ExGMan

I have a new 2013 TL SH-AWD w/Tech. I have owned it for a couple of weeks, and yesterday, it spontaneously shutdown the Navigation system, and left the following message on a black screen: "There is a problem with the DVD mechanism. To prevent further damage, the navigation system will shut down. Please visit your dealer as soon as possible." Also, the number "20" appeared in the lower-right corner of the screen. This message appeared for about five seconds then disappeared. I noticed that the screen was completely dark, that the backup camera was disabled, but otherwise the car and audio system ran just fine. Each time I started the car, the same events occurred. My dealer (Prime Acura in E.Walpole, MA) was open on New Year's Day, and the Gen. Sales Manager asked me to bring it in this morning.

When I started the car to go to the dealer this morning, the problem did not recur. It has been with the dealer all day, and they have been unable to replicate the issue, and said they had never heard of this happening.

Needless to say, this makes me very nervous about the future with this car. Has anyone who sees this heard of or observed this same problem? In the BMW world, the immediate answer would be to "flash" the system, that is, re-install the entire operating system of the car. I would think that would be a reasonable step here instead of trying to replicate a single event.

I'd appreciate any ideas about this.

Thanks - John Gamel

potmilkz

Dealer!

oc48bound

Since the nav "DVD" in the '13 is really a hard disk it makes this error seem really odd to me. There are plenty of experts on AZ and unfortunately i'm not one of them but if I had to guess I would say you have a flakey hard drive or a loose connection somewhere. The good news in either case is if it is going to fail it will do it long before your warranty is up. I would try tapping the side of the center console (with your hand) to see if you can reproduce the error.

The other silver lining is if it fails say, two years from now and they replace the nav system you should get an updated map DVD out of the deal. When mine failed in my 3G the new nav came with a new DVD.

Please let us know how this turns out.

Edward'TLS

It's a lemon, and the dealer is the only place for a fix, if any.

ExGMan

Thanks. Yes, it has been with the dealer for 24 hours. They're trying to "replicate" the error, which might have been an isolated event. I serve the BMW Car Club of America as an ombudsman, so I think I'm pretty good at cutting through the dross and getting to the heart of an issue. I agree it's probably software/firmware/hardware related, and a bad HDD (not DVD...an old error message probably) clearly just needing a replacement/reprogramming.

ExGMan

The dealer has been very attentive and helpful with this problem. End result: the total shudown issue has not recurred since it first happened. Problems with USB connectivity to my iPhone 4S were apparently created by the "Mophie Juice Pack" case I use on the 'phone. Removed from the case, it works perfectly. Dealer spoke with Acura about this, and there are apparent issues with various phones (BlackBerry, Samsung, and now iPhone) when certain accessories are used.

Long-story shortened, those with USB/BT connectivity issues might try stripping the phone/device to its original state, making the connection to the car with the original cables.

I hope this is helpful to someone.

mlopez_4

Glad you got this resolved and it removed your doubts about your new car and you can feel at ease. I have had cases in the past with cases for the itouch and Iphone where weird behavior was exhibited.

ExGMan

OP here...

After a couple of months of non-eventful driving, I have suffered the total Nav shutdown again. Symptoms: Screen lights up at startup, then goes dark and puts up message about problem with "DVD drive" then shuts down to black screen. Backup camera is disabled, but audio system works on everything but HDD and USB inputs. All other functions of the car are normal.

This happened five days ago (3/15) and then again this morning (3/20). It returned to normal both times within a couple of hours, but I was able to get it to the dealer in its disabled/non-functional state. Now that the dealer has seen it happen, the next plan is to replace the HDD/Radio/Nav unit but they had to call "Engineering" first.

More specs: 3025 miles on the ODO. Nav updated after the first failure, and software went from Ver. 2.3 to Ver. 2.7 (the Purple discs).

This must be a unique failure, but dealer is responsive.

Ionized

I'd take a picture of the error so you don't have to mess with dealer replication of the issue. Maybe post it here and see if anyone else has experienced the problem.

ExGMan

Thanks for the idea Ionized. Here is a photo of the screen which appears when my TL shuts down the Nav, backup camera, HDD input and USB input:



After this screen appears, the entire display goes black.

As noted the dealer has advised that Acura Engineering wants to install a new HDD as an attempt to fix this issue. I'll advise on outcome.

ExGMan

My dealer installed a new HDD unit in my TL. Apparently the replacement involved the removal of some pieces of the center console. After the replacement, all is fine and the failure of the Navigation unit has not recurred.

I signed the paperwork for the replacement, and it looks like the unit and labor came to almost $700, which is the number I imagine Acura will pay the dealer.

My SA told me that there has been a second failure of this HDD unit in another 2013 Tech-pkg TL at the same dealer.

satsplace

Two days ago, I experienced this EXACT same message and shutdown in my 2010 Acura TL SH-AWD w/Tech Package. I followed the instructions of the error message and made an appointment with my local dealership. Unfortunately, this message DOES NOT register on the Messages screen in my vehicle. Thankfully, I still have an active extended warranty plan that will likely cover the cost of this issue. I received a call from the dealership informing me that they were not able to replicate the error, and that my car was not equipped with a DVD Player. A quick search led me to this thread....I noticed that this thread is several years old so I ASSUMED that by now Acura would have a resolution in place for this problem. Unfortunately, it looks like this issue is still as big of a mystery today as it was in 2013. I've reached out to both Acura Client Relations, and my local dealership with this information. I hope that this thread helps them get to the bottom of this issue.