2005 Acura TL: Tell me about it

[Turbo_GLI]

I am just starting to look for a new car. I was planning on using my GTI as my work car and buying a nice car for weekends and such. I have my heart set on a new S4, but I am cross shopping the BMW 335 and others I that price range. I stopped by the Acura dealer today to check out the TL and stumbled across a used 2005 TL with extremely low miles in near perfect condition.

Is there anything I should look at while considering the purchase? Known issues? If I purchased the used TL, this will be my only vehicle for the foreseeable future.

Thanks!

[deagle]

acura's don't get the praise they deserve w/ their vehicles

[Toaster29]

If it's an auto, there's a chance you'll have an issue. They are much better than the earlier ones, but not bulletproof. Some of them have a weird shimmy at highway speeds. Go drive it and make sure it doesn't do that. There are a couple of known trouble spots such as the seal in the powersteering line off the pump right there on the top of the motor, but it's a 10 cent part and something you can replace in no time in your driveway. Overall they are very very reliable and a lot of car for the money. I nearly bought an 04 TL 6 speed, but it just wasn't as interesting to drive as the CL, and I wanted something that entertained me.

[BillyD]

My parents have a 2004 TL that they bought new. It's been unbelievably reliable.
An ex-girlfriend of mine had a TL A-Spec and it was similarly reliable.

[blkmagic1]

My mother has an 05 TL with tech. Its a great car, she bought it new, and has not had many problems. It does have this slip in the steering, not sure why. Could be I am so use to driving my cars, and just not too comfortable driving hers. But it looks good, even today. IMO, the best TL bodystyle or generation of them all.

Oh and her navi is not working. Maybe need a new disc, or a new unit, not sure. Best Navi in the biz though.

[Ross1013]

Nice to see the TL getting so much love here.

As some have said...trannies CAN be an issue, but by '05-06 they were pretty much sorted out. I have an 06 Accord w/the same tranny and no issues at 95k.

[chrisyoon]

If it's an auto, there's a chance you'll have an issue. They are much better than the earlier ones, but not bulletproof. Some of them have a weird shimmy at highway speeds. Go drive it and make sure it doesn't do that. There are a couple of known trouble spots such as the seal in the powersteering line off the pump right there on the top of the motor, but it's a 10 cent part and something you can replace in no time in your driveway. Overall they are very very reliable and a lot of car for the money. I nearly bought an 04 TL 6 speed, but it just wasn't as interesting to drive as the CL, and I wanted something that entertained me.

Recently sold off our 04 TL that was had since brand new. Loved all the bells and whistles, roomy car, nav system was very intuitive, and everything felt better than other cars in its price range... what killed it for me was the eventual nickel diming it did to me even with barely over 60k on the clock. The car EATS rear tires... not front, rear. The tranny issue that toaster mentioned IS there, and includes with it hard shifts. All three motors mounts went bad, the power steering tank loves to eat seals which causes a loud noise, but as mentioned cheap to fix. Had two window regulators go bad. Nav DVD drive died. And this car is lit up like audi's at night, but eats bulbs like crazy which can often be a pain to replace. My last straw was when an electrical gremlin killed all interior lights so driving at night was fun...

All in all, not bad for an 8 year old car, but wouldn't get it again....

[Guy Legend]

Acura hasn't made a nice looking vehicle since.

[Wanganrunner]

04 TL has normal Acura trans issues.

05+ is much better, expect nothing to go wrong.

I'm trying to find an A-Spec manual trans model right now, if I don't buy an XJS.

[Turbo_GLI]

I have loved this body style since its release and agree that it is the best Acura has released...

A little more info: 3.2L Auto Trans, seems to have everything but nav. Heres the kicker and what has me seriously considering this over a new S4, 19,000 miles...

I just got a new job that puts me on the road a lot and will prob be driving somewhere around 40k miles a year. So I feel this would be a great combo of having a nice comfy car to drive, then a year or so from now, go looking for the S4 or even an IS-F. I am not the most patient person in the world, but this could be the car that keeps me patient....

