I took my car to my Acura dealership this past Saturday morning for a fifth time because the reverse gear on my 2008 6MT TL type-s occasionally won't engage. The reverse gear lock-out seems to activate even when the car is at a standstill.

This is the fifth time I have notified my dealership about this problem and this is their third time attempting to fix something with my 6MT transmission. The last time they tried to fix the reverse gear lock-out they replaced a "faulty reverse gear solenoid," however, that didn't fix the problem.

However, this time around the dealership is refusing to work on my transmission altogether. I just got a call from the dealership today at 5pm (three business days after I dropped the car off at the dealer) and they said that they would have to take my transmission apart to fix the problem, however, they will not work on my car until I replace the subframe with the TL type-s subframe (I replaced the original subframe with an '05 subframe after a low speed collision I had with the sidewalk in the rain).

The service manager that I spoke to says that "the parts don't fit" on my car and that "the transmission may not mount up to all the points on the subframe and may be the reason for the problem."

I believe that the service manager is simply saying this as an excuse to refuse my warranty. Experts and techs, is there any merit to what he is saying?

The reason I don't believe the subframe is causing the reverse problem is quite simple: the reverse gear lock-out problems with my car began before I even got into an accident and replaced the subframe. I repeat, I have had this reverse gear lock-out problem when my car was completely stock! I have dealership service documents from January 2010 that state me reporting that I can't shift into reverse at times. I also have papers showing that I got my car repaired in February 2010 (replaced subframe).

My reverse gear lock-out problems began AFTER I initially had Acura rebuild my manual transmission in November 2009. I initially took it in because my third gear and reverse gear were popping out after being engaged (I believe it's a TSB).

Techs and experts, please chime in! I really need help in getting Acura to fix my transmission. I'm willing to provide any additional information at your request! I just want my 6MT UA7 fixed

 

Here is the service history of my TL in regards to the transmission:

Since the initial transmission replacement/rebuild I have taken it to the dealership four additional times. Here is the breakdown of this specific issue:

11-16-09 (19,287 miles) went in because 3rd gear and reverse gears popped out after being engaged--> Removed and replaced transmission

1-18-10 (21,467 miles) went in because unable to shift into reverse gear at times--> dealer stated "normal characteristic of car." No action was taken to fix. I believe this can be considered neglect on the dealership's part. No car should be characteristic to not be able to get into reverse gear at times. It can be potentially life threatening (think of my intersection case).

4-06-11 (42,114 miles) went in for same reason (car wont go into reverse at times)--> dealer wasn't able to duplicate customer's complaint. No action was taken to fix the car.

7-28-11 (47,187 miles) went in for same reason (car wont go into reverse at times) except this time I asked to have a technician sit in the car with me so that I could demonstrate the problem. Finally got to engage the reverse gear lockout after several attempts and the technician couldn't get the car to go into reverse either.--> Replaced failed lock-up solenoid.

03-10-12 (~59,900 miles) went in again because car still wont go into reverse at times--> Again, this time I offered to have a tech sit in my car so that I could demonstrate the problem to him (so they can't say the problem couldn't be duplicated). The tech witnessed the lock-out problem and couldn't get it into reverse either. The car is currently at dealership for repair and before I left the service manager even told me that the tech ran into the reverse gear lock-out while trying to get the car into the garage for repair.

The tech told me that he has never seen this problem before and that he was going to call the corporation to see what he should do. This is the same tech that replaced the lock-up solenoid on 7-28-11.

 

Found some good info on here:

https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-2004-2008-93/base-subframe-vs-type-s-781383/

but I still need expert advice! Don't hesitate to help! Anything is appreciated

 

Hard to tell from the parts catalog.

The rear sub-frames are identical '05 MT to '08 TL-S MT because they have teh same part number.

The front sub-frames have different part numbers, but are the exact same cost. Could have been a minor change in spec or a different supplier. Can't tell.

You might be able to compare number and part numbers of the various brackets, mounts, etc., but it will still be somewhat inconclusive.

'05 MT: http://www.acuraautomotiveparts.org/...s=&view=normal

'08 TL-S MT: http://www.acuraautomotiveparts.org/...s=&view=normal


The transmission case for both is exactly the same, part number 21200-RAT-020.

 

Thanks for the help, Bearcat! I looked over all the part numbers and descriptions and it looks like the only actual difference between the two is "SUB-FRAME, FR. SUSPENSION." All other mounts, brackets, etc. have the exact same part number (although they rearranged the "illustration number" in the diagram from '05 to '08 for some reason).

And yeah I noticed that the transmission case for both models have the same part number as well. I don't understand how the service manager can tell me the parts may not mount up; it's the same transmission case used in both models.

Big thanks to all the helpful members of Acurazine for making this place the constructive community that it is.

 

This makes no sense. So the tranny is in your car now and sits fine. And they cant take it out and fix it then put it back in and make it sit fine again?? Some dealers are fucked. I KNOW! Just take it to another dealer. A better one! Get some dealer reviews from this board and choose a new one to go to.

Good Luck!

 

haha thanks man, and yeah I'm not going to take my car back to that dealer again. They actually claim that I have the wrong subframe and that the transmission doesn't "mount up correctly" because of that. I don't think there's any merit to any of that because the transmission case is the same for 04-08.

Oh yeah, and they also claimed that the guy who fixed my car even had to "extend my exhaust" in order to get the subframe to fit lol. I told them that's not an exhaust extension, it's an aftermarket 2-1 collector pipe that I put on myself They tried to make it seem like my modified ATLP v2 J-pipe was fabricated because it was the only way to get the subframe to mount up to the car Service manager is full of shit.

Also, I read somewhere that it's a bad sign when the dealership keeps assigning you different service managers. It means the service manager doesn't want to establish a relationship with you (bad news ). I have seen four different service managers at that Acura dealership due to the multiple times I came in for my transmission. It seems like they don't want to give me a guy that knows the history of my car

New dealership, here I come.

 

What ended up happening?