-iLLuZioN-B18C1

I'm new to the TL scene. Looking for a 4 door and found one with 130k miles for $8700. If everything checks out and looks good, is 130k miles too much for these cars? Anything in particular to look for?
Any help would be great.
Thanks

Tweak01

Are you gonna have the car looked at by the dealer by chance?
Is there a service history? AT or MT?

joelmatt89

These will last well into 200k there are plenty of people driving with that much mileage and say the ride still feels great. There are a few things to look for, number one should be the transmission. There were a lot of transmission problems with the 2004's check that fluid was changed every 30k and also see if the 3rd gear and 4th gear pressure switches were changed. Make sure there is no slipping especially when shifting into third gear. Also it should have had the 105k service done (timing belt, thermostat, coolant flush, water pump, etc). There was also a problem that wasn't as common in the 2004's as the later models but frequently the LCA bushings would fail. If the steering seems kind of wishy washy or loose these may be bad. If your a diy kinda guy this will put you back under 100 if you aren't your looking at a $500 dollar repair. Also the dashes had a cracking problem around the passenger airbag especially in warm climates like florida, you will know it if you see it. It's purely cosmetic but if it bothers you it will be a bitch to change and be around 500, more if you go to the dealer. That is all I can think of there may be some other more minor things but nothing that would be a deal breaker.

-iLLuZioN-B18C1

Yea I read a few threads about the tranny, which is an AT. Assuming he does not have the 30k service records, did not change 3rd and 4th gear pressure switches, and I don't feel slipping, should I still be worried?

Sounds like the tranny may be the deal breaker, everything else seems minor enough.

What about pricing? Is $8700 fair/good?

joelmatt89

Does it have the technology package?

If the 105k service has been done, you don't see cracks in the dash, the steering feels tight, and the tranny feels good i would say that a pretty decent price assuming its in fair condition. The general consensus seems to be if the tranny was going to fail it would have done it well before 130k so I wouldn't worry about it...BUT you need to figure out if/when he has changed the fluid. At 130k if the atf has never been changed that would greatly reduce the life of that transmission, and trying to change the atf now would be disastrous. If you find out he has changed it 3 times or so it should be good, keep using the Honda ATF. If I were you the first thing I would do is change those pressure switches, cost about 15 a piece, and take about 1/2 hour max to change. Many people believe some of the transmission issues can be traced back to those apparently they seem to "wear" quickly causing poorly timed shifts prematurely wearing the transmission. The rest of the issues can be traced back to too much friction modifier in the honda atf, the cure for this is switching over to a combo of 66% redline type f and 34% redline d4, however at 130k switching to a different atf fluid is risky business, i would just stay with the honda atf. Hope this helps in your decision making process

bukjoe15

A friend of mine bought his TL with 300k miles and it had no problems.


I had my 05 TL since 06 and it has 195k miles still a champ