Purchase a 2004 TL?

[AJP97]

Hello, I am considering purchasing a 2004 TL with 70k. It is a 6speed, non navi car. My concerns are the following: 1. First production year- I have not had good luck with this. 2. Brembo Brakes- Other than dust are they that bad? 3. 6 speed manual- I have heard both good and bad 4. Rattles- I hate rattles, I know pretty much every car has them, but would prefer them to be minimal 5. Pirelli Tires - Are they horrible like I have read? Road noise, wear, etc... I had good luck with my CL-S 6speed other than some paint issues. Looking to get back into the Acura family. Any feedback you have would be appreciated, thanks.

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[BigJack75]

Originally Posted by AJP97

Hello, I am considering purchasing a 2004 TL with 70k. It is a 6speed, non navi car. My concerns are the following:

1. First production year- I have not had good luck with this.
2. Brembo Brakes- Other than dust are they that bad?
3. 6 speed manual- I have heard both good and bad
4. Rattles- I hate rattles, I know pretty much every car has them, but would prefer them to be minimal
5. Pirelli Tires - Are they horrible like I have read? Road noise, wear, etc...

I had good luck with my CL-S 6speed other than some paint issues. Looking to get back into the Acura family. Any feedback you have would be appreciated, thanks.

1. First production year- I have not had good luck with this. This would stop me here. I have always tried to buy the newest model available.

2. Brembo Brakes- Other than dust are they that bad? Brembos are great in my opin but they do dust alot and are pretty expensive to repair/replace

3. 6 speed manual- I have heard both good and bad. I have read something about a 3rd gear issue. Make sure the clutch is good.

4. Rattles- I hate rattles, I know pretty much every car has them, but would prefer them to be minimal. They all rattle. Some worse than others.

5. Pirelli Tires - Are they horrible like I have read? Road noise, wear, etc... Never heard this but I have Bridgestone Potenza RE050 which I like but do make alot of noise.

If you could afford it I would try to find an 05 or newer. But that's just me.

[alexSU]

Brake dust can be solved with using ceramic pads.

Rattles is something you'll proabably end up fixing yourself.

6MT is awesome! If 3rd gear feels funny, you can change the transmission fluid (there is a thread on this somewhere around here) which usually helps.

Good luck

[zookie]

I bought a used 2004 TL 6Spd Navi. My post will be bias because I love this car.

1. I have had no issues with the car due to it being a first production year. I heard about some problems with the auto transmission in the first year. I would do some searching on this forum just to be sure, but no issues over here.

2. Brembo brakes work exceedingly well for me, but they do dust. Stop very well in cold, hot, and wet. I am replacing mine next week. Keeping the rotors, but putting on different pads that hopefully dust less. Only time I ever feel any difference in the pedal is if I have driven the car hard and notice brake fade. But this is very rare. Normal driving, they are outstanding.

3. I have had no problems with my 6spd. I have had to replace the clutch and flywheel at 116,000 miles. You might get more life from yours, but I drive pretty hard at times. New clutch from dealer is about $1,700 so just budget ahead of time.

4. I still have very few rattles. There are more than when I bought the car and I personally hate rattles as well. When it is cold here I hear them more, naturally. When it is warm, it still feels pretty tight.

5. I don't know about the tires. Just replace them if you don't like them or when they get worn. They don't last long enough for that to influence a buying decision for me.

Outside your list, since you will have 70k, also budget for the 100k service. This will include replacing the timing belt. Service costs around $1,200. This is high compared to some domestic cars, but if you are shopping for high mileage used cars, you're going to face this cost regardless of the car you choose. Just knowing in advance is nice. I wish someone would have told me.

Lastly, avoid wheel hopping. This happens more as your tires wear out. When the tires are worn and you try to accelerate, the wheels will spin. VSA will kick in and try to limit this but it isn't perfect. If you keep your foot down, the wheels will spin when they can and the wheels will start to "hop" a little. You'll be replacing front axles if you do this too much. They aren't too expensive, but it's a cost you can avoid if you just back off when it hops.

Hopefully this helps and hopefully you'll get some other comments that help you out. I love the car and it is worth all of the above.

[mcmguti]

its all about the testing of the car, look at it from top to bottom before you buy, i just bought an 04 september and i LOVE it. I get some rattles between low acceleration, but it doesnt bother me because i have loud music on, as far as everything else like zookie said just make sure you save up for the 105k tuneup and clutch replacement.

and BTW 3rd gear has not been a problem for me...at all. Overall a very solid car.