[TetsuoShima]

What's the power like on the TL ...and the TL-S? What other Honda products use the TL's and TL-S's V6? I am surprised I don't know much about this car..it does seem to fly under a lot of people's radar around here.

[330iZHP]

ours eats batteries - every two years it requires a new one

I have replaced the left half shaft, the bulbs in the steering wheel buttons (PITA)

I does have signs of a trans slip on hills and the car used to have a VERY twitchy rearend

living near and driving mostly in the city the car only averages about 17mpg

BUT, I consider this car to be dead reliable - comparing it to the three BMWs we also own

[TetsuoShima]

What's the power like on the TL ...and the TL-S? What other Honda products use the TL's and TL-S's V6? I am surprised I don't know much about this car..it does seem to fly under a lot of people's radar around here.

Just google'd:

2004 TL: 270 HP
2008 TL-S: 286HP

Not bad for either at all.

[Ross1013]

What's the power like on the TL ...and the TL-S? What other Honda products use the TL's and TL-S's V6? I am surprised I don't know much about this car..it does seem to fly under a lot of people's radar around here.

'Normal' 3G (2004-2008) TL has 3.2L w/270hp.

3G Type-S has 3.5L w/286hp.

The V6 is the J-series...used in every V6-equipped Honda or Acura since like 1998.

It's such a stellar engine that they are just now getting around to replacing it. Still the best V6 on the market, IMO.

[gti5dr06]

our 05 has been bulletproof, nothing more than required maintenance and still on original battery. The tranny issues are really blown out of proportion on here, in the same way that german cars are unreliable.

[TetsuoShima]

Is ~17k an accurate price for an 07/08 Type S? I remember these still going from $20-$28k

http://ontario.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehi...AdIdZ383138248

[Ross1013]

Is ~17k an accurate price for an 07/08 Type S? I remember these still going from $20-$28k

http://ontario.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehi...AdIdZ383138248

Seems a little low, yes.

[someguy123]

Is ~17k an accurate price for an 07/08 Type S? I remember these still going from $20-$28k

http://ontario.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehi...AdIdZ383138248

Look at that mileage!

I was looking at TL's, TL-S, and 1st-gen TSX.

The late model 1st-gen TSX has even higher resale than the TL-S, same year.

[Impeccable]

If the auto tranny fluid has been chenged regualrly with honda Z1/now DW1 u should be ok

[TetsuoShima]

Look at that mileage!

I was looking at TL's, TL-S, and 1st-gen TSX.

The late model 1st-gen TSX has even higher resale than the TL-S, same year.

you're one of those people that think anything over 100k km means the car is no good right?

[Impeccable]

Nice to see the TL getting so much love here.

As some have said...trannies CAN be an issue, but by '05-06 they were pretty much sorted out. I have an 06 Accord w/the same tranny and no issues at 95k.

Most honda 5ATs die at about 100k, not trying to jinx you as some people have gone to 300k trouble free

[czykvw]

What I love the most about that gen TL is not the looks, but the thick doors/body panels that can actually take a beating. Feels like a real car, not something made out of tin. Like the new TL.
And the blue/red colored instrument cluster is pretty awesome.

I see them everywhere? So they cant be that bad!

[Aonarch]

Solid cars. I'd rock one. I wish they were RWD though.

[someguy123]

you're one of those people that think anything over 100k km means the car is no good right?

I think anything over 200k km is no good that's not been taken care of myself since new.

[VR6 GLX Man]

Own one, the wifes car, wish it was stick, but reliable so far. Friend of mine has one the same year as mine, only issue is a dying battery. It's pretty quick so I can imagine how much faster the TL-s is.

[GLI Dan]

if you want an overpriced glamorous honda then buy the acura. if you want something fun and engaging stick to looking for s4's and 335i's.

Acura is trying to be a top tier luxury brand and the key word is trying. They aren't. anything offered from benz, bmw, and audi is leaps and bounds ahead of acura in the quality of fit and finish.

