While driving on the highway at 65mph, my car suddenly slipped out of gear, engine revving and smoke pouring from under the hood. I had gotten no warning at all.the check engine light never came on and the car had no prior instances of gear problems. Had to get it towed home where it sits in my driveway because I can't afford a new transmission.
2001 Acura CL: complete transmission failure
76 of the 271 complaints about the 2001 Acura CL describe complete transmission failure.
- owner complaints
- 76
- of this car's complaints
- 28%
- typical mileage
- 48,500
- recalls
- 1
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall and 37 service bulletins for this area of the car. See below
Complete transmission failure by model year
What owners say
Transmission failed prematurely. Transmission was rebuilt. Transmission failed again years later unexpectedly on the highway.
Transmission failure. This is a safety hazard as the transmission stalls and then slams into gear. I no longer feel safe to drive this car. I had to pay a great amount of money to fix my defective transmission.
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 acura cl. The contact stated that while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle emitted smoke from under the hood. The contact was able to coast the vehicle onto the shoulder where the vehicle was towed to a local mechanic who performed a diagnostic. The failure was located at the transmission. The contact stated that the transmission was replaced at 85,000 miles under the federal safety agency campaign id number: 04v176000 (power train: automatic transmission) but the failure was not corrected. The vehicle was repaired and the local mechanic replaced the transmission. The approximate failure mileage was 170,000 and the current mileage was 174,458.
2001 acura 3.2 cl. Consumer writes in regards to transmission problems *tgw the consumer stated the transmission would slip at times while driving. When the consumer contacted acura, he was informed their records indicated the transmission was replaced on or about april 12, 2004. The consumer stated he has no record of the transmission being replaced. The consumer stated his wife did take the vehicle to the dealer on march 29,2004 because she was experiencing problems with the transmission, but the service report read no problem found.
Purchased 2001 acura 3.2 cl type-s (replacing my first acura 3.2cl that was totaled in a 1/2009 crash) on 3/2009 as second owner from acura dealership with 35,232 miles. Got all service records for this automobile from dealer including the record dated 9/9/04 (mileage 14,660) for the installation of the oil jet kit during transmission recall. While driving home on the highway this evening, the engine and vehicle stability assist (vsa) system lights came on and stayed on. When I finally stopped at a light and then processed through it at a normal slow speed, the tachometer jumped from 2,000 to 4,000 rpms while in first gear. Luckily, I was within a few blocks of my destination. When I returned to vehicle to drive home, car would not shift out of first gear. I had to park the car on a city street that same night. I hadn't experienced any transmission problems until this one night. Had car towed to my regular mechanic the next day only to be told it was a transmission problem. Contacted local acura dealer to be told that my vehicle was out of the warranty period and they tentatively offered a good will split of the cost. (I had bought my first new 2001 acura 3.2cl from them and they had installed a new transmission during the earlier recall.) had vehicle towed to a nationwide transmission specialist shop. They determined that transmission had to be completely overhauled. Agreed to have it repaired and they used new factory parts and honda genuine automatic transmission fluid (atf-z1). After completion and payment, I was advised to drain and refill fluid every 15,000 miles and flush transmission system using atf-z1 every 30,000 miles. I had never been told this transmission servicing schedule by my original local acura service department consultants. Owner manual states changing the fluid at 45,000 miles or 36 months in their maintenance schedule for driving in normal conditions. Vehicle had 58,300 miles when this problem occurred.
While driving my 2001 acura cl type s to work (about 10 miles) my car would not go above 45 MPH, then only 30 MPH, but was able to make it into the parking lot. An hour later wanted to take the car to an auto shop and all seemed normal until about 6 miles after when the car would no longer move (engine still running ok). Tried all gears but to no avail. Let the car sit for 10 minutes and car worked ok again and was able to drive it to the auto repair shop. The next day they called and stated the transmission is "shot". All clutches are bad. They installed a jasper remanufactured transmission. I was told that acura only used this transmission type for the 2001 model. It was the first year for that transmission and the last year. I assume there were a lot of problems with it and acura went to a different transmission for the 2002 model year. It cost me $4500 to replace the transmission. I had about 102,000 miles on the car at the time of this failure. Note: there was a recall on the transmission from acura and I did bring the car back to acura for the recall notice.
