Acura CL

carguy58 · September 2003

14,000 miles on the odometer on my 02 CL(Base) and no problems so far. Hopefully the tranny holds up. I hope to keep this car until the 2008-2010 period so I hope it lasts me without any issue's.

fastdriver · September 2003

bodble2-

It was probably about a week or so, maybe a little longer. It got worse by the day and was very erratic- revving, but barely moving forward when leaving a light. Some people evidently have had the opposite problem of going highway speed and suddenly having the tranny drop to a lower gear.

My car was 26 months old with about 24,300 miles on her when it happened.

fastdriver

carguy58 · October 2003

be getting another oil change for my 02 CL. Its nearing the 15,000 mile mark now. Very happy with it. No Problems at all with my car.

smilecry · October 2003

Does it feel terrible sitting in CL backseats during a long distance? Consider to join my friends in a roadtrip recently. Thanks!

alkanx · November 2003

I think the design of the rear seating in not for long distance -- similar to some other cars but still Acura could have done a better job I think...

Aside, there is new oil filter for CL now, it is somewhat smaller than the previous one, anyone knows the reasoning...

carguy58 · November 2003

The CL is not really not meant for people in the backseat. I am a single person myself so backseat room isn't really important. If you want more room buy the TL. The CL is not a good car for carrying people.

jay238 · November 2003

Well, you do'nt have to worry much since you're not driving. Just see who's sitting in front of you. As long as the front seat is not very far back, there is enough room in the CL back seat.

bodble2 · November 2003

The backseats are actually fairly roomy. But you sit low so you don't have much of a view. And to me the biggest pain the a** is climbing in and out of the back.

bodble2 · November 2003

Last night when I was driving home, the brake warning light on the dash (the one that comes on when the parking brake is activated) came on. Brake pedal travel and pressure seemed normal. I cycled the ignition and the light went off. This morning I checked under the car for leaks. There was none. The brake reservoir level is midway between max and min, which is OK. So I drove off. Lo and behold, the brake warning light came on 5 minutes into my commute, and then went off by itself after a few minutes. Braking action remains within normal range. Any idea what the problem may be?

jay238 · November 2003

Hmm, strange. Maybe a faulty wire? I'd ask on Acura-cl.com

bodble2 · November 2003

You may be right. Incidentally I dropped it off at the dealer this morning. Their initial diagnosis, since pedal pressure and travel is not affected, is that it may be a faulty fluid sensor (or related wiring), or even a faulty parking brake sensor.

bodble2 · November 2003

And I'd probably trip backwards and fall on my [non-permissible content removed]!

fastdriver · November 2003

bodble2-

LOL..... If my 91 year old mother can do it, you can! :-)) Then again, with her new hip replacement on 9/11/03 maybe she can't do it anymore!

fastdriver

alkanx · November 2003

Recently got a speeding ticket, was 10 miles over the limit, officer used the Lidar (Laser) gun. Any suggestions on lasers, have seen all kinds of stuff on the web but if someone else has used something that is worth the money...

AL..

jay238 · November 2003

I don't know.......laser is very tricky to detect. I haven't researched everything but what I like to do is search car messageboards for this and their recommendations. A ton of threads show up.

Even the 2 best detectors, Escort 8500 and Valentine 1 have trouble with laser.

daqman · November 2003

Black/parchment...beuatiful car but may be too much power for me coming from a 98 QX4(loved that truck!) Taking it on a road trip tomorrow hope everything checks out.

Thanks for all the info. and tips.
Has anyone tried to have the nav. added aftermarket?

bodble2 · November 2003

Congrats. You might find that the CL-S will perform better on the highway than around town. The throttle tip-in is tuned quite aggressively, IMO. That's why around town it gives the impression of abundant power. If the road surface is the least bit damp, I always have trouble launching the car without spinning the front wheels and activating the VSA. The downside is that the car is harder to drive smoothly in stop-and-go traffic. But on the open road, the power is seamless and even the steering tracks better.
Happy motoring!

carguy58 · November 2003

First the hail damage hit me now I have a little piece of metal stripping sticking up from the roof of the car. There are 2 pieces of metal stripping on each side of the roof of the car. Either the weather caused this or maybe the fixing of the hail damage caused this. I had a Ford Mustang and a Mazda 626 before this and I never had problems like this with either of those 2 cars. I love the Acura and will drive it a long time but to come out of work and to find the stripping sticking up in the air was a sure surprise to me. This car is the ultimate touring coupe, I get it washed once a month(hand washed), oil gets changed every 3K, and take care of it like I would take care of a girlfriend.

rick27513 · December 2003

Too much power??????? Huh???? Never!

