Hello,

I am new here. I need advise on if I should buy the following.
2012 Acura TL FWD
125000 KM driven
Interior 9.5/10
Exterior: very minor narrower than finger sized rust on rear wheel fender and by driver door

Timing belt done 3 months ago. Water pump NOT done since his mechanic said it was good at that time.
Listed Price was $12500 CAD. He said last he'll go is $12000.

This is the ad:
https://www.kijiji.ca/v-cars-trucks/...ationFlag=true

Please provide your expert opinions.

Thank you very much.

 

P.S the VIN is 19UUA8F51CA801259

 

 

lol ???

 

Nah... I don't know what to say, so I'll just watch and learn....

 

Theres something about this car that's making me uneasy.... you realize its missing the passenger side fog light right?

Like why would they replace the timing belt at 125,000km? And then not the water pump?

Any accidents?

 

Hmm, tbh when i saw it i was so tired from seeing 5 other cars in the same day that i didnt even notice its missing a fog light. Im seeing it for a second time today and will ask about that.

He says no accidents. Ofcourse hes going to say that. I might have to pay for a carfax report but if he didnt go through insurance then i might have to take it to a body shop for them to check out if its been repainted?

The edge of the front bumper, right by the driver side headlight seems to be protruding by a few millimeters. As if one of the clips isnt perfectly sitting. I dont know if thats to do with a possible crash?

Timing belts been replaced 3 mths ago according to him. Today hell have all the service records ready. My understanding is that timing belts should be changed at 160000 km? Or is it 100000 km

My other boy who works for honda says that if the technicians dont find anything leaks or anything wrong with the water pump, they should not touch it. So apparently in this case there wasnt any thing wrong with it so they didnt change it? Isnt it supposed to be changed at 160000 km?

Thanks for your reply man

 

The timing belt and water pump should be replaced at 105k miles, which is like 160,000km. Just the timing belt being replaced imo doesn't add much of any value. It only makes me suspicious as to why it was done.

Its defiantly worth it to get a carfax if your seriously interested in any car. For the fog light to be missing something HAD to of happened. It cant just fall out. Something happened for sure.

 

Why would you buy a FWD Acura in Canada, it's completely stupid.

 

I mean ive always had FWD cars in Canada. No issues for me. Plus i dont drive as much.
the oil burning issue is scaring me in the AWD. Also, currently i cant find any 2012 AWDs that are low mileage and in good shape

 

Carfax came out as clean as it gets. It shows regular servicing every 3 to 5 mths at an acura dealership. Hes shown me all service records as well. Checks out.

Fog light, he says he just noticed too and has no clue. He cant recall.

Other than that, there is very minute amount of surface rust (scratches) on the rear left tire fender and at the bottom by driver door and fender connection.

Also, i noticed the bumpers arent flush. Thats bothering me a bit. Just some millimeter differences both front and rear bumpers. I searched the forum and found posts where Acura cars have this as a common issue??? No clue.

Tomorrow taking a certified pre-purchase car inspector with me to dig deeper.

 

Yeah, too much rust for me...

 

sorry, second and third pic are of the same thing just camera distance is different. there are thin scrapes of rust. surface rust. this bugs me. but its Canada and it's challenging sometimes to find rust-free everything....

 

Yeah... I'm from Louisiana, so I'm not used to that... LOL.

 

It's a solid pass on that car.

 

Please elaborate. What am i missing? Id appreciate your input.

 

He is asking 12k for a car in that condition....the price may seem right to you, but to me it isn't.
I would much rather spend more money, for a rust free car.

Mechanically, the ad says the car has been very well maintained, which is nice to hear. When I read the ad, I thought "hey maybe its an enthusiast".
But then you posted the pics of the rust and how the door and side skirt aren't lined up correctly.
Immediately, that is enough for me to walk away. The seller isn't an enthusiast as that stuff would have been repaired if he was.
Rust is truly a killer man. That small portion about your wheel well is easily 500 worth of paint and repair.

All depends on your plans for the car. My situation is different than yours.
make a list of pros and cons and scour the market for what's available for your budget.
I would much rather buy a 3g TL with higher kms for this price, but I'm biased lol

Just for an example, there was a 07 3G TL in NBP and 6mt that was posted on my local craigslist.
Car had 198,000km, no mention of timing belt service, but it did have new rotors and pads and a battery.
LEDS were burnt out in the center console in some places, but other than that the car looked very clean.
Also it was stock besides tint in the rear. Seller had it posted at 8500 and it sold within the day!

