Older Acura TLs

mrtech

The driving lights on the 2004 TL are regular halogens. Has anyone replaced them with the Sylvania SilverStar? I used this on my old Honda Accord, it is the whitest/brightest street legal bulbs I have seen. If they make one for this bulb model, it should work out great. No more yellowish light when using the driving lights.

I'm debating on tinting my windows. Has anyone tried using a lighter tint for the rear glass (compared to the rear side windows)?

kevin111

Was trying to help someone who was originally interested in the 2003 Type-S but did not pull the trigger with the new '04 comming. I will tell him.

bodble2

"then 20 yards down the road it feels like I drove over a dog or something" Any of your neighbors now missing a dog?

All joking aside, the hiccups I have experienced, but at lower speeds at light throttle input -- around 20 - 25 mph. It seems like the engine would skip a couple of half-beats in succession. So I've always thought the problem was more engine than tranny.

One symptom that actually annoys me more is say, if traffic ahead stops, and I slow down and pull into the next lane to to around, and then I get on the gas, it seems that momentarily not only do I not get instant acceleration, but the engine seems to sag, sort of a stalling sensation, so much so that I instinctively look down at the tach to check.

However, at highway speeds or under heavy throttle, everything seems fine. That's why I've always found the Type-S much more civilized and pleasant to drive out on the open road then when it's tip-toeing around town. I'm hoping the '04 TL has a more even temperament.

debis04tl

The placement of the moldings should be ok if thet used a template. I am going to the dealer tomorrow, I will ask. I have some issues..... a vibration between 80 and 100 klm. a rear door molding that was placed about 1/8 of an inch too far ahead so it catches on the rear of the front door and , of course has torn, and the rear brake routers are not wearing smooth like the front ones. At 500klm. they should not be groovy!! I would post pictures that are in "my documents" if I knew how. On the vibration, am I correct in saying that no one has found a solution?

bodble2

Can we just hack into your computer to see them then?

debis04tl

Bodble.. Would it not be easier just tell me how to do it?

dulnev

"I've always found the old Type-S not always easy to drive smoothly around town. It's got kind of a hair-trigger throttle tip-in, and (mine anyway) has little random sags and surges in the power delivery when negotiating around town.
Has the '04 engine been tamed in this regard?"

Exactly! You don't get this insane neck-snapping jerk when you slightly push on accelerator to pull away from the light. Also, I have not experienced what people refer to as "hiccups" and "bucking".

I've experienced all those things on the 03 TL-S. I would not call those major issues, just annoyances. Like pushing hard on accelerator and lowering your head in anticipation of hard acceleration, but not getting any.

The 04 has been great so far. I hope it continues...

habitat1

A friend of mine recently test drove a 2004 TL and still complained that it is not a very good performing automatic transmission with respect to it's shifting characteristics. He's looking to replace a 540i (steptronic) coming off lease for his wife and since moving to the Pittsburgh area, is leaning towards front wheel drive. He is not much of a fan of any Japanese automatic transmission compared to BMW or Mercedes. I have to agree.

On the other hand, I'm not sure why anyone who is even a bit of an enthusiast and cares about performance (as a lot of posters here and former TL-S owners do) would consider anything but the 6-speed?? It takes the "did they fix it" question completely out of the equation and at least if the manual transmission "hiccups" or "bucks", you know who to blame.

Kudo's to Acura for finally giving me something to consider with the 6-speed. I wish they would put it in the MDX too, and give the overpriced X5 3.0i 6-speed something to worry about.

shenkar

You need some new friends. First one of your friends dumps a load of crap in your ear about the GX470, and now the TL.

Sheeesh, man! Can't you see they're just all haters...afraid you'll get the one-up on 'em with the rightous rides you're considering buying. Don't listen to them, listen to us!(:^)

richardgold

Is anyone considering changing the tires that came with the auto TL? The Bridgstone's pick up every road imperfection? I was thinking even Coopers would be better.

kevin111

"On the other hand, I'm not sure why anyone who is even a bit of an enthusiast and cares about performance (as a lot of posters here and former TL-S owners do) would consider anything but the 6-speed?? It takes the "did they fix it" question completely out of the equation and at least if the manual transmission "hiccups" or "bucks", you know who to blame."

- Easy - commuting (Rush Hour! bumper-to-bumper traffic), bad knees, city driving. Sometimes I wish I had an auto.

sopecreek

and your spouse may not want a stick, but still want to drive the car.

mobofe

Really happy with my purchase. Feel like a little kid in a toy store - discovering all the new features has made it a fun week! Isn't that auto tilting side mirror when in reverse plain class!

