Owners have filed 829 complaints on the Acura TLX, covering 2015–2025. The system named most often is Power Train (230 reports). Worst years by volume: 2015, 2016, 2018; cleanest: 2025, 2024, 2023. 35 reports describe a crash, 4 a fire. On average the car was 4.3 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Acura TLX
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 829 TLX complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Power Train 230 Read
The contact owns a 2018 Acura TLX. The contact stated that after refueling and attempting to park in a parking space, the vehicle experienced a sudden acceleration. The contact mentioned that no safety features were activated. As a result, the contact crashed into a pillar where the vehicle came to a stop and…
Vehicle was in motion on a highway in very heavy traffic when brakes were employed and vehicle did not stop but grinder forward, hitting the car in front
I have had many episodes with this car. The first one, I was stopped at a stop sign with a car ahead of, and behind me, when I released the brake, I tried to move forward, and it felt like I got hit from behind, the car lurched forward. Another time, my husband was backing out of a parking spot, and he hit a telephone…
Electrical System 115 Read
In an impact with a parked car that totaled the tlx , the airbags never deployed which LED to injury to the drivers chest and the hip of the passenger in the front of the car. The attached picture show that the front in is crushed while the inside pictures show that the airbags never deployed. After the impact the car…
We have three Acura vehicles at home and this is the newest one - 2025 TLX A-Spec. The vehicle is only a few months old and already suffered two INFORTAINMENT Screen failures. This is the primary screen on the dash that shows navigation and other information. The screen goes dark completely due to either an…
Infotainment system shuts down while driving and ultimately causes the power to drain from the vehicle leaving the vehicle inoperative. This is the second time this has happened. Acura has already repaired once with less than 1000 miles on the car. Now it’s happening again
Engine 109 Read
Software update completed June 2022 When coming to a stop light, my car shutdown. Went into neutral and took about five seconds to restart. It happened the following day and I was rear ended. No injuries occurred
My vehicle had an engine rod bearing issue before the 1st recall, they replaced part of the engine. My vehicle also went through a starter recall and they also changed the rod bearing with the corrected part that was in for the last recall. Currently, my engine is still having the exact same rod bearing issue which is…
On May 26, 2023, I purchased my 2017 Acura TLX from Sterling McCall Acura Houston, TX. On July 16th, my son was driving the Acura TLX and the engine burst into a fire. After the engine fire, I had to replace the entire. On November 20, 2023, after reading an article and contacting American Honda ( [XXX] ) I became…
Engine And Engine Cooling 66 Read
The contact owned a 2019 Acura TLX. The contact stated while driving approximately 65 MPH, the contact was hearing an abnormal ticking noise. The contact stated the check engine warning was illuminated and the fuel gauge showed a decrease in fuel level. The contact stated she observed that black smoke was emitted from…
I purchased a new Acura TLX in 2020. The following year it took it into get state inspected in Massachusetts. My care failed for emission 3 times. I brought it back to the dealer (Herb Connolly) in Framingham Massachusetts. They kept it for 3 weeks, worked on it and told me it was all set. The following year I brought…
The contact owns a 2020 Acura TLX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) and 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the parts to do the recall repairs were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount time…
Steering 30 Read
The contact owned a 2019 Acura TLX. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 65 MPH the vehicle was losing forward velocity and the steering was pulling slightly to the right. The contact stated that the vehicle suddenly and violently turned to the right. The contact was not aware of any warning lights.…
Description of Safety Defect: While starting car up, the digital instrument cluster (speedometer and all primary driver instrumentation) goes completely black with no warning. The infotainment system continues to operate normally. After driving a short distance (sometimes only a few miles), the vehicle then…
My husband and I have a 2022 Acura TLX (purchased new) that was issued a safety recall. We brought the car into the dealership in April to fix the problem. Two weeks later, the car completely malfunctioned- every warning light went off at the same time, and the car completely lost control. Steering, brakes, power/gas,…
Service Brakes 27 Read
I was entering a left-hand turn lane, with a red light. The third-party investigation showed I entered the lane at 35mp. I started gentle breaking and when there was no response, I pushed the brake hard and to the floor. I did not feel the car decelerate but the investigation shows that braked for 7 seconds plus and…
While braking and attempting a left turn at an intersection, my vehicle completely shut down with no braking or steering control. Fortunately there were no damages and the vehicle started up again and I was able to clear the intersection. I took the vehicle to an authorized dealer for repair. They indicated that this…
The contact owned a 2015 acura tlx. While driving 50 mph, the brake pedal was depressed and the vehicle became difficult to stop. The contact's vehicle crashed into the rear of another vehicle, flipped over, and rolled until it stopped. The air bags deployed. A police report was filed. The driver sustained injuries…
Fuel/propulsion System 26 Read
El problema es exactamente en el tanque de la gasolina, se está saliendo la gasolina en la unión de la manguera de llenado con el tanque de gasolina. Esto representa un riesgo no solo para mi seguridad sino también para cualquier persona
Purchased new 2021 Acura TLX in April 2021 from Leith Acura Raleigh. On 5/22, 7/6, 7/23, & 11/2/21, the fuel capless unit was adjusted once replaced 3 times. American Honda is aware of the problems with the part & sent service bulletins to every Acura service dept. American Honda stated this & the 2 dealerships did…
My gas tank is failing from the fuel seal, my safety is in danger since it throws a lot of gasoline, take the car to the dealer but they say it's not a factory problem
Fuel System 21 Read
The contact owns a 2016 Acura TLX. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would jerk without warning. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V060000(Fuel System, Other) which the contact linked to the vehicle failure. The dealer was notified of the failure and…
The contact owns a 2020 Acura TLX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the…
The contact owns a 2020 Acura TLX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated…
TLX years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Electrical System | — | — | |
| 2024 | Electrical System | — | — | |
| 2023 | Electrical System | — | — | |
| 2022 | Electrical System,engine | — | — | |
| 2021 | Air Bags | 3 | — | |
| 2020 | Air Bags | 4 | — | |
| 2019 | Electrical System | 7 | 1 | |
| 2018 | Air Bags | 3 | 1 | |
| 2017 | Electrical System | 2 | 2 | |
| 2016 | Air Bags | 5 | — | |
| 2015 | Air Bags | 11 | — |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 397 |
| Average complaints per series | 2.1 |
| Worst single series | 14 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 4.3 years |
A model average of 2.1 hides a worst series at 14. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
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How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the TLX?
By complaint volume, 2015, 2016, 2018 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which TLX years are the cleanest?
2025, 2024, 2023 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Acura TLX have?
829 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2015–2025. Of those, 35 describe a crash and 4 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.