AcuraZine - Acura Enthusiast Community - 4G TL Problems & Fixes

Timing Belt ripped after 5K miles

Sergey-TL-MDX — Sun, 17 May 2026 22:19:15 GMT

Hello Acura people, first time here 🙂
I replaces timing belt on my Acura TL 2013 about 6 months ago and 5k miles drove after that. Last week the car stalled while driving and I couldn�t start it up any more. Checked OBD: P0171 and P0174. At first I thought something about fueling but later discover timing belt ripped bad. Pryor to damage, did not hear any noise and no any lights on dashboard (check engine, etc)
planing to replace damaged parts but wanna see if you can help me what went wrong
thank you

Consensus on TL SH-AWD oil consumption issue

testhound — Sun, 17 May 2026 01:29:41 GMT

I am considering purchasing a 2013 TL SH-AWD and want to know if the oil consumption issue is a show stopper and if there is any consensus solution?

A/C Compressor Clutch/Relay Replacement 2009 Acura TL

yotakid — Thu, 30 Apr 2026 15:26:39 GMT

Hello, My wifes 2009 Acura TL A/C has been intermittently working. Yesterday it finally stopped. I found a few good posts to help diagnose and it seems the compressor clutch or coil may be bad. I've attempted to hot jump the connector under the relay and do not hear the compressor engaging. I've tested the plug wire that goes to the compressor and can measure 12v when i hot jump and 0v with no jumper so i know its getting power to the compressor plug. I've found a few write ups for people replacing the compressor coil for the 2004 - 2008 TL here https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-p...-guide-772614/

and for the 2007 - 2012 RDX here https://acurazine.com/forums/1g-rdx-...ressor-862720/

is it a fairly similair project. i'm pretty mechanically inclined and do all my own diy repairs, timing belt, oil changes, alternator replacement etc. but having a hard time finding a good guide for this for this model 2009 TL. has anyone done this before can share any insight or part numbers etc? thank you for your time

Rick

Help! No VTEC engagement after engine swap

mt8067 — Thu, 23 Apr 2026 14:14:08 GMT

Dealing with my daughters car and I'm up against a wall here. First I admit I'm not "Acura" guy, just a pretty good home mechanic that enjoys this stuff. My daughters car is a 2012 Acura TL SH-AWD with the 3.7l J37A4 engine code. She ran it low on oil (begged her to keep an eye) and ruined engine. I didn't want to rebuild that 3.7 or invest in another J37A4 so after researching I found that the J35Z6 is a direct swap. So i overhauled a J35Z6 engine and installed it. Everyhting is great except I get no VTEC engagement. At 5500 RPMs the engine stutters like its hitting a rev limiter and the CEL comes on with a P2646 code ROCKER ARM OIL CONTROL VALVE (A) STUCK ON/OFF. I have had the spool valve off and the screen and all passages are clear. Also new OEM sensor and solenoid. I feel as though i have exhausted all mechanical reasons for the code except a possible blocked oil passage in the front head? The rear head was off this engine and planed and cleaned and some valves replaced, so i have to believe that head is good.
So my question becomes is it ECU related? Does the computer look for a certain oil pressure that the 3.7 creates and the 3.5 maybe doesn't create enough so it isn't engaging the solenoid? If I'm not mistaken the 3.7 liter engine had VTEC on both the intake and exhaust cams but the 3.5 only runs VTEC on the intake cam. Does the 3.5 generate less oil pressure due to only needing to activate intake VTEC and the computer doesn't like it? Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.