had to get it towed and get a new starter.

So, this morning at about 6:30 I went to go get gas. After filling up, I get in and try and turn the car on and nothing. All electric worked inside the car but it wouldn't turn over. Tried jumping it with the same response- nothing. Eventually, the tow truck came and I got it over to my indy mechanic. He diagnosed it to be the starter. He also told me that there was no need to go OEM with the starter so I went with his suggestion and saved $150 vs. buying OEM.

Anyways, here's my TL on the tow truck. Just thought I would share my fail for the day.

 

Damn that sucks! At least it's nothing serious. Hope the tow truck didn't scratch anything whiling getting it on the flatbed.

 

Sorry to hear what happened but the car looks great, on a tow truck or not...LOL!

 

I was really worried about that too but the driver did a really good job being careful with my car. He really liked it and said it looked good. He said this was the second TL he ever had to tow. I watched very carefully as well as it was being loaded and unloaded.

 

Sorry to hear about the starter. How miles did the original one last you?

Your TL looks good even on a tow truck

 

Wonderful way to start your morning!
How long did you have to wait for the tow?

 

My TL is an 05 w/ 91k miles. I waited 1 hour for the wrecker to come.

Interesting tidbit for those of you who don't know this already. I wasn't part of AAA or any motor club, My buddy told me that if I called and set up an account (I used Allstate since that's the company the car is insured with) that I could start using the services immediately. So I tried it, got the "deluxe" package for $108 which includes 4 service calls including towing, jump starts, gas or lock outs up to $150.00. I feel as though it's already paid for itself and have 3 more service calls to go. Hopefully, I wont need it.

 

Sorry to hear about that. Kind of alarmed at the number of failed starters for the 04/05 TLs I've seen on the forum so far...

For future reference, what are the details on the starter your indy is installing?

 

I will check with him tomorrow and report back.

 

That is interesting. I thought AAA has a 2 day wait before new members can use their emergency road services.

 

Man, car looks good even on a tow truck. Good to hear it's all working out for you at least.

 

I have an '05 as well and had a problem with it starting 2 years ago. Mine turned out to be an electrical issue rather than a starter issue though. Glad you were able to get that resolved.

 

Can you elaborate on this electrical issue?
symptoms being: loss of navi, loss of radio, not starting?

 

How much did the aftermarket starter run you verse OEM?

 

After looking for my thread, it was actually from 4 years ago.

Here it is from start to finish.

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...light=starting

 

Parts and labor came to $275.00. Mechanic stated that if I wanted OEM it would be an additional $150.00.

I asked him about the brand, he stated it is a "USA" starter?? He gets it from a parts warehouse.

 

You are probably correct. I didn't call AAA though, I used Allstate which is the same company/motor club my friend uses.

 

Thanks trance, I updated your thread.

 

^ Great. Hope it helps him.

 

Damn man that sucks! Glad to see you got it resolved quickly! I gotta find out from you who your Indy Mechanic is. Car is still lookin great!

 

Glad everything worked out

 

ok, this is going to sound :ghey: but i have noticed the last few days that when i go to start her up the TL just sounds so good like it is so peppy and new.

 

Haha that's not gay. I'm kind of a bit worried since my TL is the same age/mileage as yours and it takes a hair longer to start than it probably should.

Your TL looks dead sexy even on a tow truck.

 

The majority of Hondas take a bit longer than most cars to start up. I think it's a more fuel-efficient method of starting. I'm guessing an aftermarket starter would eliminate that, but the savings are probably negligible.

 

As long as the starter comes with a warranty you'll be good to go. I've seen rebuilt starters that hadn't even been cleaned inside when rebuilt and usually the minimum amount of parts are replaced, but on the other hand I'm certain there are some quality products on the aftermarket self. Just an example, rebuilt units can be had $140-$250, while the factory starter is $346 list-$260 net. Curious to know the supplier. Good luck.

 

did you try putting you key in the gear lock, for some reason, i had the samething happen but i just pop off the gear lock thing and the car started again..... so saved me alot of money and worries...

 

My starter failed months ago, couple weeks after I bought the car.

It crapped out at a friend's house, so I just left it there and got a friend to bring me a new starter, and we replaced it ourselves.

It could have been better (car stuck in my driveway), and it could have been worse (car stuck somewhere public, like a gas station).

 

Didn't you have the rear caliper problem also? Hope your streak of bad luck is over!!

Just for reference, what starter did you put in? What kind of warranty did it come with?

OP-might have missed it, but what kind of warranty came with your "USA" starter? Was in new or remanufactured?

 

Effing Ironic.. last night my fiancee decided to go to the mall to kill some time after work and before her company dinner. She gets back to the TL (ABP slushbox like ggesq) and it doesn't turn over. To top it all, she forgot her phone at home, I was training late that evening, so she leaves the TL at the mall and catches cab to downtown for the dinner. She calls me to pick her up explaining the story after I had just ordered dinner with my buddies at a restaurant.

ffffuuuu!!! I pick her up, go to jump the car and nothing. Farking starter.. I pull out my breaker bar which is very handy to thwarting attackers and smashing starters. I popped it a few times and it started right up.

Damn starter.


Btw.. ggesq.. what's up with the mix & match RJ's?

 

If it started after beating on the starter, you may just need new contacts and/or to clean/replace the brushes....In fact, I wonder if that's all that is going wrong with all the failed '04 starters that seem to be cropping up.

 

another 04 starter took a dump today ...is it easy to take off as other honda engines. i've replaced civic starters and my subaru wrx.
would it be just the contacts and 2 bolts?

 

Yep, pretty much. Different torque specs for the two bolts, interesting...:

 

^ thanks. the only PITA bolts were the 2 bottom one of the battery tray.
look like king kong tighten the 2 bolts on the starter.
so i had to bust out the breaker bar.
started like a charm...
got quote 280 for oem starter, 340 with labor.
another shop 280 with starter and labor.
DIY 80 bucks with core exhange. and 45 mins... ahhhhh

 

Mechanic stated it came with a lifetime warranty. It is remanufactured.

 

What do you mean? They are all liquid graphite?

 

Might be but I was there when the mechanic was beating on it and nothing.

 

true.

 

I was referring to Majofo's experience.

 

That's a good deal! You just took in the old starter and they gave you a reman starter for $80? Where?

 

It could definitely be the contacts. I pulled the solenoid contact and it came off like it was greased with butter. I cleaned it a bit and crimped it down but no change. More than likely I think my solenoid or relay needs replacing. I'll be testing it out tomorrow and hopefully it's not a relay or ignition switch. I'd like to knock it out in the morning before the game.

$80 w/ core exchange is a pretty good deal. I like the national part store deals since they're LLT but they're typically in the $180-220 range. Starters don't typically bite the dust more than once in a typical vehicle ownership so $80 > LLT.