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Hey all been lurking for awhile and finally picked up a 2008 Nighthawk Black Pearl TL base/no-Navi from a cousin. The car has 10700k on it now around 60k on the motor. I got the car in Beaufort, SC and drove it back up North to New Jersey. 15 hours in the car went very well no issues. The oil was clean and the trans fluid was still a good red color after the trip. However, the trans did shift a little rough going from Reverse to Drive but I also have only had 2 manual transmission cars so perhaps I still have to get used to it.
Anyways the car is going to be my new daily driver replacing my Subaru crosstrek. Going to keep it simple with the build I have to fix the driver seat tears, swap the dash, get a new steering wheel, and new shift knob. Along the way I plan on doing coilovers, wheels, TL-S brake swap, sway bars, cat-back and cold air. Happy to be here!!
Restored the headlights with the turtle wax 2-1 headlight restoration and sealer kit and it made a huge difference visually and performance wise. I also cleaned the car inside and out just used armor-all soap and then did the whole car with Meguiars Jet-Black car wax, then with their carnuba wax and what a change in the paint! Finally noticed that there’s a blue metallic flake under years of circles and haze.
Last edited by Ampliified; 06-17-2018 at 05:55 PM.
Hello all, some good news some bad... so I got 4 quarts of Redline ATF D4 to for a 1x3 or 3x3 drain, I also got the rear window tinted to 5%.
As for the rest of the news I got pulled over twice in the same day because my flimsy looking South Carolina Temporary license plate comes back with no info... no tickets for me but I went and registered the car the next day.
I took the path train from Newark, NJ into NYC the other day and when I got back to my car later that night there was a nasty scratch on the hood I noticed right away. The guy working did nothing to make the situation any better and denied any responsibility when it was evident that the scratch occurred there and was attempted to be buffed out.
I washed the car today and some of the marking came out but I’ll definitely need to get some touch up paint to fix it because it’s bothering me greatly. (The photos are Pre-wash)
Today I also attempted to drain and fill the trans but the way my luck works the floor jack wasn’t lifting the car once under weight so I’ll post pone that job until Thursday.
Love the car so far and once all the preventative maintenance is done, the mods will come rolling in.
Sucks to hear you got pulled over twice in the same day for a Temp plate. Lucky for you, no tickets. I wasn't when it happened to me.
Reason number 12453652346 I don't take my TL to the airport/train station when I travel for work. Too many careless people around the car with suit cases, backpacks & brief cases that all hit your car as they walk by. I would try buffing it out by hand or with a buffer.
So I got around to doing the trans drain and fill on this nice and hot day. Easy job considering it was my first time working on the TL and my usual string of bad luck did not follow me.
I ended up draining a little under 4 quarts from what I measured out. Thankfully I bought 4 quarts of Redline ATF D4 and I can now say I’m a believer! The car drives and shifts so much better, especially from Park to Reverse.
The one thing I did notice is the amount of oil residue underneath the trans and I also think the oil drain plug washer is shot because it’s leaking from that at a slow rate because the dip stick has looked fine so far. I wiped it clean and I’ll keep an eye on it when I change the oil in a few weeks.
Side note the rear passenger overhead light started to droop on one side, if anyone has any advice on re-securing let me know!
Last edited by Ampliified; 07-05-2018 at 05:20 PM.
Wipe the bottom of the trans and check it on the nest oil change. That looks normal for a used car, nothing alarming to me. Do you have any run down on the motor below the heads?
So this light got loose and dragged down the headliner with it not sure how to go about resecuring it.
The car is shifting so much better now that I did the Drain and Fill, next up is an early oil change and new oil plug washer. No leaks in the driveway today so that’s a good sign I’d say! Might go junkyard shopping for some stuff like my window lock switch and other small goodies, before I start modifiying the old girl.
So my car has been making a harmonic noise since I got it, gets louder with increase in RPM and was making a squeak in the colder weather. Yesterday I went and got a new serpentine belt, changed it out in about 20 minutes pretty easy job. Only thing is that didn't solve the harmonic whine problem leading me to look at the power steering system. The PS reservoir was above the upper level but the fluid was nearly black, it was not bubbly though. I pumped out what I could and replaced it with Asian PS fluid and its still making the noise but the steering feels slightly better.
Anyways anybody know what it can be? Going to try and take it to the dealership regarding the 07-08 PS o-ring TSB.
06-17-2018, 05:45 PM
