horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

Hey Gang,

Well, I just pulled the trigger on the remaining parts for my spring refresh of my 2006 TL; so far I either have on hand or have ordered the following parts:

• LuK Clutch Kit
• LuK Dual Mass Flywheel
• LuK Clutch Slave Cylinder (I'm going to be doing CDV delete before getting under the car)
• Duralast Gold axles (thanks EvilVirus)
• SKF Rear Hub (x2)
• Pirelli Cinturato P7 235/45 R17 (has anybody else noticed these tires have about a 1" wider tread width than anything else out there including 245/45 R17 tires?)
• OEM Right Rear Engine Mount
• OEM Right Engine Mount
• OEM Front Engine Mount
• OEM Front Transmission Mount
• OEM Rear Transmission Mount
• OEM Upper Transmission Mount
• OEM Stabilizer Bar Bushing (x2)
• OEM Stabilizer End Link Left
• OEM Stabilizer End Link Right

I've checked and there is still plenty of meat on the brakes (new as of last May).

Am I missing anything?

Regards,
Horseshoez

truonghthe

well well, I think you and I are on the same page since I will be refresh my TL-S also.

How is your LCA bushing?

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

Haven't checked since last May; the LCA busings were good at the time.

DMZ

My refresh this coming week:

LCA bushings - 3 each including the Compliance ones
Upper and Lower Ball Joints
Front Stabilizer Links
Front Stabilizer Bar Bushings
Headlight Bulbs
Cabin Filter (changed each Spring)

After 14 years and 280K miles, I think I'm due, don't you?
.
.

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

Yup, more than due.

DMZ

Yes, but the lower control arms were replaced at the dealer under warranty as the original compliance bushings were cracked at 11K miles, so I really only have 269K on them.

According to Jon, the parts manager at Park Ave Acura, 6MT's are harder on them than 5AT's.
.

.

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

Yeah, 6MTs can be harder on all of the soft bits of the suspension, especially when driving aggressively. The flip side is I've found if one is smooth, the suspension components can actually last longer than cars with automatic transmissions.

itsVSW

What kind of time is doing all that gonna take?

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

I'm budgeting a long weekend. Studying videos and manuals, once the sub frame is dropped, everything else should be pretty easy. That said, I have heard anecdotal reports which caution not to use too much torque to release the sub frame bolts as the nuts are welded to the body, and if you use too much torque, you can break them loose. A friend owns a local shop so I've arranged to work on it there so I'll have a lift, engine cradle and transmission jack at my disposal. They didn't have the Self-Adjusting Clutch Adjustment tool kit, so I bought that and will bring it along to use. I also bought a new Clutch Slave Cylinder and performed the Clutch Delay Valve removal yesterday (I created a pictorial thread showing the process).

itsVSW

You should make that long weekend even longer by taking some more pictures for us! Especially the mounts. :P

teh CL

iTrader: (1)

Having access to a lift is a game changer, 100%.

NBP04TL4ME

Link to thread?

teh CL

iTrader: (1)

^ In the performance section.

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

Here you go.

• https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-p...linder-967640/

truonghthe

and make your life 1000% better when work on car.

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

Yeah, having access to the lift is decidedly a bonus. As an extra bonus, the guy who owns the shop was an Acura tech back in 2005.

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

So, I just placed the final order for my refresh, namely the Clutch Tool Kit for Self Adjusting Clutches, and then added everything up; yeesh, kinda put a dent in this year's bonus. Total cost for the parts was $2,088.33, plus another $92.35 for shipping. All in all I suppose this isn't too bad given these parts should keep my car in top running condition for quite a few more years.

SAVAGE05TL

iTrader: (1)

I look forward to hearing about your results! I'm debating a similar refresh (or at least, some of the motor mounts and a few bushings) for my '05 6M with ~181k on it... I'm hoping new mounts will eliminate rough shifts and that some new bushings will tighten up the steering.

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

What kind of rough shifts are you experiencing, can you describe the symptoms?

