By accessing this website, you acknowledge that Edmunds and its third party business partners may use cookies, pixels, and similar technologies to collect information about you and your interactions with the website as described in our
Privacy Statement, and you agree that your use of the website is subject to our
Visitor Agreement.
Comments
How hard do you normally brake that the Brake Assist actually kicks in? Has this happened often or take you to a complete stop when it does kick in?
Is this a term that Acura uses and therefore admits that they have an issue ? If so - is there a fix or have I just bought a luxury sports sedan that has a major design flaw ?
Yup, looks like they solved this problem with the '05 or later models.
The TL is a great car and value. I feel for the "harmonic vibrators" that post here, but I've never read a review (including long term reviews) that mentions it.
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
1) The keyless entry only works when i'm really close to the car. About 20 feet away - and even that varies. I'm used to be able to lock and unlock my car from almost 100 feet away and more.
2) When I lock my car it doesnt beep but when i hit lock twice it beeps? Is that normal?
3) When I turn on my head lights the gps goes into night mode but I remember this function didnt work right away? Is that normal?
4) The driver seatbelt is alawys hard to grab. When I grab it the seatbelt with the medal clip sometimes scraps against the interrior siding. I noticed the passenger seat belt has a thing at the botton where it places the seat belt farther(sorry this one is hard to explain)
Another thing, once I start the car, it idles somewhat roughly. I can feel slight vibrations through the steering wheel or when I touch a passenger seat( for example). The car is not shaking or anything, but should I be able to feel any kind of vibrations in a brand new tl while it's idling? Is this normal? Thanks.
Yes, this is normal. It beeps on the second press. I wish it were louder though. It's so wimpy as is. If there is any extraneous noise, you can't here it.
It's been there since 04. The problem is the shift point of the 5th gear. It kicks in too early and lugs or vibrates until you get up to 60 mph.
Acura spent two years trying to fix it and finally came up with a vibration damper, which does nothing to solve the problem. But, it was a cost effective band-aid.
I'm suing Acura over all the problems I’ve had with my 04
Acura has been very hard nosed about the vibration problem.
They call it a characteristic of the car.
I can’t believe they still have not fixed this problem it’s beyond belief.
Interesting that the harmonic vibration problem, or the dash problem has never been mentioned in any auto reviews...makes me wonder if these guys are in bed together.
I also wonder about the objectivity of the reports
The vibration has nothing to do with the tires.
You did notice he was complaining about his 2006 model, right???
You did notice he was complaining about his 2006 model, right???
It's called sarcasm as others previously had asserted that statement.
2) When I lock my car it doesnt beep but when i hit lock twice it beeps? Is that normal? Yes.
3) When I turn on my head lights the gps goes into night mode but I remember this function didnt work right away? Is that normal? Not sure what you mean by "didn't work right away." In your settings, you choose whether you want the gps to display day mode, night mode or automatic (which I beleive is teh default). The auto mode displays the day mode when your headlights are off and switches to night mode when their on. Mine switches right away. THere's also an override button for the auto-setting. Let me know if you're interested in that.
4) The driver seatbelt is alawys hard to grab. Sorry, I haven't experienced this.
The dashboard issues continue and boy does it scratch easily too. And watch out you don't get too close to a curb because instead of the tires taking the punishment your rims will. The windshield scratches every time you turn the wipers on.
Second gear has an interesting shift - sometimes it jerks other times it shudders; unless you hit it just right then it is smooth.
I guess I have a love and hate relationship with this car but I'm pretty certain there will be no more Acura's in my future.
By the way we also have an 05 MDX and we have had absolutely no issues w/ it. The build quality of that vehicle is leaps and bounds better than the TL.
I guess I should consider myself lucky since I don't have the harmonic vibrations but I did expect a bit more quality in the car. I'm a bit wee disappointed.
For those people experiencing the vibrations I feel your pain and Acura should be ashamed that they continue to have this problem with the new models too. QUALITY CONTROL or is it that they have LOST CONTROL?
I have an '04 TL 6MT and have experienced no vibration. From reading postings about it, I assumed that it only happened to AT - something like the automatic shifts from 4th to 5th too soon causing the vibration. Since the driver determine's when you shift in a manual, that isn't an issue. Or perhaps I can say, I can experience vibration in every gear if I want to!!!
what overide button are you talking about? I think maybe somehow that wasnt set right. Because when i first got the car it was set on auto. But the gps wouldnt react to how my headlights were. Meaning if it was on - it was still in daytime mode. If its off its still in daytime mode. BUt randomly it works right now maybe i configured it wrong?
Let me know if you need a more detailed description.
And, yep, seatbelt is poorly located. I've got scratch marks already on the interior trim piece close to the belt buckle. Perhaps they should install some form of guide on the top of the seat back to run the belt through.
thanks
Man if this is the solution thanks man.
As for the seat belt - its hard to explain but when i grab it, the metal part, scraps against the siding on the left. The reason why this happens is because unlike the passenger side there isnt a holder that places the seatbelt a little bit to the front of the seat. The holder is at the bottom of the seat belt on the passenger side.
OK... I feel better!
My dealer told me not to drive it in 5th gear!
Great advice!
I have been driving my car for about a week with the VSA (Vehicle Stability Assist) off, as was suggested by another reader. I do not notice the breaking issue as much with this off. So perhaps the collision sensor is kicking in when I am breaking. It is interesting that I feel this when I am going about 50 and start to break - not really hard breaking but typical for city driving during rush hour.
