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Thank you for sharing your Lemon experience.
I have filed a complaint with the BBB and a hearing is in the process of being scheduled. What can I expect?
So far, I have not hired an attorney but I have been in touch with a very large LEMON LAW firm. If I can resolve this with the BBB, I will, if not, I will hire an attorney and sue.
How much of your original investment did you get back and what did you buy?
What were the usage fees?
This vibration issue or problem is wide spread and may affect all 04TL’s. If you start a class action suit, please keep me in mind. I would like to join.
I have many complaints (creaks, rattles) with my 04 tl but the major one is the vibration in 5th gear at 50 to 60 mph. My Acura dealer kept telling me it was my imagination and the Acura service manager told me he never heard of a harmonic vibration in 5th gear. They are all in a state of denial or they are all liers.
When I spoke to a factory rep, he told me the truth and admitted that there is a Harmonic Vibration problem with the 04 TL. He stated that the 04 TL had a Harmonic Vibration (in 5th gear) and that this problem had been corrected in the 05 models. He went on to say that Acura engineers were currently working on a fix (TSB) for the 04 TL but he was not sure if they would find a cost effective solution.
He also said that Acura considers this a characteristic of the car. I find it interesting that they have engineers working to correct a characteristic of the car.
They say "It's not a problem" but they are trying to fix it...go figure.
I bought my 1999 Acura TL in Oct 02 with 22,000 miles on it. It now has 45,000 miles. Every time I fill up my right front tire it is low in a couple days. So it appears I have a leak and I need to replace, at the very least, that tire.
My question is should I be replacing all four tires at this time? I did a "penny test" and the treads on all four tires are low but not in the danger zone. When does one generally replace all the tires anyway? I'm assuming I did not get new tires when I bought the car.
The tires on my car are Michelin Energy XSE MXV4 if that helps.
So....three questions. Should I be replacing all four times at this time? And...would you take it into an Acura dealership or would any place (Discount Auto Parts, etc) do? Finally, can you recommend any particular brand of tire or does the Michelin work just fine? I'm in hot Phoenix, AZ.
Thanks for any input you can provide!!
I had always thought that an arbitration process would be outside of the legislation, since an arbitration, by its nature, implies some sort of subjective ruling, whereas, if the law is invoked, it would simply be a question of whether the situation fits within the parameters governed by the legislation.
The BBB arbitration process is one venue. Please note that BBB is financed by the auto manufactures...so good luck!
The lemon law process uses lawyers and is a separate and longer process. But you recover more of your money!
Actually I also went thru an arbitration process here against Honda about 4 years ago. It too was funded by the automobile assocation. I guess where our system differs is that I was awarded full buyback, with no deduction for use, or anything else. And no fees involved. But we don't have lemon laws in our jurisdiction.
I've already got a lawyer in the wings...
I'm glad everything worked out for you!
1) I guess you can use your current tires for another 5K miles or so, but keep an eye on the tread. Being in AZ, you don't have to worry about driving in rain/snow! It's recommended to change the four tires together.
2) Forget about Acura dealers, they'll rip you off. Check discount tire stores, COSTCO, or you can buy them on the Internet and have your local store install them. www.tirerack.com is a good place to know everything about tires.
3) It depends on your driving style and whether you lean towards ride comfort or performance/handling. You can go to www.tirerack.com and check out prices and read specs/reviews of all tires for 99TL and choose what suits you best. Good luck!
First of all, I have submitted my defect notification months ago and have an arbitration hearing scheduled for Feb 16th. I own a 2004 blk/blk TL with navi and currently has 21k miles.
This is by far one of the nicest looking acura's ever produced however the quality control, service and handling leave much to be desired.
I traded in my 2003 audi a4 1.8T for this car and thought I would be in heaven... my whole family drives acuras/hondas...i was the odd duck with an audi.
*I have the harmonic resonance vibration that will not go away at low and high speeds.
*I have tires that vibrate and wear improperly have done all regular service yet they r worn unevenly.
*I have a rattling sunroof that the dealer insists is normal on TL's
*I have a blue tooth phone that has been replaced 4 times and I have changed phones twice and it still drops calls and locks up like a computer... how do you fix this...u pull off to the side of the road shut the car off and restart quite simply like the dell computer you just bought that freezes...if its not locking up it drops the call the minute u try and connect the call on the wheel yet the phone doesnt drop...T mobile has tested phones and will stand behind the phone but not acura. The funny thing is the salesperson has the same phone and car and doesnt have the problem yet we paired his phone on my car and his does the same yet the same dealership service advisor at dealership stated it was my phone?????