[jime]

I purchased an 04 6MT from the very first production run (11/24/03) of the 6MT and picked up the car 12/11/03. I now have over 90K miles and the only problems I have had so far is one of the window motors went out at about 30K and the cruise control on/off button would not stay depressed at about 35K - both fixed under warranty. I purchased the extended warranty because of the "first production year" but have used it at all so far.
No rattles so far - NONE.
The great Brembro brakes are dusty and I just purchased my second set of front pads for $152. I went back to the OEM pads because the Hawk ceramics I had before were noisy.
I love the 6-MT. I changed over to the GM fluid at about 10K miles and the shifts are always very smooth.
I had Pzero Nero tires and they were OK, but wore out quickly. I have switched to Yoko's for the last two sets and am very pleased with them - except that they still only last about 30K miles (maybe it's my driving habits).
I highly recommend the car.

[AJP97]

Very helpful advice. I would love to get an 07 model, but at that price point I like some other behicles better. Right now I need to decide between the TL and a new Accord Coupe 4cylinder manual. The lease on them is about the same payment as the TL. I know they are two different cars, but both have about the same amount of "sport" to them. The TL has much more "go" which is nice. I prefer the V6, but I appreciate the fuel economy from the 4 cylinder.

[AnthraciteAspec]

1. First production year- Not really an issue, I love my 04 its great.
2. Brembo Brakes- Brembos are awesome, get some aftermarket pads if you are concerned about dust
3. 6 speed manual- I have an auto but the 6spds are pretty solid just do the 3rd gear fix if it hasnt been done yet
4. Rattles- I hate rattles also, luckily most of them are easily fixable
5. Pirelli Tires - Tires can easily be replaced with different tires

That said the TL is a great car. None of the issues above should stop you from getting it. However if you have to finance it, maybe you should go with a new Accord because you will have a warranty. The TL should not break down but if it does do you have the spare funds to repair it? These cars are not cheap. Just something to consider. Good luck with whatever you choose

[SouthernBoy]

Originally Posted by AJP97

Hello, I am considering purchasing a 2004 TL with 70k. It is a 6speed, non navi car. My concerns are the following:

1. First production year- I have not had good luck with this.
2. Brembo Brakes- Other than dust are they that bad?
3. 6 speed manual- I have heard both good and bad
4. Rattles- I hate rattles, I know pretty much every car has them, but would prefer them to be minimal
5. Pirelli Tires - Are they horrible like I have read? Road noise, wear, etc...

I had good luck with my CL-S 6speed other than some paint issues. Looking to get back into the Acura family. Any feedback you have would be appreciated, thanks.

I bought my '04 manual new on July 17, 2004. The car was built within the first few days of July and still had all of the plastic on it, inside and out when I got it. It had been on the lot two days. It is anthracite/ebony with Nav.

1. First production year- I have not had good luck with this.
While I tend to agree with this, Other than the battery going dead because oof the outside temp display flatlining seven weeks after I bought the car, I have never had any problems.

2. Brembo Brakes- Other than dust are they that bad?
The factory OEM pads are very good and do a fine job for this car. However, they do dust a lot so I replaced mine with Rotex Gold Kevlar pads and the dusting dropped around 90%.

3. 6 speed manual- I have heard both good and bad
Some people have had some problems, primarily with third gear. And there is a TSB out for this issue. I have never had any problems whatsoever with mine - it is just as smooth now as it was on day one. I do use GM Synchromesh Friction Modified fluid (part #12377916) for it.

4. Rattles- I hate rattles, I know pretty much every car has them, but would prefer them to be minimal
When the weather turns colder, my driver's side tweeter will rattle sometimes and so does my CD storage compartment door (just under the center control stack). If I load four CD cases in this compartment, the little buzz goes away). No other rattles. And my '05 automatic TL has no rattles at all.

5. Pirelli Tires - Are they horrible like I have read? Road noise, wear, etc...
Don't know. Both of my replace set of tires (I'm on a new set now) have been Michelin Pilot Sport A/S (now the "PLUS"). These are excellent tires for this car and should have been the factory OEM tires.

One of the biggest complaints with the '04 was driver side butt prints on the seat. This is true, but I like mine.. it fits me perfectly and is more comfortable on long trips than my '05.


Do a thorough visual check both inside and out. Examine the rotors for any scoring or scratching and look at the ridge along the edge. If it is pronounced, you are going to have to replace them (or have them turned which is not the best thing to do if you get long life out of your pads). Check for play and any slop in the steering and notice how it tracks. Is there any pulling or vibration?

The clutch. Unless you are buying the car from someone you know, you will have no idea how this critical part was treated. Under normal circumstances, 70K miles is quite low for the life of a clutch. If you really know how to operate a manual transmission, you should expect at least three times this amount of mileage out of your clutch. My '04 has 72,130 miles on it with a very tight and solid feeling clutch.