spoiledkari

So...about 6 months ago my 2012 started making a gurgling or bubbling sound on the left side of the engine bay for the first 30 seconds after a cold start. I thought it was odd but since it went away quickly, I just ignored it. Then about a month ago the car was hesitating when going up hills and the RPMs would surge. Sometimes I would hear a clunking sound in the transmission when the car downshifted. It was also gear hunting and when it finally found a gear, it was usually 6th...no matter what speed I was going. Needless to say, the paddle shifters became my best friend.
A week ago, I took the car to the stealership and was pretty sure they were going to pat me on my little head, tell me the car was operating as designed, and send me on my way. To my surprise, they didn't even let me get the full description of what was happening out of my mouth before they had the keys to a loaner vehicle in my hand and had a torque converter ordered. My service advisor told me that pretty much every 2012 TL they ever sold has come back with a bad TC.
A week later and they delivered my car back to me...an hour away from the dealership...with a brand new TC, including tranny flush, a 4 wheel alignment, state inspection, and a full tank of gas...for FREE!
Most importantly, the car drives and shifts better than it did the day I drove it off the lot with 14 miles on the car. I think the TC was faulty from day one.
So...long story short...I am in love with my 2012 TL for the very first time since buying it. It only took 24,000 miles and a new TC.

'99-6SIC6

Glad to hear they got you hooked up quickly, we've done our fair share of torque converter replacements at my dealership as well...really sucks for the auto guys, but again I'm glad to hear they got you fixed up!

jayare627

Just had my 2012 AWD TC replaced as well, and the difference is absolutely amazing shifting and the power throughout acceleration. However I still have that noise you describe on start up, as do other members on here, and I believe a lot have found it to be the remote transmission filter failing. I haven't taken mine back yet for that sound, but the new TC is a noticeable improvement!

Tonyware

Is it just me or are dealerships more open to the idea of doing warranty work near the very end or the very beginning of every month? Over the years dealing with honda and acura products I have observed that its a lot easier, especially the first two days of the month to fix something under warranty (or under the so called good-will), instead of telling me that all is good. Just a thought...

(good for you that they changed the TC, thats a lot of work!)

Crxej1

wow

Steven Bell

iTrader: (2)

Glad everything worked out well.

jason60050

I thought Acura remedied this issue for the 2012 model year... I'm worried this may happen to my 2013.

jayare627

I had thought so as well that's why I had bought a 2012. The torque converter was gone at 15k miles and finally replaced at 26k miles.

012TL-GLM

I recently had my '12 in for the TC issue. I noticed a lot of hesitation and rpm bouncing going uphill at speeds under 50mph, usually hovering around 1500 rpm. They updated the software, but didn't replace any hardware. I still notice the rpm bounce occasionally, but its gotten much better. I haven't noticed any lack of power since the car was bought new. The tech I worked with at Muller Acura said normally Acura won't replace the TC until the problem is constant, or flagging warnings on the dash. He and I went on a long drive for him to see the problem first hand, and of course it never did it on a 20 mile hike. At least the issue won't leave you stranded. I notice the gurgling sound if I don't get the car in the garage and the temp drops, but normally don't hear it. Even on days its present it goes away after about 5 minutes

jayare627

Sounds exactly like my experience, it's definitely the TC. They did the software update that made it better but it was still there. My RPM was surging/bouncing significantly and when I took it back after the update the acknowledged that there was still a problem but wouldn't say what it was. They kept it for 5 days trying to diagnose it as something else before finally giving in and replacing the TC. But then after they replaced the TC I had to have it towed back because the axle seal failed and puked out the transmission fluid.

Acura11TL

Took in my vehicle to the dealership. The dealership hooked up a computer to the car on a 10 minute drive. The dealership sent the data to Acura approximately 1 1/2 weeks ago and I received a phone call Wednesday from the service advisor. Acura said the data falls within their range. Pretty sure it's the torque converter going bad and I've had the software update done already. Hate having this issue as it takes away from really enjoying the car - 2011 Acura TL FWD roughly 30,000 miles - symptons - engine shutter, shake between 1-2 RPM's 40-50 MPG .