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Hey guys I am new to the acura world so I don't know too much about these cars. I love the style of the TL and the time has come to pick up a second car for myself. I found a 2006 Acura TL with 185k miles on it, the most recent service done on the car according to the owner was Timing belt, trans fluid, and new tires (done 15k ago). The interior is in great shape, and paint looks good as well. I know these car's have issues with transmissions. I've talked to a couple people and it seems it is really hit or miss. Some people at 300k miles with no issues and some at 130k and already on their second transmission. My friend has one with 180k miles and he told me to make sure the transmission fluid is still red so I know the owner changed it already. What else should I look for? Do these car's really need much maintenance? Also the guy wants $3000 for it I should throw in there. What's your guys thoughts on it? Thanks!
3000 is a good price.. take into account 2500-3000 for another transmission and you'd still be at 6K.
I plan to throw a transmission cooler on there and run amsoil. You think that would be enough to keep it from blowing up. I am more scared since I live in florida and it's ~110 degrees daily for the next 4 months. On my G37 I have now, while datalogging I have seen my intakes temps reach 170 degrees while sitting at a redlight, can't even imagine the transmission temps.
You're rolling the dice TBH.. Personally, it'd be way too much risk for even a risk-taking person like myself, you can put a cooler and change all the ATF you want and it can still die. Conversely, you can also do nothing and it can live forever.
It's up to you to make the determination if you're willing to take the gamble
That's an okay price. As others have said, you may need to factor in some more money in case the transmission goes away. Even with an extra $2,000, you're looking at a $5,000 car that has been well maintained (supposedly) and in good condition.
I paid $6,000 for my '08 with 177k miles just a little over a month ago (did come with a spoiler and type s wheels).
I would jump on it if the car looks in overall good condition. If you think about it with any TL over 100k you taking a chance with tranny. It all depends how previous owner took care of and how they drove the car.
My previous 04 TL had 170k with no tranny issues.
I live in FL and have approximately 212k miles on my 05 TL. Original owner, original tranny. I've performed all my tranny drain and fills on time and by on time I mean every other oil change (1x3), and changed out the pressure switches every 50k miles. I've always used OEM fluid. About 20k miles ago, I started developing a shudder. I changed the switches and put some fresh fluid in it and the shudder is gone. You have to remember that there are a lot of factors that come into play. There are a finite number of shifts a tranny will make before it craps out. City driving/torque convertor lockup is a helluva lot worse vs. a crap ton of highway miles. Best of luck to you and welcome to AcuraZine.
EDIT- get the car on a rack before you buy it and check the rear main seal for any leaks. Getting it on the rack to check for other things is a good idea regardless.
Thanks guys I'm still on the fence about it. 2006 Acura TL There is the listing if anyone wants to take a peek at it. I found a 2005 TSX with 98k miles for $6000, Going to go take a look at the first.
Go for that if its good. Those trannys on the tsx/accord had no issues. My 04 TSX had 224k running strong and I sold it for 4k 2 months ago so 6k with 98k is good maybe will sell for $5,500.
Seriously! I asked the guy why he rolled the miles back, he said because the last owner blew the motor up so the new one that was put in has 98k miles on it. I tried to explain that doesn't mean anything but he couldn't understand so I just walked out. Not to mention that was at a dealership.
So I was doing some searching on here and mostly people say the 06+ have no transmission issues? I thought it was in 2007 when they switched to RL transmission in the TL's? Can anyone confirm?
Does the 06 TL have any previous accidents or anything? $3000 seems super cheap for even that high mileage. Like somebody mentioned earlier, for $3000 you don't even need to worry about the transmission because you can put $2000 aside in case that does happens since the car is so cheap. As long as everything else looks good I'd go for it. I wouldn't take the owner's word that he did all that maintenance though... does he have any records to show he did the timing belt and everything? If it looks clean and well cared for and he has records for maintenance then I wouldn't worry about the mileage. I think the transmission "issues" with the 3G TLs were overblown. There were many problems with the 2G TLs and I think a select few of the early 2004 TLs had a recall for transmission issues. But after that they are solid.
I have a 2004 with 140k and no transmission issues (knock on wood). The 06 should be solid. If you've already checked out the car and seen the condition of everything, trust your gut feeling. But don't be overly concerned with the tranny.
Seriously! I asked the guy why he rolled the miles back, he said because the last owner blew the motor up so the new one that was put in has 98k miles on it. I tried to explain that doesn't mean anything but he couldn't understand so I just walked out. Not to mention that was at a dealership.
