Juls

I know all the talk about the TLX transmission hard/rough shifts from 1-2 and 2-3.

It was also my ONLY complaint about the car, and was so bad I was contemplating trading it in for german.

Well Im now about 2300 miles into my FWD V6 Advanced and it seems that the shifts have gotten much softer, softer to the point where I can barely feel them compared to day 1. I even had my usual passengers commenting "how come it doesn't jerk when you start off from a dead stop anymore?"

Anyone else have this phenomenon happen? Seems like the transmission smoothed itself out and doesn't Shift roughly anymore unless in sport mode.

mapleloaf

I am only 1300 km (800 miles) in and find the same thing. Part of it is getting used to it and not paying hyper focused attention, part of it is learning to use the throttle appropriately, and i suspect there is also the break in factor. It no longer concerns me and I suspect it will continue to get smoother. Like you, this was my only concern, although not a big one, and i'm happy it is fading into the backdrop. Love the car, love driving it, still gives me a thrill after 40 days. Perhaps its "some kind of a thrill" was a good slogan after all

Quandry

I am at 4,600 km and driving today in Normal mode, -15C, the 1-2 shift was hardly noticeable, and there was a very slight bump from 2-3. It was never a problem for me and the 2-3 might have been a bit sharper some time ago in Econ. Driving style may play a part, and I am happy with how it currently performs.

tlxsteve

Never had a transmission issue. Still don't. Guess it is because of the South Florida heat? Or just luck?

CanTex

On my 2.4 with the 8-spd DCT, I'm getting used to the slam when shifting from reverse to drive on a cool morning (35F but 48F in the garage), then the hard shift to 2nd. But today, while almost stopped to await a pedestrian in my path, I received a car-shuddering slam from the transmission. My passengers thought we'd been hit.

I certainly hope there's a fix in the works. If it breaks, no problem. Hit the blue button next to the Homelink buttons, "Hello, Acura? Would you please send a rollback? Oh, and a car? Thanks. Oh and do hurry." We only have to get to 30K miles and thenit's somebody else's problem.

vgr926

I also experience the same issues, although they are becoming less pronounced over time. The morning "reverse to D" jerk and crunch sound was quite annoying back when I just got the car (in September) but now I only feel it when the temperature is <60 F and it is much weaker. Same with the initial gear shifts. The stop sign lunge I also felt a couple of times, and I feel it has something to do with the way how you brake before the stop. Perhaps, if you initially brake lightly, and then suddenly slam on the brakes right before the car stops completely, it might happen. But I haven't experienced it for the last couple of months. Hopefully, it's only a temporary issue. Or maybe I just become more accustomed to the car.

vgr926

Yes, it probably does have something to do with temperature. I find that the transmission jerkiness in my TLX is more pronounced when it's cold.

SebringSilver

Same here. Mine has been buttery smooth from day one.

Even though I've had plenty of German cars, I don't think I would take the current A4, 3 Series, or C-class over the TLX SH-AWD.

bbast07

I'm at 1700 with the same car, and 2-3 will still snap your neck in all IDS modes.

I'm taking it in this week - I can't live with it.

JonfromCB

Mine is "liveable" but not in a league with other $45K cars I've owned.


This may sound hokey to some, but hear me out. I learned years ago that the best ester based pure synthetic transmission fluid made a very noticeable difference in every transmission I put it in...whether a motorcycle or a car. My experience tells me it will also make a difference in my TLX. IF I keep the car past 10K miles, I will be putting the specified Red Line transmission fluid in it along with the
transfer case and diffs' with 100% expectation of improved shifts, performance and decreased transmission noise from each mechanical point. You're going to have to change fluids at some point anyway, so putting a product that is far superior to OEM specs in is worth a try.
I know many of you will be surprised and delighted.

jeremyw

I experienced the same issue several times. I even figured out a way to duplicate to my dealer now. From a cold start (overnight without driving), accelerate gradually and manually upshift to 3rd gear, brake gradually to a complete stop. The big "bang" sound from transmission and the car will lunch forward often happens right before the complete stop. I am bringing in my car tomorrow.

mapleloaf

Regarding the 9 speed transmission on the V6, further to my earlier comments I think the more you apply heavy throttle off the line, the more you feel the first two shifts, especially the 2 one. The more you feather it, the less so, regardless of mode. i therefore suspect different driving styles would explain the different views here on the "snap" factor. It is interesting that some say it's buttery smooth and reviewers don't typically mention anything about the issue.

mapleloaf

I trust you will let us know how this works out?

mapleloaf

Any result yet?

