Air Bags. Review the 43 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
Power Train. Review the 27 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
Steering. Review the 25 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

3 crash reports0 fire reports4 injury reports

Engine complaints

18 reports

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95,000 miles · Jun 9, 2017

Engine

EXCESSIVE OIL CONSUMPTION DUE TO FAULTY PISTON RINGS. MINE IS NOT AN ISOLATED PROBLEM ACURAZINE WEBSITE HAS DISCUSSION THREADS ABOUT THIS DEFECT.

NHTSA ODI #10994223

Mileage unknown · Apr 27, 2017

Engine

ENGINE IS MISSING A PISTON RING ON ONE OF THE CYLINDERS WAS OVERLOOKED IN FACORY. CAUSING CAR TO CONSUME 0VER 80% OF OIL EVERY 1000 MILES

NHTSA ODI #10981051

39,500 miles · Nov 26, 2015

Engine

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EXCESSIVE OIL CONSUMPTION HAS NOW LED TO 2 ENGINE REPLACEMENTS (THIS IS THE CARS 3RD ENGINE, ORIGINAL PLUS 2 REPLACEMENTS). I HAVE HAD 3 OIL CONSUMPTION TEST (OCT), ALL SHOWING THAT THERE WAS SIGNIFICANT CONSUMPTION. THE LOCAL ACURA DEALERSHIP (AUTO NATION ACURA OF SPOKANE (ANA)), IS UNABLE OF BEING TRUSTED AND INCAPABLE OF ANY SIGNIFICANT REPAIR SO I HAVE BEEN TRAVELING TO ANOTHER ACURA DEALERSHIP OVER 700 MILES AWAY FOR HONEST AND QUALITY WORK (ANA BOTCHED THE 2ND OCT AS THEY KNOWINGLY ADDED OIL RIGHT BEFORE MY 2ND TRIP TO THE OTHER DEALER). THANKFULLY FOR ME I CHECK MY OIL EVERY FILL UP AS REQUIRED BY THE OCT AND MARK IT'S LEVEL. UNFORTUNATELY FOR ME, THIS NEGATED THE SECOND TEST (EVEN THOUGH IT SHOULD A SIGNIFICANT LOSS, ANA OF SPOKANE DENIED TOPPING IT OFF). I THEN HAD TO DO THE 3RD OCT, AND IN 3 DAYS PUT THE REQUIRED MINIMUM 1,000 MILES REQUIRED AND RETURNED TO DEALER 2. AGAIN THERE FINDINGS SHOWED EXCESSIVE CONSUMPTION AND PUT IN THE 3RD ENGINE. BECAUSE THE REPLACEMENT TIME WAS LONGER THAN I COULD STAY, I FLEW HOME. THERE ARE MANY FORUMS OUT THERE WITH THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE HAVING THE SAME OIL CONSUMPTION ISSUE. IT IS A MANUFACTORS DEFECT WITH THE J37 MODEL ENGINE (ALSO USED IN MANY OTHER ACURA & HONDA VEHICLES.

NHTSA ODI #10807119

3,000 miles · Nov 1, 2015

Engine

ENGINE HAS A PINGING NOISE

NHTSA ODI #10787532

15,500 miles · May 30, 2015

Engine

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2012 ACURA TL SH-AWD TECH. BEGAN TO NOTICE THAT I WAS HAVING TO HAVE MY OIL CHANGED EVERY 2,500 - 3,000 MILES. TOOK IT TO DIFFERENT DEALERS TO SEE WHAT THE PROBLEM WAS. NEITHER DEALER COULD FIND A PROBLEM. IN MARCH 2014, SEVERAL WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON AND THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT ACCELERATE PAST 20 MPH. I HAD IT TOWED TO AN ACURA DEALERSHIP AND WAS TOLD I HAD NO OIL. NO WARNING LIGHTS OR ERROR MESSAGES EVER ALERTED ME. BEGINNING OF APRIL 2015 (MILEAGE WAS 33K), I STARTED HEARING A KNOCKING NOISE FROM THE ENGINE BETWEEN IDLE AND 2,500 RPM'S. AGAIN TOOK IT TO THE DEALER. THEY SAID I HAD ONLY A QUART OF OIL. THEY PUT ME ON AN OIL CONSUMPTION TEST. JUST OVER A MONTH LATER AND 1,900 MILES, MY CAR WAS AGAIN OIL LESS. NO LEAKS EVER DISCOVERED. I WAS TOLD I WAS BURNING OIL. 1 QUART TO EVERY 500 MILES. TOOK IT TO THE DEALERSHIP AND ACURA REPLACED THE ENGINE WITH A NEW ONE. WHILE I WAS AT THE DEALERSHIP I WAS TOLD BY THE SERVICE ADVISOR THAT ANOTHER '12 TL WAS ALSO GETTING ITS ENGINE REPLACED FOR THE SAME ISSUE.