 

Its just the condition... the panels not being lined up, the rust, the missing fog light.

What would really make me pass is the fact that he said he just noticed the fog light missing too. That's some bs and if he truly didn't notice then thats even worse. Shows he doesn't pay attention or even care about the cars condition. That thing didn't just fall out. If someone selling a car said that to me then its an instant pass.

You'll find something else....

 

Yea I agree. Though he has mentioned he is not a "car guy". Though, all his service records were meticulously done at a dealership. So he didnt cheap out there.

Im taking a pre-purchase car inspector with me next week to check it out.

 

Yea he's definately not an enthusiast. He's like a middle age banker that has kids and what not. His service records at the dealership were impressive. Has like a 3 years worth of services done at the dealership. As for the alignments, i researched it and apparently even some new cars right out the factory come with panel mis-alignments. It's on youtube too. So I'm not sure if this is what it is? The fog light missing is weird af lol

Next week Im paying someone to come take a closer look at the body and let me know whats up.

My budget is around 12k max. I found the following for sale as well which is an option:
https://wwwb.autotrader.ca/ico/acura...202C3&sprx=100

The guy cant stop bragging about how clean it is etc. Only thing that scares me away is the fact that:
1. its an 09
2. AWD --> Torque converter issue, oil consumption issue

 

this is an option:
https://wwwb.autotrader.ca/ico/acura...202C3&sprx=100

I will be checking it out in person in a week. but its an 09 tho. and im worried about torque converter and oil consumption issues from the hysteria going around online...

 

Have you seen this?

https://wwwb.autotrader.ca/a/acura/t...%202X2&sprx=-1

I know it's a little over your budget but the condition, mileage and carproof report make up for it in my opinion. That white looks so nice, makes me wanna sell my black "12 6MT for it

 

Not a fan of it being an 09 and not a fan of it being a base model. Tech pkg at least is a must imo. But at least its in better condition haha.

 

The 6mt is priced aggressively. seeing that it's at a dealer means you have some leeway with the price.
Also, its got less than 100,000, I would be very interested in that

 

my budget was originally 10k-ish. im pushing 11.5 if anything

 

this just popped up:

https://www.kijijiautos.ca/vip/95112...%2C-79.3831843

dude is a straight foreigner. barely speaks english. so ill have to go and see in person

 

what u think?

https://www.kijijiautos.ca/vip/95112...%2C-79.3831843

 

i find it odd that there are only a handful of 4g TLs for sale in the private market. Honda, Fords, Hyundais, Toyotas are everywhere....

 

looks fine from pics but you gotta go see it
car buying is not an easy thing
also, looks like the callipers/brakes are rusted to shit, or it could be paint.....go see it

 

Its old red caliper paint. Seems okay from the picutres, worthy a look.

You know the differences bettwen the 09-11 and 12-14 models right?

Someone's going to get a great deal on that white 6mt!!!

 

I believe i know the diffs. But am no veteran in the matter obv. Could summarize in point form a few of the diffs. I just want to confirm if thats what im thinking as well

 

Friday gnna check it

 

You should consider the white 6mt man.
That thing will last forever if maintained evens semi decently.

 

I agree 100%. You won't come by something like this for a while. To put it in perspective, I got my 2012 TL 6MT with 150,000KM for roughly the same price, back in September. And I had to drive 2.5 hours for it. So this is a steal.

 

I wish man. Not this time

Im gnna check the 2010 AWD white one tomorrow. Is there a way to check or know the condition of the propeller shaft?

 

So far, I like the white one!

 

Which one? The one Nav showed? The 2013
Or the one 2010 AWD?

 

Oh... There's two? Like I'm paying attention... "Stupid me"...


The 6-speed seems nice, nav seems nice too!


The 6-speed is definitely a more unique car! (Very rare and underrated, I'm sure...)


I'd say the cleaner one, but the AWD/6-speed though...


WDP is easily my favorite Acura color and looks good with that big, usually somewhat unattractive grille!

 

Guys,

Just saw this one

https://www.autotrader.ca/ico/acura/...5_11_11&pc=L1Z 2C3&sprx=100

Older italian guy. Maintained it niceeeee. Cleanest of all the TLs so far. No rust. No accidents. Panels align perfectly. Timing belt changed.

Buttttt its an 09 and NO Navi. Not the tech package. Im really bummed out bout the no navi.

And he wont budge a $ from 11.5k CAD

 

But atlest it's the SH-AWD model...



Did you ever look at the other white TL's?