rmk232

This weekend I made the journey to the Syracuse area to secure a 'new to me" 09' SH-AWD TL Tech. I just sold my S2000 a few weeks ago that was a primarily set up for the track despite the fact I daily'd it.....even in the Erie winter here at PennState. My general first impressions are very good minus the fact I think both front lower door speakers are blown (they rattle with certain songs).

I originally thought the car to be a burgundy color as the dealer described, which I was not wild about. However, the car only had 55,000 miles, came with a warranty, new tires, all records, service manuals, keys, etc. so I assumed I would just deal with the color as everything else was in check. I requested the vehicle be on a lift when I arrived and the dealer complied. When I arrived the car was not the color they described, it was a brown metallic! I had been wanting to warp my S a brown metallic for the past two years so this was thrilling to me. I told the dealer it was miss-advertised and played puppet with them. All in all I escaped paying about 21 out the door for everything which I think was relatively fair.

I plan to change all the fluids here shortly for my own piece of mind as it sat at this Toyota dealer for the last 5 months. The owner of this particular deal had several Datsun and BMW 2002 SCCA cup cars which spiked a lot of conversation as he had just returned from Watkins Glen. I still do not know all that much about this car and have been sifting through the encyclopedia they call a manual . If any of you have any fun little tricks or features please share as I am probably unaware at this point.

csmeance

Congrats and welcome, that color is stunning! I can't believe you have up the S2000! I would have kept it as a garage queen

Either way, your car is wonderful but does have a few faults. The speakers are easy to blow and the car has it's fair share of rattles. Some foam insulation can help a ton with the rattles.

As well the torque converter on SH-AWD models can be iffy, change out the transmission fluid completely (pan only holds 3.5 of the 9 quarts).

The SH-AWD engine tends to drink oil. Start doing an oil consumption test NOW! Mark the level on the dipstick and drive for 1000 miles. The consumption should not exceed 1 quart per 1000 miles. If it does, take it to acura ASAP and show them your documentation. They will end up replacing some core components of the engine since they prematurely wear.

Folks have started putting in 5W-30 oil, 0W-40 and also 5W-20 High Mileage to combat the issue with excellent results rather than the factory 0W-20.

Also seafoaming the car is a great idea, I just did it with 54K on mine and it let out a few plumes of white smoke! Not as bad as the 3G TL with 190K on it!

CerberusKy

iTrader: (1)

Congrats on your purchase. Is it auto or manual transmission? You will be a little disappointed with the performance characteristics of the car coming from the S2000. But the car is relatively fun to drive, and you can now carry more than 1 passenger.
CSMEANCE is right on regarding what to look for... if manual, disregard the torque converter. Sunroofs rattle, but someone posted a fix (use search). Navigation sux (imho).
You may be happy with some coilovers, light weight wheels and good tires. Most of the performance mods for this car yield little to no benefit.

Tonyware

My biggest challenge moving from the S2000 to the TL (I own both) is the dimensions... I forget how big the TL is... as a result there are some bumper scratches on the TL

The speakers are somewhat inexpensive, around $25 each if I remember correctly. Don't mind if you break the tab that holds the top of the speaker, but careful removing the cover of the door grab handle, there is a fastener inside you need to remove to remove the entire door panel.

Good idea to search this section of the forum for the link to download the Shop Repair Manual that describes a lot of these remove-reinstall procedures.

Mechanically speaking, the only expensive issue with the TL you need to address, probably with the warranty at a dealer, unless already done, is the prop shaft noise. Save the ~$1k to replace that shaft, unless its already done.

Also check the condition of the battery, since most '09's batteries haven't lasted too long. I would be surprised if the OEM is still in there!!!

Don't mind the low RPM in 4th gear grinding that comes from the torque converter... there is no 100% cure (other than a half-fix software update issued by Acura). Even if the dealer insists to replace the TC, ask for guarantees. Best thing to do is to avoid that "Sweet spot" when the grinding kicks in because the TC won't lock 4th gear.

Have fun with the TL and remember its not an S2000!!!

Edit: for the oil... what csmeance said.

GhostTL09

iTrader: (1)

Congrats on the TL. From what I have read there were early 09 productions that were built with faulty front door speakers and some were replaced by dealers. That's probably what you're experiencing now are blown speakers.

HeartTLs

iTrader: (5)

Ugh, wish you had figured out a way to have kept the S2K as well, I think you'll regret that decision later.

LoneRonin

where do you put the seafoam?

csmeance

there's a hose with 2 metal clamps on it on the intake manifold right next to the throttle body.




Remove the hose, hook up a 2-3 foot hose to that brass inlet and slowly suck it in. I put the whole can through the engine and shut it off 3-4x during the whole process to make sure it can sit and soak in.

t.schultz

Just picked up my 2010 Tech this weekend, but still have my s2000. Probably going to sell it soon to free up space. Wish I could have gotten the awd, but I couldn't pass up the deal. Congrats!

Funny to see how many TL owners are, or were S owners.

TheMuffinMan

iTrader: (1)

I've got both.

They're neato

Tonyware

I think we need to start a S2000 and TL club LOL. Is it just me or too many of us here at some point owned, or still own, an S2000?

About seafoam: I am not sold on the benefits of that product. At least not on new technology engines, like the one in the TL. By new technology I mean O2 sensors, cats etc. The risk of the catalytic converters overheating and melting always exist. After all, when cylinders misfire, because of seafoam (there is a chance), the gasoline enters the warm-up catalytic converters attached to the exhaust ports un-burn. Gasoline touching a seriously hot catalytic beehive structure catches fire and these can only take so much heat before they start to melt.

My preferred method of cleaning carbs is to unbolt the upper and lower intake, the EGR bypass, and the throttle body and clean them by hand. I know, too much work, but I'd rather spend a day doing this instead of blowing a couple of $K changing collapse cats.

edit: and the debate about seafoam rages on...

fryrice

i just traded my 08 civic si with 194k miles for a 12 TL awd adv. i hope they fixed most of issues found in the earlier years.

but i will check on the oil consumption. my civic si had burning oil issue as well so im use to it but didnt know the TL did the same =/

csmeance

My TL with 200K ran noticeably better, got better MPG and blew out a ton of soot/smell with seafoam. If i melt the cats, I melt them and can use that as a reason to hollow them out or get pre-cat deletes. You don't make the engine misfire at all. The method I use is to sip it into the engine with the engine hot. It runs richer and allows the vaporized seafoam to soak into components. You shut off and restart the engine multiple times in order to let it vaporize and clean.

Austinbarkk

Lol, just sold my s2k and got 2010 tl awd 6 speed also.