*I had a driver window that rattled and went down by itself...replaced window regulator...
* dont u you dare tint windows on TL's...if you do they scratch due to the lack of felt on the guides NON warranty.
*Leather seats? Can we say the worst quality for a car in this class period. ever. I have had the seatbottoms replaced twice and tehy even subl;et the seats to the lthr shop they came back worse...then the manuf. rep. stated it was normal wear and tear...I replied how can it be normal wear and tear when they were replaced and u sublet the replacements????? LOL
*I have had my rotors resurfaced more vibrations then they replaced the pads and rotors...
*My windshield cracked and had to get replaced.
*I too had the temparture gauage go blank and reappear but I live in FL it doesnt get to 5 degrees here.
*I had the stalling issue and all injectors were replaced....seemed ok but still stalls at times....dealers reply now =normal
*The companys qulaity and devotion to service is downright horrid. I would think I am in Chevy land witht he way they look at me.
*Traction control warning light comes on and STAYS on service advsior trys to tell me its normal yet thje manual says pull to the side shut car off and restart andf take car to nearest acura dealer..hmmmm
*subwoofer rattled but was cured with noise barrier tape
*console broke and had to be replaced
*on a long road trip the a/c stopped blowing it blew cold just didnt blow air.
*Check engine light has come on and flickers but usually when car hard to start...am told they dont know whats wrongn here
* My paint started bubbling on the front bumper and chipping like it was a dodge neon from the 90's and u pay 35k for what now?
Oh ya the stereo is by far the best and I'll admit i always use it but for 35k i can put a down payment on a nice house with a killer stereo setup in every room. I pondered a replacement but yet the selling dealer vanadlized my car, the nearest dealer was involved ina class action lawsuit for warrnaty fraud and the best dealer which is mediocore at best is 40 minutes away and although the service manager is extremely nice the service advsior is a doodoo bird and i know more about the car than he does.overall this is a slamming hot car in the styling, offers some interesting technolgy but is a quality nightmare for the premium price...and cannot compete in that arena with its rivals but it is a lil cheaper but nontheless I firmly believe the above impairs the use value and saftey of the vehicle would you??
First of all the usage fees were figured by using the following formula, miles-at the time of the hearing, divided by 100,000 miles, multiplied by total vehicle purchase price. In my case this came to $5200 which I am not going to pay.
If I would have taken the car back 4 times for attempted repair before 12000 miles I would have received a ruling under lemon law requirements in Ky and arbitrator would have ordered replacement at no cost to me, but since I didn't meet the lemon requirements she ordered replacement with the fees, her hands were tied.
According to the Acura rep the problem HAS NOT been corrected in the 05, they have adjusted the suspension, in order to try and cover it up a little more, but the real problem, a defective torque converter has not been resolved, too expensive my guess, so they want to cram it down our throat. The Arbitrator went on to say that it constitutes a substantial impairment of the SAFETY,USE AND VALUE of the vehicle to the consumer, and MAY POSE A SAFETY DANGER IN THE FUTURE AS THE VIBRATION CONTINUES by over-stressing other parts and systems.
At the hearing you need to produce evidence you have taken the car back to the dealer for repair attempts and have copies from dealer service showing date, mileage, and what they did. On my service invoices were my complaint and they clearly stated no fix at this time. I also had copies from this forum about vibration complaints,but the rep at my hearing admitted very freely that the problem existed in the 04 and 05 TL and that they had no fix for it at this time. Let me say this, every state that has a lemon law, they are all different so check requirements for yours. At the hearing you can also ask each other questions and you will probably be asked questions by the arbitrator and the rep, we also took a test drive and rep brought 04 TL with him. It is an informal hearing, you will be fine with it.
I will not keep this car because it worries me about being safe, whats going to happen if I am going down the interstate at 75 and this torque convertor flies apart who knows what might happen.
You also need to notify Acura in writing.
Good luck, I plan on fighting them for awhile.
Ricko
Stupid question, but is this on the Manual or Automatic?
Thank your for the reply. I have checked out tireack.com and decided to go with the KUHMO ECSTA 716. From the reviews, it gets the best bang for your buck. Also, I'm only planning on driving this for another 15,000 miles. So...I'm just going to go ahead and get them done soon.
