CarComplaints.com Notes: The 1999-2003 Acura TL has a known & widespread defect with the transmission.
Honda fixed some vehicles with a recall in 2004 by changing the oil cooler return line. To settle a class action lawsuit in 2006, Honda extended the transmission warranty on some of these Acura TL's to 93 months / 109,000 miles.
Now these vehicles are past the warranty limit, so buyer beware.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
29,553 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
1999 Acura TL. Consumer states problem with transmission failure the consumer stated the transmission failure occurred while driving down the highway at 70 mph. The vehicle started jerking and the consumer lost total power. The consumer stated the vehicle was out of warranty, but well within the mileage range for repairs, but Acura refused assistance.
I purchased the 99 Acura 3.2tl with 105K miles. I drove to charlotte, nc when the check engine light came on. Found out it was for the transmission and later had it confirmed that the solenoid has the error. Acura says the warranty extension was their answer to the problem, which never corrected the actual defect. In my case, the car took almost thirteen years to finally get to the mileage where the transmission fails, though now Acura says its not responsible.
The contact owns a 1999 Acura 3.2tl. Upon shifting the vehicle into reverse, a loud clunking noise could be heard. The vehicle was then shifted into drive and a whining noise could be heard before the gear set into drive. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the contact was told the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were 73,000. The VIN was unavailable.
The contact owns a 1999 Acura 3.2 TL. While driving the transmission slips gears. The transmission had internal failure. There was an extended warranty for the transmission. However, since the warranty had expired he was ineligible for a free replacement of the transmission. The current mileage is 103,000. The failure mileage was 101,000. Updated 01/05/10 the consumer also stated the egr valve was defective. The consumer stated Acura extended the warranty coverage for the egr valve. The egr valve was stuck and had to be replaced. Updated 01/07/10.
My ignition switch has been recalled and the Acura website says it has been repaired. It has failed again. My transmission was suppose to have been repair a year ago. I left the car at the dealer and they told me it was fixed. I went out to the car and the transmission lockout still was not fixed. Then they told me they would have to something different. The car had not left the dealers lot and was not fixed at that time.
- Somers, NY, USA
Search CarComplaints.com for these popular complaint phrases...
My vehicle habitually demonstrates the performance failures detailed in the NHTSA campaign id number # 04V176000. Although the manufacturer indicated the recall is limited to the 2000-2004 models, the symptoms of the product failure on my vehicle match identically. My 2nd gear has been ruined due to excessive heat.
Acura conducted an warranty extension for TL transmission instead of being forced to recall. Mine is acting up and the warranty has passed. I own a 1999 Acura TL.
Transmission surge, increase in speed when stepping on accelerator. Slammed into gear, mostly when the engine was cold, and at a stand still, and then surged into gear. Took vehicle to dealership and it was under recall. The dealer refused to fix it. Consumer will contact the manufacturer. The differential gear wobbled. Which caused the axle seal to break. The transmission fluid leak out from the axle casing. The dealer simply revealed a broken gasket seal, a defective axle and not the real cause of the problem (differential wobbling).
There is a recall on transmission for a 1999 Acura TL. One of the reason for the recall stated on Acura website is the transmission fluid leaking. I bought the car with leaked atf to the dealer. They said it's not cover in the recall. I called Acura but there is still no reply. I was charged $90 for diagnosis.
The consumer could remove the key from the ignition while the transmission was in any gear. The vehicle has rolled on many occasion, luckily there have been no accidents. A recall was issued on this problem but the consumer's vehicle was not included due to VIN.
I own a 99 Acura TL. Receive a notice from Acura regarding an extension of warranty on the transmission. I went on internet to do research, to my horror, there are people had their transmission replaced up to 6 times. In some occasion it was reported the transmisson fail in the middle of the freeway. I believe this is the utmost safety issue that need to be investigated thoroughly.
Transmission jolts when put into reverse. Has occurred tons of times, even broken an engine mount. Dealers can't make it happen repeatedly so they don't fix it. This is one of two 99 TL's that I bought new. The other had to have the transmission replaced after much time in the shop and broken engine mounts. At times this care has difficulty shifting up while on the road and also will jump down into a lower gear with a jolt. This has been happening for over a year.
The transmissions on these cars need to be fixed there have been numerous amount of people with the same year and type of car that have had problems with their automatic transmissions. I used to own a Honda Accord with low mileage and it too had defective automatic transmission. I do not want to have an accident in my car and cause injury to thers and myself due to the lack of quality that my car has due to it's transmission.
Was driving down the road at 65 mph and out of no where the cars transmission down shifted into first gear. My car hopped and kicked me threw two lanes of traffic. I managed to get the car to the side of the road but I could have been seriously hurt. This is the second time the transmission and other components had to be changed in this vehicle and this time I could have killed my self or others.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Warrington, PA, USA