12th Oct 2006, 08:57

Great car I have 1. the transission is a weak spot, but I love mine. The transmission is guaranteed up to 100,000 miles. Very fast, loaded with amenities. 0-60 under 6 seconds and I have run out of courage on the speedometer.

12th Oct 2006, 15:47

Drive an Acura TL and drive a Cavalier? What a joke. I went from a Mercedes to an Acura. Main reason was the Mercedes cost, but I did not want to give up the performance/luxury. I also looked at BMW. The VTEC motor is going up to 300 hp soon. The options including the 6 CD Bose CD is great. The drivetrain warranty is 100,000 miles I have had an issue on the trans, but it was free and the service was great. I have owned a Legend also best car I ever had, have driven an NSX same hp as the TL... they are just great cars. I have had only had oil changes, tires and the trans recall to date.

8th Nov 2006, 05:04

My 2003 TL is having problems. The transmission has been replaced. The bulb was blown and the bulb alone cost 208 dollars not including the labor that only Acura could fix. The lights went out behind the clock. I service my car regularly and just had the last one two weeks ago. Now my car is in the shop again for a map sensor and an IAC valve. The total cost is $516.00. If you are looking for a nice car that is affordable and dependable, don't buy an Acura. The service department is not great either. I have spent more money on this car than I did for 3 Saturns combined.

11th Jun 2007, 13:10

My 2003 Acura TL-S, the front engine mount broke around 54k. Then at 68k the right engine mount broke. Got the trans checked for the recall around 30k, they said it's all good. This car is always in the shop for some reason. Don't even get me started on those low profile tires they want you to put. I've replaced them like 6 times (1 each every time) as they bubble up and they say it's going to blow up. No, I don't need to lose control of the car while going at 60-70. So there goes...

3rd Sep 2007, 17:25

I just got done replacing my third transmission on my TL Type S at 35k miles. In the process I found out that the front and side engine mount need replacement. Honda is doing a good job in hiding the serious defect from consumers. I wish they spend some effort in fixing the issue.

My plan is to sell the car at 50K miles. It's not worth keeping anymore.

2nd Oct 2007, 12:24

I love my TL Type-S I drive it like I stole it and it still asks for more... only problem is I have to replace the lower ball joint, but that's due to me + curb = boot on ball joint go bad... I have had no trans problems. I love how this car drives!

12th Oct 2007, 18:04

The shift lock components break almost every year. I cannot shift into reverse without disengaging the shift lock mechanism. It is getting expensive to continuously have to replace this. Dealership indicated it has something to do with the brake lights. Not sure, just have to say that it is getting expensive.

20th Nov 2007, 19:17

I noticed that most 2003 Acura TL-Type S comments about the transmission are out of whack. I owned one and it clocked 140k miles strong, and no hiccups with the tranny, shift locks, or mounts like these owners reported.

If you bought this luxury cars and expect repair cost of an economy Toyota Corolla, then you are making a mistake. Be prepared to pay the cost of repair and maintenance, or take some auto mechanic repair classes and do you own maintenance and repair to save your money. I do my own service and repair. So there is no problem.

The Acura TL-type S is a marvellous engineering work of art and science. It lasts and it outperformed many other luxury (European) cars. Domestic vehicles are still catching up in quality and engineering design to meet the demanding of knowledgeable consumers.

By the way, my other vehicle is a 94 Acura Integra GSR with over 251k miles (251,000 miles) and still counting and running strong.

5th Mar 2008, 22:09

I own a 2003 Acura Type TLS. I've replaced both engine mounts at around 80k miles. I had the transmission replaced at 98k miles. I know I need to replace the timing belt shortly, but also plan to sell the car this summer. The car has been very good to me. I plan to buy an MDX for my wife. I haven't heard anyone complain about the MDX.

6th Mar 2008, 16:10

I'm sorry none of this is acceptable to me; multiple transmissions and then saying a $34k import car is at not a Cavalier. Cannot fathom why anyone would keep such a dangerous defect that can fail at the worse possible moment unannounced... maybe trapped into car payments is the answer, but still...

21st Apr 2008, 10:32

My car is also an 03 Tl type S, my transmission just went as well. I also have been told that I have a cracked engine mount and bad front ball joints, the tech said it is pretty common with these cars, I still think it's a great car but shesh, after paying 32k for the car brand new, this kinda hurts!

25th Apr 2008, 13:11

Have a 2003 TL-S that I enjoy driving immensely that has received all regular and recall maintenance. I had stopped taking it to the dealer for service because they constantly found some "add-on" that the service manual or an independent Acura service often found premature or unneccessary. At the 60K maintenance checkup, the independent service manager indicated that 2 of the motor mounts (front passenger and radiator area) had failed and needed to be replace at a somewhat substantial cost. Also, there are 2 others of similar design and indicated that this was not an uncommon problem on this car. Apparently, the company was aware of this problem because later models had superior designed mounts that don't fail. I notice that others have indicated they have had motor mount problems and before I went after the company, was wondering if anyone was successful in getting the company to acknowledge that this was a design defect that they would stand behind.

19th Jun 2008, 20:56

The trans on my 2003 TL S was acting up so I took it to my Acura dealer. I baby it and it only has 37000 miles. They told me today that they will install a new trans for free. They then told me the 2 front motor mounts are bad. One is cracked and the other is leaking oil. Didn't know motor mounts have oil. He said the regular price to replace both mounts would be around $775.00 but since they have the trans pulled they will do it for around $475.00. I love this car but will never buy another Acura and probably not a Honda product.

My wife needs a new car and I was probably going to buy an Acura. (very soon) Not now.

Only 37000 miles!! I'm very disappointed.

Also, my daughter has a 2005 Honda Accord and the trans has gone out twice (under 50000 miles)