1999 Acura TL Warrenty Question

[evl_z4y]

Hello everyone I have a 1999 Acura TL that has a Wynn's Plus warranty on it. I brought it at 122,968 miles and now im at about 156,000 miles and Im having transmission problems. I already had it diagnosed by my mechanic and he said the pressure test was fine but the road test they noticed that the car shifts hard into 2nd gear and down shifts hard aswell. Today my check engine light and tcs light came on and I read in another forum its more than likely the transmission.


Now the contract says it covers "transmission flex plates, transmission case and all internal Lubricated Parts, Torque Converter and vacuum modulator.


My question to you guys is do you think the the Wynn Plus warranty covers the transmission to be replaced? I spoke with a representative and they said that the Transmission is listed as a covered part, but it depends on what is actually causing the transmission to fail. She also went on to say that if the mechanic needs to take apart the transmission I would be responsible for the labor cost if the cause of the transmissions failing isn't covered by my warranty.

With that being said and the transmission acting the way it acts (hard shift into 2nd gear/down shifting hard). Do you guys think my warranty would cover the reason why my transmission is failing?

[C25A1guy]

Oh boy. I think this is one of those "call you up in the middle of the night" extended warranty plans. Don't expect much from those con artists.

[Carbuff]

Originally Posted by C25A1guy

Oh boy. I think this is one of those "call you up in the middle of the night" extended warranty plans. Don't expect much from those con artists.

I agree...



I would attempt to fix it myself by having the trans fluid replaced (or do it yourself, EASY). Use only Honda Z1 ATF, it has special properties made just for the Acura trans.

If you don't have any service records you may want to change it up to three times (driving a few miles between each change). That way you will have mostly new fluid in there. Each drain requires a little more than 3 quarts so you would need 10 quarts for a 3X drain & fill. (There is no filter)

After that you need to do one drain every 30 - 36K miles as regular maintenance!
++++++++++


BTW I was under the understanding that the D indicator will blink if the transmission malfunctions. You may just have clogged EGR passages.... but you need to provide the actual CEL codes to find out!

[evl_z4y]

Originally Posted by Carbuff

you may just have clogged EGR passages

I just had that part replaced recently its a cylinder shaped part on the side of the engine. I will admit the car drove better after having it replaced, but now 2 months later its back acting up again. Is it hard to drain transmission fluid? For whatever reason I cant find a shop that has that Honda Transmission brand fluid... Only thing I can find is castor and the staff at advance auto parts said its ok to use that one as a substitute.

[Carbuff]

Originally Posted by evl_z4y

I just had that part replaced recently its a cylinder shaped part on the side of the engine. I will admit the car drove better after having it replaced, but now 2 months later its back acting up again.

EGR passages are NOT a part. They are the tubes by which exhaust gas is directed back into the combustion chamber.

Acura had two recalls on them, the last involved drilling out one of the passages to make it larger. I couldn't find the specific reference just now. But I'll look later unless someone comes up with it.

I had the problem once under warranty, and cleaned out the passages myself once (my car has 150K miles on it now). The black soot makes them clog like the arteries on a McDonalds junkie... and the low flow is what sets the two codes.

Is it hard to drain transmission fluid? For whatever reason I cant find a shop that has that Honda Transmission brand fluid... Only thing I can find is castor and the staff at advance auto parts said its ok to use that one as a substitute.

You'll have to go to a Honda repair specialist or the dealer....or, buy the fluid yourself and get the friendly local garage to change it for you.

Drain & Fill is easier than an oil change. The drain is the 3/8" square female bolt on the bottom left of the trans...on the '99 the fill hole is a 17mm bolt on the top. (Other years with the 5 speed auto may be different)

[evl_z4y]

Originally Posted by Carbuff

EGR passages are NOT a part. They are the tubes by which exhaust gas is directed back into the combustion chamber.

Acura had two recalls on them, the last involved drilling out one of the passages to make it larger. I couldn't find the specific reference just now. But I'll look later unless someone comes up with it.

can I clean it myself or bring it to a mechanic?

[Carbuff]

Originally Posted by evl_z4y

can I clean it myself or bring it to a mechanic?

You can do it yourself, it's not difficult, just time intensive.

Try googling HONDA V6 EGR CLEAN for a pictorial

[Carbuff]

Done with chores. Did the SEARCH.



Here is the Acura service bulletin showing how to remove the intake and clean the EGR ports.

http://www.in.honda.com/Rjanisis/pubs/SB/B00-004.PDF

The factory installed a pipe in there that was supposed to reduce the occurrence of this happening, but like I said, mine were pretty gummy 65,000 miles after the factory modification. So I think it pays to spend the time to clean everything out every few years.