SAVAGE05TL

iTrader: (1)

Maybe rough isn't quite the right word... I notice that the car tends to lurch a bit when starting from a stop, and on my 1-2 shifts I feel a slight shudder upon clutch engagement. I'd imagine that to be the engine shifting as it engages the wheels, sometimes I feel like I have to be more sensitive with the clutch to keep everything as smooth as I think it should be. I don't notice these issues in higher gears unless I come off the clutch particularly quickly. Compared to many other (particularly newer) cars I've driven I find that the shifts just feel clunky, as if the powertrain isn't "tight" or something. It's not terrible, in fact is comparable to my former '07 Civic that had 140k on it when I sold it, but I'd like it to be better. My car is certainly driveable every day, just an annoyance. Does that make sense?

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

Yeah, I saw your other post and combined with this description I think I understand. When my engine is cold immediately following a cold start, I too have some clunky shifting. I've always attributed it to the fact the engine is idling above its normal RPM range during the warm up process. It will be interesting to see if this changes when I get the new mounts in there.

Funny thing, I wasn't planning on doing the mounts, just the clutch, however, several folks chimed in here to say the pain in the ass motor and tranny mount replacement job is pretty much a cake walk with the sub frame lowered. Given the sub frame needs to come down for the clutch job, I figured I'd just bite the bullet and do the mounts, even if some or all of the mounts don't yet need replacing. As a side note, I also bought a new slave cylinder and deleted the Clutch Delay Valve (thread here: https://acurazine.com/forums/3g-tl-p...linder-967640/); I'm expecting virtually no improvement in clutch action in easy moderate driving, but when I get on it, I'm hoping for a dramatic improvement in clutch response.

BreezyTL

iTrader: (8)

I should probably get on this myself. First meet is 46 days away and I have a lot to do by then, even getting the car from storage....

SAVAGE05TL

iTrader: (1)

To more accurately describe another symptom, i often feel a light vibration through the steering wheel when coming off the clutch, more prominent in lower gears. That definitely makes me think motor mounts. Either way - I'm thinking your results should prove helpful towards the next fixes I do, so I hope they're going well!

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

Refresh update...

Last fall I got moved into a new role at work, a role which A) requires a very steep learning curve, and B) has suddenly become hot, so hot I have a year's worth of work on my plate due by the end of June.

With the above said, I quickly came to the conclusion I didn't have two days to devote to doing this work and farmed it out to my friend's shop; an experienced Acura mechanic started work yesterday morning and has yet to complete it. Yikes! The good news is the clutch, motor and tranny mounts, stabilizer bar links and bushings, axles and rear hubs have all gone in pretty much without a hitch. The bad news is the rear brakes are pretty much gone (the inside pad has less than an eighth of an inch of material left on both sides), and the backing plate for the left front brake literally fell apart/off during disassembly (can't tell if it was damaged from road junk or something but the right side is rock solid). The issue with the backing plate is it looks like the front bearing hub needs to be pressed out to be able to mount the plate, so some extra work there. Other niggling issues; the exhaust gaskets need to be replaced, and there appears to be a small oil leak from the front head (so small the car doesn't even drop); I'm guessing when the timing belt was done by the previous owner the cam seals weren't replaced.

Other good news is the bushings in all of the control arms look to be in very good shape, the flywheel isn't scored and might easily be cleaned up, and even the engine and transmission mounts look to have been replaced within the last few years. In fact, some of the parts which came off are so clean, I may offer them for sale for a nominal charge.

Looks like she'll be out of the shop this time tomorrow, and then the only remaining issue on my to-do list is to pick up the new 2007-2008 TL wheels I bought from our fellow member royalte99, have them reconditioned, and have the new Pirelli Cinturato P7s I have sitting in the hayloft mounted on them. I cannot wait because the Goodrich G-Force Comp-2 A/S tires on there now are so darn noisy it is getting difficult to have a conversation in the car.

One final comment; the OEM axles I had taken off are very clean (only one of the four CV joints feels worn which is probably what I've been feeling through the steering wheel); I'm thinking of doing a "Paying it forward" thing by sending them to the fine folks at Raxles so they can have a pair of remanufactured 6MT axles in stock. I'm thinking to suggest to them this would be for AcuraZine members only.

itsVSW

Sounds so far so good. Congrats.

b15

How many miles? Did the mechanic mention the condition of your intermediate shaft carrier bearing? I have a slight and seemingly random vibration around 55-70mph felt through the floor and steering. Wheels/tires are ruled out because they've been balanced twice (roadforce). Planning on changing my axles but also considering the intermediate shaft as well. Last time I was under the car, looked like a lot of grease was caked on the outside of the bearing which isn't a good sign

Research here indicates the shaft rarely goes bad but I'm debating on just biting the bullet and doing it all since its not too much extra work as everything will be disassembled for the axle anyhow.