If you know of any reason why NOT to go with this brand I would appreciate it.
Thanks again for all your help...
Mark
I'm due for my 45,000 mile service. Can anyone recommend (or point me in the right direction where I can find this) an independent Acura repair shop in PHOENIX for this type of service. OR...would you just take into Acura and get it done with?
Thanks again....
Mark
PS Any idea what I should expect to pay?
As for the 45K service, do what's recommended in the manual. Most dealers would add extra services (like flushing fluids, etc.) that you don't need at this time. So, check with the dealer the itemized service, and see their advertised coupons.
I can't seem to find the posting u mentioned about Kahunah's solution regarding the moonroof squeaks. Can you tell me where to find it? Thank you.
THANKS for all your help...I'll check out the above and also the dealership for pricing.
Mark
Yeah, that Kuhmo seems right for me. Thanks again for all your help and the heads up on the dealership service.
Mark
One more question. I am getting a quote of $210 from my local dealership for the 45,000 mile service (99 TL). They also suggested I change the transmission fluid for $60. Does this indeed need to be done at this point?
Thanks again for your feedback!!
Mark
You can have the 45K at any shop for about $130-160, nothing special about the dealer's service, especially that the car is now out of warranty. My advice to you is to check out advertisements and mailer coupons for Firestone, Goodyear, etc. and do the service there.
We have decided to keep our 03 unless other things go wrong. My wife drives it now, and let me know that the volume control on the steering wheel went out as well as the switch for the passenger side heated seat. Some minor issues, but nothing major yet. The car only has 18k miles on it now.
Make sure you extend that warranty out as long as you can, that model year especially the type s, had lots of problems with the transmission.
A legal firm in San Diego is engaging Honda now in a class action law suit over this transmission issue. No settlement has been reached yet. I will be keeping up with the law suit and try to post here if something is ever reached.
I called my local Goodyear (AAA approved) who is quoting me $100. He told me just bring in the manual and he will do everything listed. No concerns to bringing this in here (with the price so low) instead of a dealerhip?
Funny you should mention that law suit. In November 04 when my 1st tranny went out I was so pissed I emailed the law firm with what had happend. They contacted me within about two weeks and wanted to set up a time to meet. At first I was thinking it might be some kind of a scam. But sure enough they sent out an attorney to my house and a person showed up to video tape my account of how my transmission went out in a very dangerous manner (rapidly downshifting making car very difficult to control). It sounded like they were at the very least trying to get Honda/Acura to offer a better warranty based on the installation date of a replacement tranmission. So instead of just a 7 year/100K warranty, there would also be a 5 year/50K extention from the date of a replacement transmission up to a certain point. This would prevent Honda/Acura from just putting in replacements until everyone is beyond 7 year/100K. We will see. They did say sometime in Feb they should know something.
Last I heard, I emailed the lawyer, there is going to be a meeting sometime in March. Keep your fingers crossed.
Two problems though:
1. Of late the sunroof has begun to squeak when driving. Not when opening or closong but just when driving with it closed. I believe it is the rubbing of the rubber gasket. Does anyone know what can be applied to the rubber to stop this rubbing squeak?
2. Since new, the illumination for the odometer, outside temperature, etc has been pretty dim. Does anyone know of a possible replacemnt bulb or something to remedy this?
Thanks, any help is appreciated. gandb7
What was the name of the law firm..
contact info?
thanks,
Mt 04TL engine does not sound too good either. In fact, it is worse than my 87 Nissan Maxima which I used to own. I made a mistake in trusting Honda/Acura. The engine is extremely noisy for spanking new car.
The transmission problems have been ongoing since 99 and I thought it must be fixed by now especially when they roll out the new TL. No, it has not been fixed and Honda don't care as long they can sell cars, we the suckers are stuck with it.
My 04TL engine is putting out a humming grunting noises when accelerating from a complete stop. The dealer said Oh, that's normal bcoz the TL is a high performance car you know whatever. You call Acura customer service, some girls there know nothing about cars and they pass you around to someone else. You talk to a manager he can only say certain things, most don't help.
I am leaning toward to selling it anyday now. I can deal w/ rattles, squeaking stuff but not the engine.
Good luck w/ your new engine.
That's why if my car has a problem, I would rather trade in rather than sell privately, to avoid the legal, as well as moral issues. Not to mention the possibility of a disgruntled buyer coming back to beat the crap out of you!
Does anyone see a pattern..here