The only problem I have so far is with the tires they put on this machine. they are about the lowest rated tires i've ever since on tirerack.com and yet they cost a bomb. The most serious problem is its handling in the snow - absolutely horrendous in any modicum of the white stuff. I've gotta folk out another half grand to get new tires this week (going with the contiextremecontact). my accord of 6 years ago had better allseasons.

So who wants to buy my set of 4 bridgestones; selling cheap!

pat

The Town Hall Help File will show you how to post a picture. It has to reside on a public server, though, not in your local "Documents" folder.

bodble2

"Bodble.. Would it not be easier just tell me how to do it?"

I would if I could, my friend! I guess I'll see you over at the Town Hall Help File

and BTW, I wouldn't know how to hack into your computer anyway!

billyperks

A Town Hall user by the name of Automophile knows how to do this.
He posted pictures of his 04 tl with the ZAINO products applied- It looked AWESOME!!!!

automophile

Congratulations! You will enjoy your TL even more over time. I keep making excuses to go somewhere, just to drive the car!

Just take it easy for a while (difficult, I know)so it breaks in well. I allow 1000 miles at under 2500 rpm to be sure. My last 2 cars seemed to be really happy I did this.

automophile

The hardest part is prepping the picture so it is not too large, and finding an online host site for your picture. Town Hall does not store the photos, they only post the link, and the viewer's computer downloads the picture from the host site.

Once you have the host lined up, and have uploaded your photo to them, You can post a photo directly into the body of your message using HTML tags.

While composing your post in the Post box, type in the location of the photo on the Internet as follows: img src="http://url-location-of-photo", and put this in between the < and > symbols.

And, as long as you mention it (heh heh) Here's a recent photo of my baby with the nose mask, splash guards and gold logo added.

klunkman

Just take it easy for a while (difficult, I know)so it breaks in well. I allow 1000 miles at under 2500 rpm to be sure. My last 2 cars seemed to be really happy I did this.

2500 rpms is too low for breaking in an engine. You don't want to rev near the redline, mind you, nor peel out from stop signs. But my understanding is that you want a fairly controlled, wide variety of rpm's (no cruise control) during the first 1000 miles or so. And keeping it under 2500 rpm's doesn't accomplish that.

paulg54

I plan to change the tires at the dealership with Bridgestones Grand Touring Tires, the Turanza
LS-Z. It's a little on the expensive side but should get more miles and has excellent rain traction. I've owned the Turanza LS-H before and got 40k miles out of them and lots of confidence in rain driving. I had them on a Millenia.

paulg54

Thanks for the info on posting photos and for a great picture of your WDP TL

but should she be out in public with just a bra on?

paulg54

I didn't know there was a template to mount the mouldings. I thought it was like painting pinstripes--good eye. Maybe that's why the silver TL I saw seemed to have straight mouldings out of line with the curved groove.

I usually drop the little woman at the door and park my cars out in the back forty. I may do that rather than try the mouldings. How are they mounted? They don't drill anything, do they? Are they held on by adhesive?

sopecreek

it kinda kills the look. you can have a clear bra installed, which is almost imperceptible and many people rave about...

habitat1

I'm happy to have friends give me their brutally honest opinions about vehicles I am considering. And I am not compelled to agree with them just because they are friends.

On the other hand a reference to the wonderful "Lexus ownership esperience" in response to a legitimate question on how the GX470 drives and handles on the highway is pretty useless. I'm still trying to find one to test drive myself, but have conceded that it will be 2004 before I buy anything, tax advantages notwithstanding.

P.S. kevin111: Commuting, bad knees (and back) and city driving don't have me longing for an automatic transmission as much as a chauffered limo. If I'm going to be behind the wheel, I'll still take a stick shift. That's just me (and, fortunately, my wife).

shenkar

Yeah, I hear what you're saying. But if your friends don't give you accurate information, then their help is pretty "useless" too. If they're going to be truly helpful, they should strive to give you a balanced, or at the very least, accurate appraisal of the vehicles in question.

From the laundry list of faults from your friends that you have reported on both the GX and the TL threads, I can tell you they've fed you a line of bull...and I don't own either one, so I've got no axe to grind.

It's just that these are 2 of the hottest vehicles available right now, and there's probably some very valid reasons why this is so...and it's not their yugolike price tags. If someone can only give you 27 reasons not to like or buy these obviously outstanding vehicles, we are, and you should call them on it! They're not being fair to you...or the cars.

