading it in for a 335i

 

Would need more info/symptoms to go on, but there have been discussions regarding heat soak in the summer months. In some instances, a brand new battery has help solve the problem, but you listed battery as part of your attempted fix.
Another somewhat common item is the APP sensor going. APP - Accelerator Petal Position sensor. These are just a couple of ideas off the top of my head based on what you have given so far.

 

I could understand the heat soak theory if this hadn't been an issue during this past winter. It doesn't matter what time of year or the outside temp. But symptoms are significant power loss all through RPM spectrum even @ 4500rpm+, Acceleration is jerky until i reach 4500rpm (kinda like the engine isnt getting enough air, but I know its getting pleanty), the engine sounds like it's bogging down and has a very deep tone as if I were pulling a 2 ton trailer or major resistance. It only happens after I take off fast from a red light/stop sign, use Tiptronic, make a turn (from a stop. e.g. stop sign/red light) and get on the throttle a little heavy as i straighten the wheel out. Acura tech's exact words were "I have no clue man. I'm not even sure where to start"

 

Gotta love the response from the Acura Tech..........

I would start a new thread here in Problems and Fixes and let the rest of AZ community weigh in on possibilities.

 

RIGHT!!! And will do! Ive seen many threads about it, but they all are slightly different. Oh, and I seen one of you posts in another thread about the service manual. Im gonna PM you and send you a link to one that I found that has anything and everything about the 3rd generation TL. I figured you might find it useful.

 

Thanks!!