I have also learned, as I pay more attention, that your comment about a grade logic sensor is probably part of what I am experiencing, as the brake pedal sinking to the floor happens more frequently when I am on a downhill, especially when the car is shifting down around 40 mph or 2000 rpms. The downshifting jerky feel happens with the VSA on or off, the footpedal issue is virtually gone with the VSA off. Is the VSA and Collison Sensor connected? I did experience the footpedal suddenly depressing farther when I was sitting at a stop. I had to hold my foot on the brake pedal a long time as I waited. Suddenly the pressure in the pedal changed and the pedal dropped down toward the floor. A very weird feeling.
I really appreciate your comments and any further thoughts about this!
Maybe the Dealer can also further explain the "features" attendant with the entire electronic control systems.
Also, if you are one of those drivers that drives your automatic with two feet (like I do) you need to be sure your left foot isn't resting on the brake pedal. If it is, even slightly, I noticed that the transmission and brake system will feel jerky, especially when just starting off. The car is apparently trying to sense if you are trying to stop or go and it tries to shift the transmission up or down at the moment it senses your foot on or off the brake pedal.
Good luck. Also, you may want to read the owner's manual from cover to cover. It explains a lot (but not all) of the "features".
Any suggestions for best bag for buck...also would you recommend going up to 245/45/17 instead of 235/45/17 since curb burn has been an issue with my wife.
I'm really not sure that this is truly a major issue. A few unlucky posters have reported the issues here, but outside of Edmunds (including car rags/long term write ups, from my Brother, Father and two friends who both have TLs) I've not heard of this issue.
The fading dashboard, well that's another issue. But not a big one to me (yet?).
'21 Dark Blue/Black Audi A7 PHEV (mine); '22 White/Beige BMW X3 (hers); '20 Estoril Blue/Oyster BMW M240xi 'Vert (Ours, read: hers in 'vert weather; mine during Nor'easters...)
I have not had the master cylinder replaced yet, and don't want to if it is really not problematic. Another man in service, that I talked to, said that if "they" felt the master cylinder should be replaced, based on my concerns, I should have it done. When I asked if he knew something I didn't, he said he only knew of one other TL that had the master cylinder replaced.
I think a lot of this is my learning how the TL drives. I am beginning to think that these issues (brake pressure changes, downshifting hard) are just related to the "features", i.e. VSA, grade sensor, and collision control. Because I have not had a vehicle with these before, I am unaccustomed to feeling these systems kick in. Perhaps the features could work more seamlessly and be less obviously occuring to the driver, but as long as I'm not driving a car with malfunctioning systems I can live with that. I really do enjoy driving my TL!
In the 245/45-17 it is also available as a "run flat" as well as a conventional tire.
The 245/45-17 will fit the TL just fine.
The one I am mainly concern with is not the vibration at a certain speed, but those annoying ones that happen like in the dash area or perhaps the door area (this is what I have mostly read in this forum).
My main question is how many TL owners out there have these issues? And if they did have an issue, was it resolved with the dealer? Or how was it fixed?
Just seems to me that a car like the TL, being in the luxury class shouldn't have these issues.
I would appreciate any input....getting it straight from the TL owners out there is allot better than asking the dealer. They of course will tell you want to want to hear.
I just want the facts!
Thanks in advance!!!
I have a 2000 TL and I got 65k miles w/ a set of 4 Michelin snow tires. I was commuting daily to a ski resort outside Seattle when I purchased the car.
Generally I purchase the same tires as came standard on the vehicle.
Your other options are
a) Consult Consumer Reports (available in library) on different tire sizes. Note: According to CR the same tire has different performance depending upon the size of the tire
b) Go to a good tire store (not Costco) in your area and go with their suggestion
I do not know what effect going from a 235 to a 245 will have on your vehicle
It's almost 2 years since you posted your message, but this is my experience.
I have a 2000 TL w/ 98k miles.
Acura has two (2) maintenance schedules in the owner's manual: Normal and Severe
Depending upon how you drive the TL, will determine which schedule to follow. The severe schedule is more expensive, because the technician performs more duties.
One thing I've found here in Seattle is the dealers will automatically charge for the "severe" service; however, the dealers do NOT perform the severe service. The dealer will do tasks that are not suggested by Honda/Acura such as power flushing your engine.
I do my oil changes every 3750 or 4k miles. At $30 a pop they are inexpensive plus the dealer will check the fluids and wash and vacuum the car.
Recently I've had Sears do the oil change because Sears uses Castroil and the dealer uses Chevron oil. I was told that Castroil is a better grade oil, and I will wash and vacuum the car myself.
My biggest [non-permissible content removed] w/ the Acura dealer is they want to charge me $500 every 15k miles and the dealer does less than 2 hours of shop time and $50 of parts
The only rattle that I had was in the center console,
but when I took all the loose change out the rattle
went away. Other than that no problems. Love the
car! Only thing it is missing is a radar detector
a test drive. It's most noticable when you doing 50 to 55
in traffic and you can't acceleragte above 60 mph.
or...if your one those folks who observes the 55 mph law.
If your just driving fast, you go throught the 50 to 60 band quickly and the vibration gets lost in the rough road and ride
but trust me ...it's there!
You can pay 35K and find out for yourself!
It does so even more since they replaced the faded dash.
sad.....
Once at high speed when I applied the brakes rapidly and firmly on an interstate highway where traffic suddenly came to a stop. It startled me, as I did not expect the very significant additional brake boost.
It also came on two other times, at very low speed, when braking quickly at an intersection after I had initially begun accelerating to start off. The peddle goes down fast and low.
On none of the occasions did it bring me to a complete stop, since I let off the peddle. You will definitely know when it kicks in. It would be nice if the owner's manual had a bit more on both grade logic transmission downshifts and brake assist functioning, and what the driver should expect and when to expect it.