No one on this thread (or the GX470 thread either) has tried to convince you that these cars are the end-all and be-all. They've honestly recounted the reasons why they like them, and confidently offered that once you drive them for yourself, you won't need anyone else's opinion (other than your wife's) to know whether they're right for you, or not. Anything wrong with that?

dstr2

Fuel guage and trip computer acuracyHas any one else had this problem the low fuel warinng light comes on and the gauge is on full Empty But when you fill the the tank it only takes about 13gals. It hold's 17.09 per spec.
Also the trip computer miles to empty always seems
to be the same around 325 after a fill up.

debis04tl

The moldings are out of line with the groove but they are not straight with the car either, This am I spoke to the ins taller, he said the moldings come with a template that covers both doors including the door handles. So it is not possible to get it wrong. By eye it does not look like they are out 3" front to back, only when you measure. They are mounted with double backed sticky tape, no holes. For the installation the car metal has to warmed up to at least 60 degrees for an hour or more and then remain at that temperature for another hour after installation to properly bond. Moldings or no moldings you could probably still hold your head high if you wanted to park in the front forty.

ruski

mine hicked up again tonight, coming home on a highway, while cruising at 80mph.

debis04tl

Try This

debis04tl

Here are 2 more

vinceb81

DSTR2 -- Only filled up once but had the same problem. Gas light came on but when I attempted to fill up, it only took 13 gallons or so. Gauge then reported 420 miles to go.

dulnev

"Just take it easy for a while (difficult, I know)so it breaks in well. I allow 1000 miles at under 2500 rpm to be sure. My last 2 cars seemed to be really happy I did this."

The only way to keep the TL under 2500 RPM is not to drive it! You're not doing yourself or your car any good by doing this. It only "seems" that your cars previous cars are better from breaking them in that way. They would be just as fine, if you followed the manufacturers recommendations and simply avoided very hard starts and stops. I define those as near-redline.

free7bird

Was just wondering. I've heard from others that the window and moon roof visors make the car a little more noisy. Is this true? I have a tl on order, and I ordered it with the visors but have been thinking about canceling the visors? Should I? Also How do they look? I can only tell so much from a picture. Let me know.

mobofe

too late, never bothered to "break" my TL in. Was cruising at 90 all the way home for 150 miles. never came close to the redline though - and i'm really not sure how one would really get even close; this car peaks at really low rpms. i love the "quiet" rumble of the engine even at the low rpms.

btw, i never felt this in my old 2000 maxima (of which i don't miss violent torque steer), but the gas peddle on my TL does vibrate, although it were somekind of feedback joystick. is this normal?

also need you guys to confirm this: regarding the gearbox/shifter area. placed my finger tips one half on the silver part and the other half on the carbon; when the car moves this whole area vibrates noticibly and it actually creates a separation between the two parts. now, i found this disconcerting but i just realized my maxima actually had a rubber border around that area - possibly to dampen this effect. should i be concerned?

mrtech

Do most independent garages reset the computer after an oil change? Or do I have to bring it to the dealer for an expensive oil change?

mrtech

The moldings as shown on these pix looks good. I do not think it affects the lines of the car. In your experience, does it protect the doors (ie the molding hits the other car/wall instead of the other parts of the door>

kahunah

...especially when they're free. I got them included in my deal along with the trunk tray, splash guards, all-weather mats, and wheel locks. I think they compliment the sleek contours of the car but more importantly, they protect the doors from hazards like runaway shopping carts, especially when you're not around to witness it. Oy! Just the thought...

mobofe - gas peddle should not vibrate. Have it checked out.

dulnev

On all the previous TLs one could always reset the oil change indicator. I have not yet had a chance to read my manual, but I'm sure there is a way to do it yourself.

dulnev

... are too low to protect from ANYTHING other than intentional kicks right in the area of the moldings. They are too low.

As far as looks go, it's a purely subjective matter. Personally I find them to be ugly on the 04 TL because of the indent line that goes through the door handles level. Moldings looked fine on my 03 TL-S.

dulnev

Your decision on whether to buy the visor or not should be driven entirely by how much you drive with open moonroof. If you do that at least 20% of time, then you should definitelly get the visor, as it greatly reduces the air turbulence and noise from open moonroof.

If, on the other hand, you open it very rarely, don't get the visor as it does introduce a lot of noise, when the moonroof is closed. Personally, I NEVER open moonroofs and don't understand why they exist. I love the quiet and air-conditioned/microfiltered environment inside my luxury car and don't need the rude intrusion of noise and pollution.

habitat1

O.K. I think we've beaten this discussion up beyond recognition. Apparantly, you read about 25 more questions/issues regarding theses two "outstanding" vehicles than I listed. The only issue/question with the GX470 is its highway and on-road handling dynamics. The issue/question mentioned with respect to the TL is the quality/performance of the automatic transmission (which isn't evan an issue for me, since I would only buy the 6-speed).