Quandry

^^^Hard to say as you are following up on your own post!

wlkeel

I agree that hardly any reviewers mention anything about some of these transmission problems (either V6 or I4), which surprised me after reading some of the posts on this forum.

But I finally read one where the tester didn't like the V6 transmission hesitation:

Scott Sturgis/Driver?s Seat: Despite hesitation issues, Acura TLX excels on the road | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

JonfromCB

IF I make the change I will share the results....The word "IF" is key. At this point I don't expect to keep this car to 10K miles.

rick2203

i also noticed that in normal mode the trans shifts much smoother than on sport. im 2500 miles in

jeich182

3500 miles on my V6 and I still have a very harsh 2-3 upshift. 1-2 is sometimes but not as bad as 2-3.

mapleloaf

I drive in Normal most of the time and based on my experimentation I would tend to agree with you. My only qualifier that those of us who drive in normal tend to be less likely to bolt off the line than the Sport or Sport + drivers. This would affect how much you feel those first two shifts.

bbast07

TLX - V6 Advance
Bought 12/16 - 1600 miles

Mine was shifting really hard 1-2, and especially 2-3. To the point that I was really regretting the purchase.

I took it into service last week, and they weren't at all surprised. They gave me a loaner, kept it a full day, and reset the shift logic, and installed new software that they had to get approval from Acura for.

1-2 is now like silk, and although 2-3 is still noticeable compared to the other shifts, it's light years better. I'm now enjoying the car - couldn't say that before.

sbillard

Did you get any details on what the software upgrade was? I presume you already had the ECU/Nav update since you got your car in December.

bbast07

Invoice said, " need DPSM 4220 straight time authorization. Reset idle learn and pattern learn - reprogrammed module"

Sorry, that's all they said. And yes, the car already had the ECU / NAV software installed when I got it.

2-3 is still hard in my opinion as mentioned, but much better, and I'm hoping that some miles will smooth it out further.

Also, I noticed no difference before and now in the shift roughness regardless of IDS setting - i.e. normal or sport.

bbast07

mapleloaf

I have an appointment with my dealership in 2 weeks to review the shift issues well documented here. This is with the full involvement of Acura Canada, who I contacted initially. Although no firm commitment has been made officially, I believe there will be a shift logic reprogramming fix in the not to distant future. Although I can live with it as it is, as I usually feather my off the line starts, this car will be even more fun to drive and one to be truly proud of. Fingers crossed!

NJToyMan

I took my TLX V6 Tech in last week for another issue, and mentioned the rough 1-2 and 2-3 shifts to my Service Advisor and the Service Manager. It was refreshing to see them both nod in agreement and acknowledge that there was an issue.

They kept my car for a few days, and had their head tech drive it personally for a few days to test cold morning starts, etc.

I picked the car up late last night, so I haven't had the chance to talk to the manager and fully understand what they did... but the car is (as post above) absolutely silky smooth for 1-2 and 2-3 shifts now!

From what I can try to make out from the repair order- they spent many hours with Acura Tech Line to get this resolved, and wrote the following:

AT-P170A Dog Clutch Abnormal. Updated PCM to ID J4A560. Cleared codes; DO CKP, Learn PGM and Perform Idle Learn Procedure. Vehicle now operating to specification.