Wash once a month?...like your girlfriend? I'll leave that one alone!... but really, any CL-S will perform better - and be much happier - with Once a Week bathing. But seriously, I bet your dealer removed the roof strips for body repair and in replacing them, didn't get the strip properly secured. Just a guess.

re/ Laser, save your money for the tickets. There is no gradual-approach warning, as with radar. Once the Laser hits your car, you're busted in less time than you can slow down. I have a radar/laser detector, and even the owner's manual states that you can't do much of anything outside pure luck with laser detection.

My brake light also stayed on a recent cold morning. I thought it was just a sensor and the unusual cold blast that morning. We'll see.

bodble2 · December 2003

Well, I tried to bathe my girlfriend more than once a month, but my wife won't stand for it!

)

daqman · December 2003

Thanks, I stretched her out on a road trip home this past week, and there's a def. diff. between in town driving and hwy. cruising. Great car for the open rd.

I think I may be close to making that trip to the dealer to have my tranny checked, it seems to act a lil strange wonder if the colder weather is having an effect.

Are speakers covered under the org. factory warr?

carguy58 · December 2003

thats a little out in left field anyway. Thanks for the answer to my reponse about the metal strips though.

bodble2 · December 2003

What sort of strange behaviour are you experiencing with the tranny? Speakers are covered. What's the US warranty? 4 years or 48k miles?

daqman · December 2003

tranny seems to hesitate when it's still cold, I'll be keeping a close eye on it.

bodble2 · December 2003

The tranny will hold each gear longer when it is cold. Once it warms up, the shift points will be lower. If that's what you mean, then you may have nothing to worry about. Let's hope so.

95gt · December 2003

They extended everyones warranty for the transmission so what is the big deal? Most cars were not effected and acura probably does not know which ones will fail so does not make sense to replace all the transmissions. Easier to just extend the warranty and fix the ones that need it when/if they break.

daqman · December 2003

carguy58 · December 2003

CL owners!

daqman · December 2003

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

bodble2 · December 2003

Happy New Year!

daqman · January 2004

This board is officially dead.

fastdriver · January 2004

daqman-

One of many! Too bad. This USED to be a JUMPING place- Edmunds TH that is!

fastdriver

bodble2 · January 2004

This board died with the CL

carguy58 · January 2004

this car has served me through this extreme cold on the East Coast. The car never shows any hesitation when starting up. I hate to see when they change the oil what the old oil looks like. I think the oil is going to pretty thick. I used to think on the best looking car on the road when I first got this car. Still a classy looking car. It don't have the elegance of the Mercedes E-Class or the sportiness of the Mazda 6. I think the exterior styling of my 02 CL splits the difference of those 2 cars pretty well though. Car did well through one snowstorm. With all these snowstorms threatening to come I haven't washed this car in a month. I just want to get all the salt off the car. 16,900 miles racked up. Everything well. I missed my car when it was getting fixed 6 months ago. Body shop did a good job in repairing the car.

fastdriver2 · January 2004

carguy58-

My 2001 CL-S has held up well with this winter weather also. More snow coming to CT tomorrow into Tues. At least that's what they're saying now. Can't wait for Spring so I can get the Zaino polish out and get her gleaming shine even "gleamier"!! ;-)))

fastdriver- ignore the fastdriver2 above. Having trouble signing in under my original screename. They say they're working on it.

joeshed · January 2004

What is making my CL Type S pull to the left? Ever since I took delivery of my '03 with 6 speed, I have noticed a tendency to pull to the left. Acura has checked alignment and found everything to be within specifications. I have set air pressure meticulously, rotated wheels, and driven other CL/Ss for comparison. I drive it a lot, and believe me, it is constant, not caused by road crown or front wheel drive issues. Anyone else with similar experiences, or with any recommendations? Where is the best alignment shop around northeastern New Jersey? This car is too good, not to have it drive straight!

bodble2 · January 2004

The pulling is definitely not normal. I've complained about the CL-S steering. You can call it loose-feeling, disjointed, jittery, etc. But one thing is it has always tracked straight as an arrow. If I find a straight level stretch of road, I can practically take both hands off the wheel and eat a sandwich!

daqman · January 2004

The Cl-s is holding up well in the snow and freezing weather, only had one problem and that was the sterring being a little stiff one morning.

Loving the heated seats ! ;-)

motokichi · February 2004

Our 2001 CL-S will be going in for 135kmile service next week. Anyone out there with more? Only trouble worth mentioning so far has been the trans-it was working OK but the CEL came on at 125k.

bodble2 · February 2004

Holy moly! I'm taking mine in next week --- for the 36,000 KM service! Converted to miles, I'm only about 110,000 miles behind you.

