20th Mar 2006, 02:41
Just got my Acura TL-Type S, the day before New Years! Technician noticed transmission problems when it went in to have work done on it. Acura replaced for free (under warrnty that is), but I don't want it to see it happen again out of warranty. Is there any type of protection offered or extended warranty for the transmission itself- to ensure this doesn't happen again?
26th Mar 2006, 15:04
Hi, everybody and thanks for all posts regarding Acura TL 2002 TL transmission problem. I am going to buy a used one, 58k miles. I like this car very much. The basic warranty is expired. Will Acura repair the transmission without any additional warranty for free? I mean till 100k miles?
10th Apr 2006, 12:52
I purchased a 2000 Acura 3.2TL in 2001 with just 16k miles. The car has been great, but I was just informed that I needed to replace the transmission now that it has 117k miles. The car has always been maintained at Acura, and the local tech recommended I talk directly to Acura corp about this issue. Waiting on Acura to get back to me, and will let everyone know if I was able to get the transmission replaced free of charge even though it is over 100k mile warranty. Good luck.
11th Apr 2006, 13:38
I leased my 2002 Acura 3.2TL, Type S, in August 2001 with the intention of purchasing it at the end of the lease if I still liked the car. The car has performed above my expectations, with the exception of the transmission issue that has been highlighted by many others and I did purchase it before the lease was over.
My initial concerns with the transmission surfaced when on cold mornings, I noticed that the torque converter would lock up prematurely before the engine had warmed up sufficiently. This would cause jerking and a condition where the torque converter would alternately lock up and then unlock. I eventually noticed that when the transmission was at full operating temperature, the torque converter would not lock until highway speeds were reached. I mentioned to the service manager at the dealership that I suspected the temperature input to the computer control was not being handled properly.
When the car had about 30,000 miles, I received the notice from Acura that the warranty had been extended to 100,000 miles due to a number of performance issues, such as hard shifts, etc. At this point, I was hoping that any potential failures would occur before the 100,000 mile warranty expired.
At approximately 70,000 miles, I began to notice that the shift from 2nd to 3rd gear, under certain conditions, seemed to slip a bit. I began to pay closer attention with the 100,000 mile point in the back of my mind. I spoke with my salesman while having my wife's MDX serviced and he recommended that I formally document my concerns to the service manager. It turns out that this was unnecessary.
When I carried my car in for the 75,000 mile service (March 2006), I mentioned the 2nd to 3rd shifting problem to the service manager. He said that they had seen this problem with some other TL's and that they would check the transmission. About two hours later, the service manager called and said that my transmission was faulty and that a replacement had been ordered. The transmission arrived the next day and was installed on the following business day. I believe, based on some of the service manger's remarks, that Acura has been trying to resolve the TL transmission issues for several years. It was his opinion that the 2006 TL finally has all the transmission quirks resolved. He also assured me that my replacement transmission would have all of the major issues resolved and most, if not all, of the minor issues.
My new transmission, which also included a replacement transmission control module, has performed flawlessly. The shifting is much smoother and the torque converter actually now works as I thought it should. In fact, my gas mileage has improved by about 2-3 mpg which leads me to believe that the transmission was slipping and the torque converter lockup was not functioning properly. Color me happy.
As a side note, my service manager said that I would not have been required to pay for the transmission replacement even if the mileage had been above 100,000 miles. He told me that they had recently replaced a TL transmission at no charge on a car with nearly 200,000 miles. My service manager made it clear to me that Acura intends to take care of the TL transmission issues. In my opinion, they can't afford not to stand behind them. His comments make me wonder about the situation with folks who have had problems getting their transmissions replaced and problems solved. Are some dealers shirking their duty to their customers?
2nd May 2006, 01:16
I am an original owner of 2002 TL-S with Navigation.
I have read many TL owners describing their transmission symptoms, but it does not match my intermittent transmission problem.
My transmission problem usually occurs at steady ~70MPH on a flat road, not accelerating or decelerating. I have intermittent problem that can be best described as a sudden lurch backward or hiccup, perhaps transmission is momentarily disengaging then re-engaging. Acura dealer replaced under warranty transmission twice, replaced EGR valve and problem is still not fixed. Does anybody have a similar problem?
I like my TL-S and want to keep it.
9th May 2006, 14:04
I just bought my '02 TL-S with 51K miles on it two months ago. This past weekend I was cruising along at about 70 mph when I noticed the car slowing down. I looked down at the tachometer and it was buried in the red. I immediately took my foot off the gas and the needle dropped to 0 rpm's, but red lined as soon as I placed my foot on the gas again. This whole time the transmission never shifted out of 5th gear. I saw smoke coming out from under my hood and pulled over. When I opened my hood the entire engine compartment was soaked in transmission fluid and smoking. I had the car towed to the dealer, but haven't gotten a prognosis yet. Worst part though is that I was 100 miles away from home when this happened. I had my transmission replaced in my '98 Accord EX at 70K miles. This is pretty sad since my previous car was a '92 Civic Si that had zero problems even when I sold it with 200K miles on it.
10th May 2006, 15:18
Many of the comments above reflect my recent experience with a 2001 3.2 TL, whose transmission has failed in a frightening way at 103,000.
I have heard that there is (or has been) a class action lawsuit pending on this issues against Honda. However, I can't locate any information on this lawsuit. Does anyone have contact information?
13th Mar 2006, 07:32
Hi All. I just dropped my 2002 3.2 TL off at the dealer to have the FOURTH transmission put in it (including the original one). The 3rd transmission lasted 4 days, which is very scary to say the least. Although it's covered under warranty, this is unacceptable. My car has 85K miles on it, and at this point I am scared for my safety. If anyone has gotten Acura Corporate's attention regarding the transmission recall issue, definitely post the information.