2001 Acura CL S 3.2

Summary:

Best thing on four wheels!

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

This car is not only the best car I have ever owned, but also the best purchase I have ever made.

The Type S is quick and the sonorous engine note is addicting, it's faster than 9 out of 10 vehicles on the road.

The seats are very comfortable and form fitting.

The handling of the car could be better but is adequate to take turns at approximately 50 or 55 mph.

The appearance of the car is sporty yet not overdone, it still retains it's elegance. The stance of the vehicle looks firm and ready to attack.

The reliability is amazing, through the 8 or 9 years of life of the vehicle the only thing replaced was a seat part for the auto seats and the mandatory cooling installation, ordered in the manufacturer transmission recall.

Overall this car has made me realize the supremacy of Acura as an automotive brand, I fully intend on purchasing a brand spanking new one, if they ever come out with another coupe that is.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 2nd August, 2009

3rd Aug 2009, 10:16

I currently own a 2003 Acura CLS. This is not my first Acura, however, it is by far the best! I cannot bring myself to upgrade. If American auto makers built closer to the Acura standards, their problems would be non-existent.

2001 Acura CL Type-S 3.2

Summary:

Do not buy; bad tranny!

Faults:

Transmission 1 went at 36K miles.

Transmission 2 went at 98K miles.

Transmission 3 went at 168K miles.

Other things went bad, but the tranny is bad.. VERY BAD!

General Comments:

Do not buy this car; they said they fixed the tranny problem, but they are wrong; I am on my 4th tranny!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 14th July, 2009

23rd Jul 2011, 20:07

I see a lot of 2001-2003 CL's for sale at low prices, and have to wonder how many had transmission problems or currently have one.

Lots of people have complained about that issue. The second generation are nice looking cars (I have a 1998 BTW), but I would never consider one. Too much risk.

24th Jul 2011, 14:53

That was one of the reason I didn't buy an Acura TL/CL... when they added that sport shift device on their transmission. I use to have a friend back in the 70s that would shift the automatic transmission himself... it was a 3 speed automatic. He would put it in low gear and wouldn't let it out of that gear till it was howling... he went through automatic transmissions like they were candy... but back then they were cheap to buy and rebuild... so when manufacturers started putting these sport shifter/paddle shifters on their cars, I stay away.

On the Wikipedia website for the Acura TL, they say the problem started when in 2000 when they went to a 5 speed automatic transmission with sport shifter. Prior TL/CL models had a 4 speed transmission. Not sure if that was stronger or what. They say that the third clutch pack wore and started to fail on the 5 speed trans.... which caused particles to block off the oil passages. They say they seem to have finally gotten it right in the 2005 transmission redesign...

2001 Acura CL Type S 3.2 Vtec

Summary:

Excellent

Faults:

Only needed to replace the battery, everything else was perfect. The body does rust pretty quickly though.

General Comments:

For the price this was, it's a very good buy; very reliable, sporty, good looking and roomy. I enjoyed driving this every day till the day I sold it.

The car has excellent feedback from the steering, but would have been perfect if it was a rear wheel drive.

Before you buy, make sure there are no problems with the transmission, as that is a trouble spot. I've had no problems with mine since it was replaced under warranty.

You can buy this car for the price of an Accord, and this is a much better looking car.

Mine had a cold air intake, and the sound was simply phenomenal.

This is truly a great car, if you can get a 6 speed, you are getting one of the nicest shifting trannies in the business. As mentioned, the steering feedback is excellent, better than many new cars.

The car does need bigger tires, so if you can afford after market tires, buy them, they are a good investment. On stock tires, there is too much wheel spin.

It is not the most comfortable car, but it is very good drivers car. I got complements on it all the time, and never had problems keeping up with any one.

Buy it, you will not regret it.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 3rd April, 2009

4th Apr 2009, 19:14

"Before you buy, make sure there are no problems with the transmission, as that is a trouble spot"

Consumer Reports April 2009 page 85 says that 17% of 2001 Acura CL have needed to have the transmission rebuilt or replaced. They were reporting this as an example of unusually bad reliability. Just thought you would like to know.