Given that you don't own either vehicle and therefore have no axe to grind, how is it that you are so convinced that these are obviously outstanding vehicles? I myself am convinced that our S2000 is a perhaps one of the most outstanding vehicles to come out of Japan in the past decade or two; but I withheld forming (or at least expressing) that opinion until I actually had a few thousand miles of seat time behind the wheel.

Rest assured that neither the $50k+ GX470 or $35k 2004 TL will make it into our garage without thorough test drives by us. Nor would either be eliminated from contention based upon anything I have heard. I am reasonably confident of my ability to weigh the (informed) opinions of others with my own test drives and empirical evaluations. But, in my book, it is a danger to assume that anything is "obvious".

Peace, since we probably agree more than we disagree on the merits of the two vehicles in question.

debis04tl

Noisy? Maybe a little, I did not even notice it until someone mentioned it here. I guess it depends on what your noise tolerance is. For me, looks outweighs any noise I might hear. Wind noise often depends how windy it is outside the car on any given day too. I would suggest that you try to find a demo with these deflectors on and give it a spin out on the highway, then you will know what is right for you. The moonroof deflector does keep the air turbulence outside the car when the roof is open and in the spring it is a good way to get a "head" start on your suntan if you are follicly challenged as I am. Also for the side deflectors, they allow you to open the windows slightly for air circulation and yet protect against any sudden rain storms. They may not work for everybody but they work for me..

debis04tl

The front door moldings will protect your car sometimes as long as the protruding tip of the molding at the back of the front door makes first contact, this often depends on the shape of the the object you have opened your door against... HOWEVER, I look at the moldings mostly as a way to protect your own car when someone else opens their door next to you and makes contact, but again it depends on the shape of the attacking door. Certainly if it were a rear door from an 04 TL it would more likely take out a side window. All I know is that they worked for me and my 98CL thus the reason for having them again..

klunkman

OK, I'm not even going to talk about side window deflectors, because they're quite possibly the ugliest thing you can do to a car.

Moonroof deflectors - They are unnecessary!!!! To combat turbulence/buffeting when the moonroof is open, crack the rear windows slightly. Frankly, the only purpose moonroof deflectors used to serve was to announce to the world that you had a moonroof on your car, in case they couldn't see it. With moonroofs practically being standard equipment these days, you don't need to show off anymore.

paulg54

Your TL looks great. Thanks for the moulding update. I may wait on the mouldings until summer when it's in the 90's here in MS. Our dealer put the ground effects on a WDP here except he used the trunklid lip spoiler.

What color interior did you get? It's hard to see in the pictures.

I'm going to see what the dealer has in January or order then. I still can't decide on WDP/parch, Silver/blk or quartz, or Desert Mist/parch. Your WDP looks real good in the pics.

bodble2

The WDP is only available with the parchment in Canada. Sad, but true Mind you, I love the parchment.

debis04tl

The pictures were taken on a cloudy day just before a snow storm so even though it has two coats of Zaino it does not appear to shine.Interior color is Parchment as bodoble said HOWEVER the WDP does come with ebony interior but again only if you choose the Dynamic pkg.. I chose a light color exterior to avoid excessive body maintenance. I like the parchment (the choices were limited) too. We are past the child bearing stage and the 10 and 7/8th grand children either know where to put their feet when they get into Grampa's car or they live too far away to get to drive in it. By the way, the dealer will install the moldings in a heated garage before you get the car, from what I have been told it only has to be warm for two hours. Ask your dealer about it. Good luck, And remember don't be swayed by what we like choose what is pleasing to your eye.

dunlaph

I bought my TL just last month (Nov 03) and noticed, that when the tires are cold, the car vibrates excessively. I have taken the vehicle to the dealership twice. The first time they replaced the right front tire for tolerances. When the vibrations continued they informed me that there was nothing they could do and instructed me to contact Acura Customer Service (800)382-2238. When "BERNI" answered the phone, I explained what the problem was and he told me that they are aware of the problem, and have received numerous complaints, but were not willing to do anything about it. Personally I'm very dissapointed and upset with Acura and their lack of commitment to customers who pay anywhere from 32 to 40 bucks for a car that they expect to be a "luxury" automobile. In my opinion they should replace these lousy Firestone tires with some decent tires.

bodble2

Vibrations only occur when tires are cold? How long does the car have to be driven before the problem goes away?

cding

> ... especially when they're free.

But, but they are free, on other 100 models of cars, just not TL (and some others). I always wonder why someone would like to put those on. They certainly look after-thought (and after-market). Can you imagine a BWM 745i with ... after-market side-moldings? Maybe on a used car, but on a new car? no way. It is easier to shop other models with side moldings.