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

Nope, didn't consider the intermediate shaft; the car only has 133,000 miles on the clock so maybe next time I do axles I'll do the shaft whether it needs it or not.

Pair of TLs

Sounds like a good time, shoez...should ride like new when you're done. Hoist is always a blessing--wish I had one. This up-and-down thing is getting old.

Axle-exchange pool idea has merit, too.
Work: I know, right?

Pics when she's done?

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

Thanks, I'm on the road for the next two to three weeks, hopefully I'll have the new wheels and tires on by late April. Once that happens, a good wash and wax and the photos will be soon to follow.

truonghthe

You want to change your signature about your TL color lol, its MRP not RRP.


About time, its long overdue Horseshoez.

b15

Ok just wondering. 92k on mine, I'll probably just go ahead and change it out. Looks like I can buy the bearing and clips so just need to press it out.

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

Do you have any evidence your intermediate shaft has an issue?

b15

Initial inspection shows the bearing is covered in grease. Based on the location and the fact that all surrounding areas are dry and clean I don't see where else it'd come from. I won't be able to tell for sure until I take it off to see what kind of play there is. But at that point it's out so might as well press in a new carrier bearing.

​​​

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

Got it, you did say that before, sorry for making you repeat yourself. Any chance the accumulated grease is from another source?

zeta

iTrader: (1)

That sounds similar to mine (CLS6). When I took mine off at 100+K, I held the half shaft bearing support down on a level table top securely. Then manipulated the half shaft itself to determine how much play in the bearing was evident. There was quite a bit; however, I was not sure if it was considered 'abnormal'. I then just purchased a new bearing and seal and had a shop replace it. When I acquired it back from the shop, I did the same 'test' for bearing play and it was significantly reduced; therefore, the 'play' I experienced before was in fact 'abnormal'. IIRC, the total cost was not more then $50 for OEM parts and shop press labor about four to five years ago.

b15

Thats my plan. Was originally going to get the whole assembly for $300 but realized there's no need, just need the bearing.

Did you have a vibration before at highway speeds? Did you change the axles too and did the vibrations go away afterwards?

zeta

iTrader: (1)

At that interval I did not have any axle vibrations. I did the axles and went the Raxles route because when I called Marty he happened to have a set for my CLS6. They are still going strong. Later on, unrelated to axles, I noticed the car developing a strange vibration, while driving/shifting, between 2nd & 3rd gear around 1800-2500 rpms. It bugged the hell out of me for the longest time, and I could not figure it out. One day, IIRC, quite by accident, after resetting the ECM and letting the car sit after three fan cycles for the idle relearn procedure, I revved the engine gradually up to 1800 and over 2500 rpms and felt the vibration.

Long story short, since the car was out of gear, I finally deduced the source of the 'mystery' vibration and it was my worn original DMF giving up the ghost. After revving a few more times, through that rpm range in neutral, there it was every time, go figure. I was budgeting to have my differential bearings replaced so while the tranny was out I had a new LUK clutch/PP/DMF done as well. When I took delivery of the car the vibration was gone.

horseshoez

iTrader: (2)

So, here's one for those of you out there with 6MT models...

Over the last few days something in the back of my head has been bugging me there is a difference in how my car drives (over and above the huge reduction in steering wheel vibrations from the new axles). It finally hit me today, I no longer need to be really careful so as not to look like a total noob stick-driver, when engaging the clutch off the line and again on my 1-2 shift; the car is far easier to drive smoothly when driving aggressive. I'm guessing I can attribute the improvement to the new engine and transmission mounts.

Majofo

Awesome Horseshoez!

WDPanda

Your 1-2 improvement is almost guranteed to be the CDV delete. My drivetrain is original on my 2008 vs my previous refreshed 2006 (both 6mt). I also had my sole cdv deleted slave which i transfered between cars when selling and can further back up that claim to the differences I noticed.