When you say he rolled back the mileage do you mean he actually rolled back the numbers on the odometer, or you're saying that he listed it as 98k miles online and the actual car has more mileage than that? If he actually tampered with the odometer that's illegal. If he just listed the car as 98k on the new motor then I wouldn't be that upset.
But that does bring up the bigger point that at least one and possibly more of the model years for the TSX had engine problems and I think issues with burning up oil. All else being equal I wouldn't take the TSX over the TL.
Are you serious?! With all that and it still may die?! Dam I've lost all hope.
Hey, I brought a 195k 2006 Automatic Transmission TL with nav for less than 7 thousand dollars. No Issues with my transmission whatsoever. The amount of fear mongering about the trans here is terrible.
Hey, I brought a 195k 2006 Automatic Transmission TL with nav for less than 7 thousand dollars. No Issues with my transmission whatsoever. The amount of fear mongering about the trans here is terrible.
OP should take our advice as "YMMV"
cool you got a car that may not have transmission issues. Would you also be willing to be held accountable if OP decides to buy a car and transmission craps out?
Didn't think so
This is definitely one of those better safe than sorry issues. We give OP all the what ifs and it's up to him if he wants to make the decision/jump and has the the money to potentially fix it rather than be blindsided by it.
Just make sure you have emergency funds or a credit card just in case something happens. That's used cars for you, if its a tank, jack pot. If not, cars do break down and will need some TLC.
thats a pretty good deal, make sure you have an additional 2k in your pocket to get all the issues fixed. make sure you check all engine and tranny mounts because they are most likely gone, take a good look at the rear main seal area to make sure there isn't any oil leak. cold start your car, the temp gauge needs to be at low, put your gear into reverse, if your car bangs as the gears engage you have tranny issues. 04~06 AT TL have high tranny failure rate so if you seen all the issues i mentioned above i would avoid getting this car
Hey, I brought a 195k 2006 Automatic Transmission TL with nav for less than 7 thousand dollars. No Issues with my transmission whatsoever. The amount of fear mongering about the trans here is terrible.
If you went through 2 transmissions on a TL like I did, you might have a different opinion.
I don't know the total number of transmissions that failed on the TL, but it was enough to get Acura to extend the warranty.
If you went through 2 transmissions on a TL like I did, you might have a different opinion.
I don't know the total number of transmissions that failed on the TL, but it was enough to get Acura to extend the warranty.
did u get ur tranny rebuild or replaced with a used one, my tranny ia dying too, need advice
cool you got a car that may not have transmission issues. Would you also be willing to be held accountable if OP decides to buy a car and transmission craps out?
Didn't think so
This is definitely one of those better safe than sorry issues. We give OP all the what ifs and it's up to him if he wants to make the decision/jump and has the the money to potentially fix it rather than be blindsided by it.
Anyone who is buying a car that's 10 years plus and over a hundred thousand miles runs the risk of having the transmission go out on them. It's not specific to the TL. That is the inherent risk with getting a used car, especially one that old. I have an 05 automatic TL with close to 130K miles. No transmission issues so far. I bought it brand new. I hope to keep another one to two years before I buy again. It's been a great buy so far.
did u get ur tranny rebuild or replaced with a used one, my tranny ia dying too, need advice
When Acura extended the warranty to 100,000 miles, I had 97,000 on odometer. Brought it in immediately and they replaced with new. That one lasted another 80,000 miles but Acura only covered that one for 25000. Sold car.
My current 07 TL has 220,000 miles on original transmission. The pre 07 transmissions are the ones that had the problems. My 07 has been great. Change fluid (3 x 3) every 30,000 miles (no replacement of switches).
You can try fluid and switch change which some have noted improvement. As far as replacing transmission...I don't know. Not sure that I would be confident with rebuild considering the cost.
Theoretically, the only TL of the 3rd gen that should have any transmission related issues should be the 2004 and 2005 model years, with the 2005 models only having issues on vehicles made before March 2005...
2006 should be better, and 2007 and 2008 are pretty much immune...
$3,000 is extremely cheap!!!
Most 2006 TL's I see with that kind of milage are still going for $6-9,000 easily...
I think you've found yourself a good deal, but at that price point I'd still have suspicions so keep a nest egg, just incase...
You should be fine...
If you want, I'd advise you have a tech look it over, but other than that, it sounds good...
At least it has maintenance records, and the transmission fluid has been changed regularly...
Remember, ONLY EVER use Honda transmission fluid... EVERY time, without fail...
06-28-2016, 11:45 PM
