Older Acura TL owners. Lookig at a 2002

[Chunkee]

I am aware of the faulty transimisions. The car has 85xxx miles on it? Does acura still warranty those that fail? Anyone with experience with these?

http://motorpoolinc.com/acura.php

Thank you.

 

[Muadib]

When I had my 2000 TL, I believe that Acura extended the warranty on the trans to 100k.

Do a seach here, and you should find a thread.

 

[SSSnail]

Honda automatics have always have shoddy transmissions, I think it's an offset for everything else being bulletproof.

 

[radioouman]

I drove a 2000 Accord with a V6 (auto) up to 180,000 miles, and even though it clunked occasionally, it wasn't undriveable.

 

[thomsbrain]

Originally posted by: SSSnail
Honda automatics have always have shoddy transmissions, I think it's an offset for everything else being bulletproof.

The units in the 4-bangers are fine, as well as the older 4-speed/2.7L V6 combos. Also the 5-speed from the current RL is supposed to be fine. But the high power V6's and the lesser 5-speed units in other models were a bad match.

<-- speaks from experience. Transmission replaced under warranty at 65,000 miles.

 

[PandaBear]

Honda finally fix it with the 4 shaft auto tranny. Those with 3 shaft (2000 to 2004) have problems.

 

[Budmantom]

Originally posted by: radioouman
I drove a 2000 Accord with a V6 (auto) up to 180,000 miles, and even though it clunked occasionally, it wasn't undriveable.

My 2000 Accord had an oil leak from the block(it was a known problem) and the dealer was going to pull the engine and put JB weld on it, they were going to charge $700 and they weren't going to warranty it.

I had that car for about 2 years from 65K - 85k miles and it was in the shop about 5-6 times, it was a blast to drive(V6) always felt tight without any rattles but it just wasn't reliable.

 

[thecritic]

Warranty is extended to seven years or 109,000 miles, whichever comes first. Even after that, they usually step in and pay more than 50% of the bill. The transmission is almost guaranteed to fail before 120k though, buyer beware.

I moderate the 2G TL section of AcuraZine.com fwiw.

 

[Chunkee]

Originally posted by: thecritic
Warranty is extended to seven years or 109,000 miles, whichever comes first. Even after that, they usually step in and pay more than 50% of the bill. The transmission is almost guaranteed to fail before 120k though, buyer beware.

I moderate the 2G TL section of AcuraZine.com fwiw.

Question then? Will they replace it with another "early fail" transmission? Or do they replace it with something that corrects the problem?

JC

 

[thecritic]

Originally posted by: Chunkee

Originally posted by: thecritic
Warranty is extended to seven years or 109,000 miles, whichever comes first. Even after that, they usually step in and pay more than 50% of the bill. The transmission is almost guaranteed to fail before 120k though, buyer beware.

I moderate the 2G TL section of AcuraZine.com fwiw.

Question then? Will they replace it with another "early fail" transmission? Or do they replace it with something that corrects the problem?

JC

The replacement units have an updated internal oil jet and a "beefed up" 3rd clutch. The failure rate seems to be lower with the replacement units, but it's too soon to say if the problem is truly resolved. There have been quite a few "DOA" units that failed shortly after installation, but those failures tend to show up within 10k. If you can find a 2G TL with a transmission replacement that was performed within the last two years, chances are you can get another 75-100k out of the replacement unit quite easily.

 

[Sad Clown]

For what its worth, I have a 2003 Acura TL 3.2. My transmission died with only 44k miles on the car. I bought it used so when I had the car towed to the local Acura dealership where I moved to they did not inform me of any kind of extended warranty on the transmission.

Lucky for me, my third party warranty covered all of the costs minus the $100 deductible. I had read reviews about how there were problems with the transmission but I didn't take them seriously as my previous two cars had been Honda Accords and they had both been impeccable on reliability. I figured if I had a Honda then it would be a bullet proof car. I was wrong...

I got off early from work on a Friday and I was maybe 3 miles from home when I slowed down for a red light. The tranny downshifted and when I gave it a little gas to move up it wouldn't get back into gear and the engine just revved, right there in mid drive. After half a minute the check engine and tcs light came on.

Needless to say the whole tranny had to be replaced. I have put 5k miles on the new transmission and have not had any problems. Reading about all of this extended warranty by the manufacturer really irritates me because my local Acura dealership didn't inform me when I brought the car into them.

I love my car but speaking as person who had his transmission die on him mid drive I will say the following:

1. Thank God it didn't happen on the freeway/highway.

2. I would have gone for another model car or different model year then the one equiped with the faulty transmission.

I know they replaced the bad one with one that should be good but I will always be weary of my car from here on out until I replace it. If I didn't have another 3 years worth of payments left on the note I would have probably traded it in for a new model TL. I can't justify wasting more money on a new car at this point in my life so I will hold onto my current car. I still think Honda's are bulletproof cars for the most part.