So, it looks like new software was installed for the PCM, and the Idle Learn Procedure was done. I hope it stays fixed like this for good. Maybe Acura finally figured it out! : )

mapleloaf

Looks much like the fix that bbast07 received. Thats fabulous that the shifts are smooth. I can hardly wait to get back from holiday and get my car in…..wait, what am I saying….well…Its that Kind of Thrill

jim256

After updating the PCM and clearing codes, is this all there is to the "Idle Learn"? This is copied from the TQI TSB for the TLX:

10. Do the Idle Learn Procedure
To ensure a steady engine idle, do the idle learn procedure as follows after installing the No. 29 BACKUP (10 A) fuse:
1. Make sure all electrical items (A/C, audio unit, rear window defogger, lights, etc.) are turned off.
2. Start the engine, and let it reach operating temperature (the cooling fans cycle twice).
3. Let the engine idle for 10 minutes with the throttle fully closed.
The idle learn procedure must also be done after updating or replacing the PCM. If does not need to be done after
clearing DTCs.

NJToyMan

I would think that there may be more to do than just that, as according to my recent repair invoice- the dealer billed the factory 3.0 hours of technician time for that procedure.
Maybe they factored in the time they spent on the tech line, or to go out for a cup of coffee while the car idled??

George Knighton

While they were playing around with my car, the dealer gave me a V6 TLX Advance to drive for a couple of days.

1860 miles on it and the 2-3 shift was quite noticeable in Normal and Sport. I didn't try Econ or Sport-Plus.

For whatever that's worth.

ostrich

Thanks to all of you who have posted about your experience with the software upgrade!

Now, apart from making the shift changes smoother, I am wondering if the upgrade did anything to your throttle response at all please?

jeremyw

This is a very good question. I suspected a difference: smoother shifter can also mean sluggish throttle response. As far as I can tell, there is no difference after the TCM update. However, it does not solve the problem completely.

bbast07

Mapleloaf,

Can you confirm that 2-3 is as smooth as 1-2?

I'm 2 weeks in after they did my "fix", and 2-3 is still annoying. Under normal acceleration to get to 45 mph from a stop light, 2-3 will still give a jolt in my car.

mapleloaf

Brought the car in today. Service manager drove it and confirmed the shift issues. He will write it up and send in to Acura canada tomorrow and then we wait. Their Customer Service folks have been good at follow-up, so hopefully something will happen quickly. In the meantime, as I am usually fairly light-footed at start up, it's not a big deal, especially with all the great features. However, a fix would be very nice! I will keep all posted.

mapleloaf

"You are right, the shift that is tough is 2nd to 3rd. Weird thing is my S was smooth when I got it but 4000 km later, it is tough between those 2 gears.Not sure what the problem is with that specific shift.
Yea, I find it weird on how it is usually smooth enough for me, but there are those times, not sure if I'm giving more gas or if I'm driving differently, but it does have a clunky shift there. But I've heard that this is not just Chrysler's, this occurs to Acura's and other manufacturers using this 9speed"

Pulled this from the 2015 Chrysler 200 forum. Interesting, but confirms for me that the degree of acceleration rather than the mode is what determines whether the shift is clunky or not.

bbast07

After I had mine in the first time, 1-2 which was almost as bad as 2-3 became like butter. 2-3 was better - at least at slow speeds it was perfect.

Now the bump is there and annoying, especially at about a 20% throttle acceleration from stop (say to get to 45 or 50 mph) from a dead stop - 2-3 will really lurch.

Having done copious amounts of reading (as I know everyone has), I'm convinced it has to do with the dog clutch on that shift not matching revs.

I sent an email to the service mgr at my dealer (which has been great btw), to see what's going on with software updates.

Keep you all posted.

BluePlanet

I own the 2015 V6 FWD and am having the same transmission issues as those here (annoyingly harsh upshifts between 1-2 and 2-3). I called my service advisor to schedule a repair and received this voice message:

"Acura is working on a software update that is supposed to fix that [transmission issue], among a few other things on the car. I won't have that software download available until the end of March. Acura plans to send out a notice to owners of all affected vehicles."

So while some of you have had luck getting a repair, it appears that a more robust fix is on its way. Apart from that issue (not trivial), the car has been great.

bbast07

Thanks so much Blue.

I'm sure that I'll get a similar response to my email.

Like you - I LOVE the car except for that damn 2-3 shift.

mapleloaf

Consistent with what I was told, although I haven't got a specific time frame. Let's hope it all works out.