2003 Acura TL: fire, smoke or burning smell

Filed Dec 1, 2008 · Tires · 53,380 miles · MN

Pulling out of my garage this morning, I noticed my car was making a clunking sound on the passenger side. It disappeared promptly as I exited the garage and pulled out onto the street, and I figured it was simply due to the chilly weather, with it being about 25f outside. About 5 miles down the freeway, I noticed the clunking sound came back, and was quite violent this time, and I started to smell burning rubber. I pulled over to the side of the road, hoping to ease my way to the nearest service station to see what was wrong; however, my car did not make it. I got out and inspected all sides, and that's when I saw that the tread separated from my front passenger side tire, and there were chunks of tire on the road. According to the dealer at the last visit two months ago, there still had been .7 cm left of tread, and what they told me was plenty to drive on for quite some time. To correct the issue, I replaced the tire with a spare, and have an appointment to get new tires tomorrow.

Filed Jul 1, 2008 · Transmission · 105,000 miles · DE

I have a 2003 acura tl type s. I bought it used in 2004 with 22,000 miles on it. Shortly after honda issued a recall for the transmission. The solution was to take it to the dealership and have them check for a damaged 2nd gear and if there was no visible sign of damage they would install a jet kit to keep the 2nd gear cooler. My car at this time had about 35,000 miles on it. The dealership installed a jet kit my car and reported no damage. Around 50,000 miles I noticed my car slipping while accelerating. I took my vehicle back to the dealership. They replaced my transmission stating that the jet kit did not work and that the transmission was damaged. I thought that everything was fixed. Around 95,000 I noticed that my transmission was starting to shift hard and slip a little. I took it to the dealership. They said that the transmission was fine and checked good. At 105000 miles I recently took my car down to charlestion sc and was returning home on i95 in nc. I pulled off an exit to get gas and noticed my car was jerking real bad and was having problems staying in gear. Soon after I started to smell something burning and my check engine light came on. I pulled into a auto tune shop and had the technicians read the engine code. The code came back as a transmission controller fail. I towed my vehicle to the nearest dealership about 50 miles away. They checked the car and reported that the transmission need to be replaced. This would be my third factory transmission! What if my vehicle had seized up while on i95 where vehicles are traveling at 70 MPH. Why does a car need three transmission at 105,000 miles! Something is wrong! Please look into it!

Filed Apr 7, 2005 · Fuel system, Transmission · 42,000 miles · NC · fire · 1 injury

I started the acura 3.2tl type s at 6:45am, the acura had not been started or driven the previous 14 hours. Engaged transmission in reverse, the gear locked up and rapidly accelerated backward and at the same time a fire started in the engine compartment, I managed to stop the acura after 30 feet where I was on and off my parking area at my house. By the time I had stopped the car flames, smoke & fumes were filling the passenger compartment, I could not get the drivers side door opened, my neighbor noticing the large amount of smoke coming from under the hood rushed to my aid for he could see that I was in the car and I was pushing on the door with my feet in an effiort to escape the burning acura. I was overcome from the fumes and smoke when he pulled me out of the now the rapidly burning acura, the flames having advanced to the front seat. He pulled me out with my heavy jacket on fire and the bottom of my pants aflame. He managed to get my jacket off and the flames out on my pants and we managed to get away from the burning acura then in thirty to fourty seconds the fire had progressed to the rear of the acura and the gas tank exploded and the whole car was a fireball. I suffered 2nd & 3rd degree burns on my legs. Appletree acura, fletcher, nc had performed recall (campaign id #: 04v176000) on december 8th, 2004 at 42,000 miles in which they did not replace transmission but performed a revision to the oil cooler return line. The acura was a total loss.

Filed Jan 6, 2005 · Transmission · CA

Within 1 week of taking delivery of the vehicle, the transmission started showing signs of a problem. *nm recall campaign : 04v176000. While driving in fifth gear the transmission would hesitate and feel like it was hunting between gears causing the vehicle to shutter. The second incident was the same as the first and included the engine revving as the transmission slipped into neutral even though the vehicle was in d5 in automatic mode. The vehicle coasted to the shoulder and stopped. Regardless of what gear the transmission was in no power went to the front wheels. The consumer smelled a burning smell coming from the vehicle. After the transmission was replaced the problem still existed. The transmission was replaced again and the problem still existed. *tc

Filed Jan 19, 2004 · Engine · 9,750 miles · CA

Burning smell emanating from exhaust area into cabin at 9800 miles. Terrible - can smell it on the outside from 25 feet away. The stench inside the back seat of the cabin is enough to make you gag. Car is only 100 miles overdue for an oil change (3100 miles) running manufacturer recommended oil weight. Car has had trouble since I bought it - but mostly external until now (peeling paint).

Filed Oct 3, 2002 · Engine · CA · fire

Consumer states that while waiting for an appointment to have vehicle serviced ,defect stated in recall happen.engine caught on fire. Nlm