BTW, I've never broken 100,000 miles with any car that I've owned. I think the closest was an '89 Accord coupe with about 85,000 miles in 8 years.

daqman · February 2004

The Cl-s is a solid vehicle once you get past the squeeks and rattles...oh yeah and the transmission issues.

bodble2 · February 2004

Yeah, the random and unpredictable squeaks and rattles are very annoying. When it gets really bad, I feel like trading it in at ANY price.

carguy58 · February 2004

I don't have any. I have a 2002 so they must have gotten the first year bugs worked out. That was probably the first year(2001.)No trans issues(not yet anyway.)

Yesterday, I got my CL washed at a car wash where the hand washed the cars. The guy who washed my car was about to pull the car out. There was my CL nice and clean. The car looked nice all washed up and from the backview and those dual exhaust pipes sticking out. It was about the first time in a month I had the car washed. Got all that nasty salt off of it.

The only time I think about trading this car in is the iffy issue of resale value but I don't think its going to be bad though because I'll keep this car for 5 more years. I also think about trading this car in when I see a Mazda 6. Those are aboyt the only 2 instances where I would want to have another car.

fastdriver · February 2004

carguy58-

I don't have any squeaks or rattles either and I have a 2001 CL-S. Must be the roads those people drive on. I do have a new transmission that was put in at about 24,000 miles last June. I have about 28,400 now. Left the car at the dealer, that I didn't buy it from, they gave me a brand new TL as a loaner. They had the car from Thursday until Tuesday. No problem.

fastdriver

excl2005 · February 2004

This may sound like a "no-brainier," but I'm trying to decide whether to buy the 2001 Acura CL 3.2 Type-S Coupe or the 2002 Honda Accord EX V6 Coupe.

I'm also aware of the 2001 Acura CL's defective transmission and that Acura has extended its drive train warranty from 70K to 100K. However, I've also read the horror stories from Acura CL owners going through two or three transmissions and not even reaching beyond the 100K mark, either.

I really like the Acura CL. So much, that I contacted an Acura dealership that had two 2001 Acura Cl's in stock and voiced both my interest for this model, but I also my deep concerns. Like a typical car sale man, he never addressed the issue but rather focused upon the fact that these two models have new transmissions and Acura has an excellent customer service record.

Thanks for the help!

bodble2 · February 2004

The Accord supposedly has the same tranny concerns. We happen to own exactly both of those cars -- 2001 CL-S and 2002 Accord V6 (sedan), and FWIW, so far the tranny in both have had no problem. Both still at fairly low mileage though.

ibmindless · February 2004

Darren,

Take a look at the home page of Edmunds. They have a new feature that contains consumer reviews of cars, as well as costs to own, etc. These are carried under a headline about JD POWER, and WHAT'S NEW AT EDMUNDS.

I took a quick check on the 2001 CL-S, and there were 46 reviews, averaging a 9+ rating.

When my tranny started to go, it never did a sudden downshift. In fact, my major complaint was that it wouldn't kick down to 3rd when I wanted passing power on the freeway --- it would only drop down to 4th.

I've read reports that it would act ALMOST like it was hunting for a gear at 35-40MPH, then suddenly kick down to 2nd, BUT... I've never known of such an event occuring in any of the 4 2001 CL's that are owned by folks I know.

Good Luck with your decision,
Mark

PS: I believe the extended tranny warranty is transferable - you should confirm that though.

Mr_Shiftright · February 2004

thanks for suggesting that, ibmindless.

Heres a direct link to consumer reviews:

Consumer Reviews

Host

alkanx · February 2004

Gents, there appears to be a leak under the motor, its got manual tranny & I have a feeling it is coming from the tranny. Anyone else discovered such...? I am taking it in to dealership to see the extent of this leak, only 20k miles...

Also, anyone installed 04-TL 17 inch wheels/tires on a CL-S...

Thx..
Shawn....

steveb30 · February 2004

I have an 01 CL-S with 33,000 (still waiting for my first tranny problem). My question is what the heck is with the squeaking? About a year ago, my right front shock started squeaking like an old mattress every time any weight in the car shifted. But that went away in a few days. Now, about 3 weeks ago, the left front side started doing that. Any time I hit the breaks or go around a turn or over a bump, it sounds like it needs a gallon of WD-40 sprayed behind the right wheel. It even squeaks when I get in or out of the car. Its getting to the point where I cant drive through a shopping center because everybody turns and looks and some even laugh. Anybody know what is going on with this car? I already had to get the front pads and rotors replaced at 30,000 (which acura reluctantly paid for), and I really dont want to be replacing the struts already.

Acura CL

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