Problems with 2001 Acura CL POWER TRAIN

No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak

At 50 mph consumer applied accelerator, vehicle would not accelerate. dealer determined thattransmission had to be replaced.*ak

Transmission will slip and fail to shift into gear. dealership is aware of problem.*ak

My transmission kept going out causing me to lose control of my vehicle at interstate speeds. it was eventually replaced after two attempts of fixing a less serious (and costly) diagnosis that the acura dealer made.

This vehicle is equipped with 3.2 litre engine. while traveling 55 mph transmission went into neutral after changing into 3rd gear. driver had to coast to side of the road due to loss of power. *akjlg

Consumer states while driving the transmission down shifts automatically from 5th to 2nd causing the car to almost stops instantly.*jb

I have a 2001 acura cl type s. the transmission has blown and replaced by acura with a refurbished unit. this one so far is working property. however i have made several trips to acura previous when my transmission was having hard time shifting to reverse and engage to reverse with loud metallic sound and hard thump. dealer tech were helpful and tried to call acura tech line to assist me in resolve the matter, but the tech line continue to deny the problem and insist it is normal for a transmission to engage hard. finally when the tranny blown and i took it to dealer using 2nd gear on street. dealer said this (a blown tranmission) is the evidence they need to replace it. even with a refurbished one not a new one. also i have experienced 2 times on freeway where the transmission downshift on its own reducing the vehicle speed dramatically. luckily there were no vehicle behimd me

Transmission failure nearly resulted in loss of vehicle control and possible collision. dt

Acura customer care (800-382-2238) has been contacted about the transmission failure and acknowledge on the phone that there is a problem/flaw with the transmission on some acura but will not explain what the flaw is and how they are resolving it. my car is under warranty till it reaches 50k miles or 4 years and having no information about the issue i don't want to have a similar problem in couple of month, not knowing if what has been done will stop the problem from re-occuring again. it seems there is no technical bulletin nor recall published on this issue as of today. i found documentation on other owner still having similar problems with their transmission after it got replaced 2 or 3 times at a low mileage (check www.acura-cl.com). i would like an investigation launched on this issue about the hazard it creates and force acura to issue a public statement about the transmission flaw. the dealership replacing the transmission (oakland acura in oakland, ca) told me they had to replace transmission at such low mileage on other acura and were not surprised about the failure. they told me acura has a "fix" but will not give me details on what the fix is and the root cause of the problem. i am afraid acura will just change the defective part with the same new part which will go bad again in couple of weeks or months.*ak

Transmission started slipping and got progressively worse for several weeks. the day before it failed, i was driving along at a steady speed of about 45 mph when the transmission decided it wanted to be in first gear. the car jerked violently and slowed down very quickly while pulling me to the left (nearly losing control with the front wheels locked) until it shifted back out of first gear. it felt as if i had slammed on the brakes and if someone was behind me, i would have been rear ended. this happened again shortly after but not as violently. when the transmission finally failed, it would take several seconds to shift gears and would rev up high (as if in neutral) while between shifts. when it did shift it shifted hard. then, as pulling away from a stop light, several of the lights on the dash lit up including the check engine, vsa, and d5 lights and was stuck in second gear. also, the car would not shift into reverse. i understand from the dealer that this is not an uncommon problem and most people report symptoms similar to mine. i find this scary because i could have been killed had i been in different circumstances when the transmission shifted into first and caused me to slow down and swerve all over the road until i got it under control. the dealer claims that they think they know what the problem is and have fixed it but i've heard from people that are on their third transmission and are again having problems.*ak

I was driving on the highway, in morning rush-hour traffic, at about 60 mph when the transmission started to shift erratically for a number of seconds. without warning, the car downshifted and i nearly hit my head on the steering wheel. fortunately, i was in a stretch where traffic was somewhat lighter, reducing the risk of being rear-ended. the transmission was completely uncontrollable for the remaining mile-or-two of my commute. once i was off the highway, the engine was running at about 4,500 - 5,000 rpm although i was doing only 15 mph. finally, reverse was inoperable once i reached my office park and tried to back into a parking space. i called acura roadside assistance, which dispatched a flatbed. the car was towed to acura of boston. eventually, i was told i would be receiving a "new" transmission. however, i believe it is a rebuilt transmission from another failure. i had noticed a strange humming noise almost immediately upon having the car returned to me from the dealer. i spoke to acura of boston and sunnyside acura (nashua, nh), and was told no noise could be heard by the techs or the advisors. this is, apparently, very similar to the experiences of other acura cl owners. and, it appears that acura knows about the defects/problems, but is unwilling to acknowledge it publicly by issuing a recall. i could have been seriously injured or killed, and others have said the same thing. this is very disappointing for any car, never mind a car(maker) with this "reputation" and price tag. dt

Transmission failures(2). *jb

2001 acura cl type-s - transmission failure at 28,900 miles. sudden downshift while traveling on highway (i476). car was in for standard service days before incident and the dealer found no problems when asked to look into the transmission slipping. 7 days later the transmission completely failed causing an extreme downshift at highway speeds with no warning. due to the alertness of other drivers - no injuries occurred.. *nlm

Transmission was used in a normal fashion. this vehicle was never used any harsh conditions. for such a well made vehicle it's ashame for such an expensive piece of equipment to fail. dt

No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak

Complete transmission failure while driving. vehicle suddenly throws you in second gear and starts to jerk and swerve. transmission was replaced, and now 10k miles later the replacement tranny is leaking atf fluid again and slipping which are early signs of another failure. dt