NHTSA ODI #10722433

30,000 miles · Oct 8, 2014

EnginePower Train

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AFTER OWNING MY 2012 ACURA TL FOR ROUGHLY 2YRS, I'VE BECOME CONCERNED WITH THE ENGINE WORKMANSHIP. ACCELERATION SEEMS TO BE AT A LOSS BETWEEN 30-45MPH IN BETWEEN GEAR CHANGES. IT'S ALMOST AS THOUGH THE TRANSMISSION DOESN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO. YOU HAVE TO EITHER LET UP ON THE ACCELERATION OR INCREASE YOUR SPEED TO AVOID THAT ANNOYING HESITATION. THE SECOND PROBLEM IS WHAT I WOULD DESCRIBE AS LIFTER/VALVE NOISE. THE NOISE OCCURS WHEN ACCELERATING, INTERMITTENTLY THOUGH. ALTHOUGH IT IS EMBARRASSING DRIVING A VEHICLE THAT LOOKS AS GOOD AS THE TL LOOKS AND HAVE IT SOUND LIKE AN OLD CHEVY WHEN YOU ACCELERATE, I HATE IT. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER, THEY COULD NOT REPLICATE THE NOISE, OF COURSE. THEY TOLD ME THE CAR WAS FINE. I TOLD THEM SPECIFICALLY I BELIEVED THE NOISE WAS COMING FROM LIFTER/VALVE. THEY TOLD ME IT WAS PROBABLY POOR GAS SELECTION. I EXPLAINED TO THEM I USED THE RECOMMENDED PREMIUM OCTANE/CHEVRON. THEY HAD NO ANSWER. LASTLY, MY BRAKES ARE SQUEALING, I TOLD THE ACURA MECHANIC TO PLEASE CHECK MY BRAKE PADS, HE SAID THEY WERE PERFECTLY FINE AND SHOULD NOT WORRY. HE SAID THE ROTORS DEVELOP A BLUE FILM OVER TIME, AND THE SQUEALING NOISE IS NORMAL. I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT, I AM SUPPOSED TO ACCEPT THAT ANNOYING BRAKE NOISE. THIS IS NOT WHAT I EXPECTED FROM ACURA/HONDA, IS THIS BAD WORKMANSHIP OR POOR MATERIALS BEING USED BY ACURA TO KEEP COSTS DOWN ON MANUFACTURING. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10643218

30,000 miles · Aug 6, 2014

Engine

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I PURCHASED MY 2012 ACURA TL IN MAY 2013. IN JUNE I TOOK IN BECAUSE IT KEPT STALLING WHILE I WAS DRIVING AND MORE SO WHEN I STOPPED AT A LIGHT AND BEGIN TO ACCELERATE. I KEPT TAKING IT BACK FOR THE SAME THING OVER THE PASS YEAR AND KEPT GETTING THE SAME RESPONSE.. WE CAN FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH YOUR CAR. THE PROBLEM GOT PROGRESSIVELY WORSE AND IN FEBRUARY OF 2014, IT STALLED WHILE I WAS DRIVING AND COASTED AND THEN PICKED BACK UP. I TOOK IT BACK AGAIN AND STILL THEY SAID THEY COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG. OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS AGAIN I TOOK IT BACK AND STILL THEY COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE CAR. WHILE WAS DRIVING ON VACATION TO WILLIAMSBURG VA WITH MY FAMILY AT 65/70MPH, THE CAR JERKED US ABOUT 3 TIMES AND THEN SLOWED DOWN WITH NO HOPE FOR ACCELERATION, I TRIED TO COAST OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD MEANWHILE 2 CARS ALMOST HIT ME AND ARE BLOWING THE HORN AT ME ALL WHILE I AM A NERVOUS REC ABOUT THE CAR. I TOLD MY HUSBAND THIS IS IT..THIS CAR IS CERTIFIED AND HAS A WARRANTY FOR 7 YEARS 100,000 MILES AND AT THAT POINT IT HAD $50K MILES AND I WAS DONE.. I TOOK MY CAR BACK AGAIN ON AUGUST 3RD WITH THE SAME COMPLAINTS AND THIS TIME WHEN I GET A CALL ITS TO TELL ME THAT I NEED A NEW TRANSMISSION.. WELL I NEEDED THAT LAST YEAR WHEN I FIRST BROUGHT THE CAR BACK WHEN IT WAS JUST A YEAR OLD...I AM NOT THE ONLY PERSON WITH THIS COMPLAINT AS I HAVE READ COMMENTS ON OTHER WEBSITES. BUT I HAVE SEEN WAY TO MANY OF THEM TO IGNORE THIS. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10619308

