A major automobile manufacturer is being sued over possible transmission defects in one of its 2015 models.
Roger Kornfein filed a lawsuit on Feb. 23 against Honda Motors, claiming the transmission in the 2015 Acura TLX shifts roughly and noisily. Honda is the automaker that produces the TLX vehicle, which is sold under the Acura name.
According to the lawsuit, the vehicle contains a dual-clutch transmission, which means separate clutches are used for odd and even gears. In traditional dual-clutch transmissions, shifting isn't as smooth as conventional automatic transmissions.
However, Honda claimed it added a “torque converter” to reduce the problems found in typical dual-clutch transmissions.
“Drivers have reported that shifts in the lower gears are very 'jerky' and can cause the vehicle to shake when the gear finally kicks in,” according to the lawsuit. “The gear can kick in so roughly that it can cause the car to lurch forward suddenly.”
Kornfein said that two weeks after buying a new 2015 Acura TLX, he was making a turn when the vehicle's transmission “acted as if it had been shifted into neutral.”
Kornfein is seeking class status for those that purchased the new TLX models, along with more than $5 million in damages, plus court costs.
He is represented by Dylan Hughes and Steve Lopez of Gibbs Law Group, LLP in Oakland, California.
U.S. District Court Central District of California case number 2:15-cv-01295
This is a report on a civil lawsuit filed at the U.S. District Court Central District of California. The details in this report come from an original complaint filed by a plaintiff. Please note that a complaint represents an accusation by a private individual, not the government. It is not an indication of guilt, and it represents only one side of the story.