Transmission completely disengages at about 2500 to 3000 rpms and the engine shoots up to redline. acura is well aware that they have a problem with these transmissions, and needs to take corrective action on fixing all of them out there. this poses an extreme safety concern.*ak

No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak

While driving dashboard lights came on and vehicle was stuck in one gear.transmission went out. had transmission replaced, but problem happened again within 4000 miles. they replaced wiring transimission, and it went again.*ak

Transmission was not engaging. rpms went high and low without pushing brakes. engine check light was on and vsa light was on constantly. dealer has been contacted. felt it was a transmission problem.*ak

While driving 75mph on tollway, while tranny was in auto mode, not ss mode. the car shift out of 5th & into 2nd or 3rd, going from 75mph to 30mph within less than a second. engine rpm revs to redline, the car swerve & almost out of control. cars behind me had to swerve & braked hard to avoid rear ending my car. acura dealer will replace transmission.

When i am at speed of 40 and above the car has a tendency to downshift unexpectedly, almost causing 2 accidents thus far. they claim it is just "grade logic'' i would argue the opposite though.

2001 acura cl type s automanual transmission went from 5th gear to i believe 2nd with no warning or input by me as driver. thankfully roads were only wet and not slippery as they usually are in buffalo this time of year. there were vehicles behind me that were not pleased with my "driving." incident date: 1/8/03

The transmissions and brake issues need to be address, i feel that i purchase a lemon car. *ak

I have a 2001 acura cl type s. while driving on friday afternoon, jan 3, 2003 my transmission started to falter. i was just a few minutes from my home so i decided to keep driving the car till i got there. the tranny would jerk the car into second gear and then slip into third. at one point i was going about 50 mph and the car shifted unexpectedly into second gear. i felt a big jolt but was able to maintain control. the shift lasted about 4 seconds when suddenly the tranny upshifted to third gear. this made me think what would have happen if this had occur in the highway when the average speed is about 65mph. the car did give me advance warning that the transmission was failing but i never thought that it would downshift like that. i really believe that the tranny may someday cause an accident that results in injury or death. my acura cl has only 21,400 miles. needless to say, i had the car towed to the dealership.

No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak

Automatic transmission failure. sudden down shift.

No summaery listed for above vehicle. *ak

This failure is apparently widespread in this and similar models of honda. this sudden failure can cause serious accidents. please evaluate for recall. *ak

Replaced first transmission at 13596 miles, second transmission at 25223 miles, third transmission at 27648 miles, while the first two transmissions failed on local streets, the third did not. when the third transmission failed i was traveling on a major hwy and was almost rear ended by a large suv. i was trying to motor up to the next exit when i was losing speed fast. thats when a large suv was skidding behind me and trying to switch lanes to avoid an accident. this suv almost sideswiped the vehicle along side as well. this all happened in moderate traffic conditions.*ak

Have had numerous transmission difficulties with my 2001 acura cl-type s. i am currently driving on my 4th transmission. need to take it in again because it is showing sign of trouble....again!!

Transmission failure : 2001 acura cl type s traveling 50 mph on us6 transmission down shifted abruptly and made me swerve out of traffic next day transmission totally died and was replaced under warranty the second transmission is giving signs of the same problem dec 2001 first transmission replaced jan 2003 second transmission checked and fluid is burned plus transmission is on its way out, i am afraid my vehicle is unsafe to drive. *jb

Transmission problems

Transmission started "jerking" forward as my vehicle was decelerating and continued to "hold" gears when it should have downshifted. i pulled over to the side of the road and turned off the car. the problem has not repeated yet. i am, however, aware of an inherrent weakness with the transmission for the acura 3.2 cl/tl

Acura 3.2 cl & tl vehicles have a very high incidence of transmission failures. my vehicle sat at the dealer for seven (7) weeks waiting for a new transmission because so many transmission have failed and continued to fail that they are backordered for over a month. acura will not divulge what is causing so many transmissions to fail. this is an extremely dangerous condition because the transmission will suddenly slip, causing complete loss of the ability to accelerate. acura's only response to this problem is to replace the entire transmission with a rebuilt unit which also has a high incidence of failure.

There is a serious problem with the acura transmissions. there have been numerous failures and my biggest concern right now is that the failures are so random, that injuries or even fatalities are possible. the transmission fails and there is nothing we can do but hope no one rear end us or that it does not fail on us while we are on a highway. which could become an extremely hazardous situation. acura needs to fix the problem rather than just offer us an extended warranty. dt

2nd failed transmission on 11/21/02 at 30000 miles. dt

No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak

This is the second transmission failure that has occurred. the first time it failed i was stick in the middle of a busy intersection at morning rush-hour. now the dealership has had my car for almost 7 weeks and they want me to allow them to try another (#3) transmission. i do not feel that the car is safe or reliable. many other consumers have had transmission failure situations similar to mine and acura is offering money, entended warranties and other monetary compensation in lieu of legal action against them. the consumer should be forewarned and advised of the immenent problems occurring in this vehicle.*ak

While driving vehicle will decrease in speed while applying gas. contacted dealer. transmission was slipping, had part replaced, but problem reoccurred. *ak 8jb

While driving at 25-30 mph transmission will go out, causing consumer to lose control vehicle. consumer has had transmission replaced five times. contacted dealer. *ak

No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak

Vehicle suddenly stopped accelerating while driving. there was a winding/buzzing noise before this occurred. transmission was replaced 3 times.*ak