2008 acura tl. hard shift.
I can answer generally for all luxury cars that have gotten old, whether they be Mercedes Benz, BMW, Cadillac, Lincoln, Acura, Infiniti, etc.
They all reach a point that they become too expensive to repair. Repairing an old luxury car is as expensive as repairing a new luxury car. As a basic example, many years ago my parents owned a Cadillac Cimarron, the cheapest Cadillac made at that time. One day, the alternator went out on it. A typical rebuilt alternator at that time cost around $65, but for that car the rebuilt alternator cost $400. The manufacturers (both cars and parts) figure that if you can afford to purchase the car, you can afford the premium repair bills. The size of the repair bills doesn't go down as the car gets older.
An owner who is trying to unload an old luxury car at a rock bottom price is looking for a sucker who doesn't realize this yet to take the money pit off his hands at a price that is higher than an automotive salvage yard will pay for it.