Tl*the contact owns a 2001 acura 3.2cl. While driving approximately 60 MPH the vehicle began to shake violently. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the motor mounts were replaced. The contact also stated that the vehicle had always experienced transmission failures and that the transmission was replaced three times. The vehicle would intermittently slip out of third gear while driving. The failure and current mileages were 216,000.
Transmission failure at any speed in the acura cl 3.2 type s.
Tl* the contact owns a 2001 acura cl. While driving at 45 MPH the transmission began making a loud noise. The vehicle began to lose power and would not move forward. He was able to maneuver off the highway and had the vehicle towed to the nearest dealer. A diagnostic was performed and it was verified that the transmission had failed. The transmission was replaced at the owner's expense. There were no recalls on the vehicle. The failure mileage was 70,000 and the current was 72,000. Uodated 05/13/10.
I have a 2001 acura cl-s, having severe problems with the transmission. There was a recall, but they say it is out of warranty, by time. Problem is when I bought the car 2 years ago I brought this to someone's attention at acura , and was pushed away as if I knew nothing, and now they want to charge me close to $5000 to replace the transmission.
I own a 2001 acura 3.2 cl type s. I was driving my car (approx 45 MPH) on a busy two-lane road yesterday when my car suddenly stopped responding to the accelerator being pressed. I had cars coming at me at a high speed behind me. I saw an opening in oncoming traffic so that I could turn and get myself and my child out of harm's way. When I turned left, my car (I guess) downshifted and came to an almost complete stop with cars coming behind me and at me!!! I thankfully safely got to the side of the road and have not driven it since. I have been told it sounds like complete transmission failure. Myself and my son could easily have been killed! What do I do? Am I responsible for paying to replace transmission?
Service bulletins that may apply
- You are required to install a remanufactured A/T (automatic transmission) and torque converter on any...
- 3.2 tl and 3.2 cl automatic transmission
- Don't invite problems doing 2ND gear inspection
- Canon A75 digital camera replacement
- P1706 a/t switch short or open
- Safety recall: cl and tl automatic transmission second gear inspection
- How to replenish atf on vehicles with a/t oil jet kits
- How to remove a stubborn atf filler bolt
Related recalls
Power train: automatic transmission
- What is wrong
- On some mini vans, sport utility and passenger vehicles, certain operating conditions can result in heat build-up between the countershaft and secondary shaft second gears in the automatic transmission, eventually leading to gear tooth chipping or gear breakage.
- Risk
- Gear failure could result in transmission lockup, which could result in a crash.
- Remedy
- On vehicles with 15,000 miles or less, the dealer will update the transmission with a simple revision to the oil cooler return line to increase lubrication to the second gear. On vehicles with more than 15,000 miles, the dealer will inspect the transmission to identify gears that have already experienced discoloration due to overheating. If discoloration exists, the transmission will be replaced if discoloration is not present, the dealer will perform the revision to the oil cooler return line. The recall began on april 21, 2004, for pilot, odyssey, and mdx owners. Owners of the accord vehicles will start receiving letters on june 28, 2004, and on june 29, 2004, for owners of the tl and cl vehicles. Owners should contact honda at 1‑800‑999‑1009 or acura at 1‑800‑382‑2238.
Recall number 04V176000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2001 Acura CL transmission failure
Is complete transmission failure a common problem on the 2001 Acura CL?
76 of 271 owner complaints about the 2001 Acura CL (28%) mention complete transmission failure. The model year with the most reports is 2001.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2001 Acura CL?
There is 1 recall and 37 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2001 Acura CL
Slipping 42Jerking 17Airbag light 16Won't shift 11Check engine light 8Stalling 8No deployment 7Loss of power 6
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