Acura is to the premium car world as the boxster is to porsche. 2nd best.

[kraut_pauer79]

if you want an overpriced glamorous honda then buy the acura. if you want something fun and engaging stick to looking for s4's and 335i's.

Acura is trying to be a top tier luxury brand and the key word is trying. They aren't. anything offered from benz, bmw, and audi is leaps and bounds ahead of acura in the quality of fit and finish.

Acura is to the premium car world as the boxster is to porsche. 2nd best.

the stupid and smug in this post is off the chart.

[GLI Dan]

the stupid and smug in this post is off the chart.

nope, just my opinion. Which is that acura is nothing more than a dressed up honda at the end of the day. if you're going to spend money on a premium brand and it's for a "fun" vehicle which is it what it sounded like in the OP then spend your money right. Not on a polished turd.

[someguy123]

if you want an overpriced glamorous honda then buy the acura. if you want something fun and engaging stick to looking for s4's and 335i's.

Acura is trying to be a top tier luxury brand and the key word is trying. They aren't. anything offered from benz, bmw, and audi is leaps and bounds ahead of acura in the quality of fit and finish.

Acura is to the premium car world as the boxster is to porsche. 2nd best.

Definitely S4's and 335i's if you ignore reliability and expensive maintenance....

[BMT62688]

I had a 2005 TL with the 6mt and I was dead reliable I bought it with 69000 miles on it and after 2 years it had almost 120000 miles on it and I only had to replace a couple things like motor mounts and both drive axles. I got on a couple of occasions 32 mpg on the hwy but city was around 17 mpg. The only reason I got rid of it I wanted an awd turbo car and I regret getting ride of the TL everyday when im replacing or trying to figure out what's wrong with my a4. As far as quality I have to disagree to an extent the seat leather is not the best quality but I found the interior very comfortable and probably the nicest interior I have seen

I should add that the only bad things about the car was the 3rd gear grind and that power steering seal which is only a problem in cold weather

[don5504]

I have a 2007 type s so I have a little 1st hand experience with them.

1st off the transmissions are different in the 3.2 and 3.5(type s) liter cars. The non type s cars have a similar transmission that was in the previous generation of TL. The type s TL's (2007-2008) came with a modified version of the RL transmission and were more robust.

2nd the 3.2/non type s TL has known transmission issues. Oddly enough tho the non type s cars are not speed regulated/governed but the 3.5/type s cars do have a 132-133mph limit.

[2000JettaGLXVR6]

Just google'd:

2004 TL: 270 HP
2008 TL-S: 286HP

Not bad for either at all.

Actually, the numbers for the 2004-2006 models were later revised to 258 hp (192 kW), based on the new SAE measurement standard for horsepower.

I had an 04 6-speed that I purchased brand new and it was the biggest POS I've ever owned, spent more time in the shop than any other car I've owned. It's a wanna be german car with the sportiness of an Accord V6. No joke. I ended up trading it on a 2001 325i, much better car all around except if you need space.

[Burnin8r]

that guy who rolled backwards and got caught on dashboard camera drove one if that helps.

[IgorRGTI]

I am just starting to look for a new car. I was planning on using my GTI as my work car and buying a nice car for weekends and such. I have my heart set on a new S4, but I am cross shopping the BMW 335 and others I that price range. I stopped by the Acura dealer today to check out the TL and stumbled across a used 2005 TL with extremely low miles in near perfect condition.

Is there anything I should look at while considering the purchase? Known issues? If I purchased the used TL, this will be my only vehicle for the foreseeable future.

Thanks!

I'm confused, you're looking at a new S4/335i, but are now interested in an 05 TL?

Wouldn't a new S4/335i be pretty much double an 05 TL if not more?

[WakusPakus]

nope, just my opinion. Which is that acura is nothing more than a dressed up honda at the end of the day. if you're going to spend money on a premium brand and it's for a "fun" vehicle which is it what it sounded like in the OP then spend your money right. Not on a polished turd.

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