100 miles · Jan 22, 2013

EnginePower Train

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PURCHASED MY NEW 2012 SH-AWD ACURA TL ADVANCE IN MARCH OF 2012. THE CAR HAD LESS THAN 100 MILES WHEN PURCHASED AND CURRENTLY HAS 5K MILES (JANUARY 2013). THE CAR VIBRATES WHEN DRIVING AT SPEEDS BETWEEN 40 AND 80 MPH. IT FEELS LIKE THE TIRES ARE FLAT SPOTTED OR WHEELS ARE OUT OF BALANCE. THE WHEELS AND TIRES HAVE BEEN CHECKED AND CONFIRMED BY THE DEALER ON 2 SEPARATE OCCASIONS AS OK. THE DEALER CLASSIFIED THIS VIBRATION AS A "VEHICLE CHARACTERISTIC." I'M WORRIED IT IS THE SIGN OF A MAJOR ISSUE THEY DON'T WANT TO DEAL WITH. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10493791

Official recalls

19V500000 · Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module

Jun 27, 2019

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013 Acura ILX, 2015 RDX, 2005-2010 and 2012 RL, 2009-2014 TL, 2010 and 2012 ZDX, 2007-2011 CR-V, 2011-2013 and 2015 CR-Z, 2009-2013 Fit, 2013 Fit EV, 2010-2011 and 2013 Insight and 2007-2014 Ridgeline vehicles. These vehicles are equipped with driver frontal air bag inflators assembled as a recall remedy part or replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began August 12, 2019. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are S5B and W59.

19V182000 · Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module

Mar 6, 2019

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling specific 2003 Acura 3.2CL, 2013-2016 ILX, 2013-2014 ILX Hybrid, 2003-2006 MDX, 2007-2016 RDX, 2002-2003 3.2TL, 2004-2006, and 2009-2014 TL, 2010-2013 ZDX and 2001-2007 and 2009 Honda Accord, 2001-2005 Civic, 2003-2005 Civic Hybrid, 2001-2005 Civic GX NGV, 2002-2007 and 2010-2011 CR-V, 2003-2011 Element, 2007 Fit, 2002-2004 Odyssey, 2003-2008 Pilot, and 2006-2014 Ridgeline vehicles. The affected vehicles received a replacement driver air bag inflator as part of a previous Takata inflator recall remedy or a replacement driver air bag module containing the same inflator type as a service part. Due to a manufacturing error, in the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver frontal air bag, these inflators may explode.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: An explosion of an inflator within the driver frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver, front seat passenger or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began April 10, 2019. Honda owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is O41. Acura owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Acura's number for this recall is U40.

16V061000 · Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module

Feb 3, 2016

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2007-2011 Honda CR-V, 2011-2015 CR-Z, 2010-2014 FCX, and Insight, 2009-2013 Fit, 2013-2014 Fit EV, 2007-2014 Ridgeline, 2013-2016 Acura ILX, 2013-2014 Acura ILX Hybrid, 2007-2016 RDX, 2005-2012 Acura RL, 2009-2014 Acura TL, and 2010-2013 Acura ZDX vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the inflator, free of charge. The recall began March 2017. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are JY0, JY1, and JY2.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

EA19001 · Electrical Overstress

Opened Apr 19, 2019 · Closed Sep 19, 2024

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Air Bags: Air Bag/restraint Control Module

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation to determine if the failure of airbags to deploy during severe crashes, in certain vehicles, was the result of a safety related defect. During the investigation a complex failure was studied that can result in non-deployment of subject vehicle air bags and other restraint system devices in severe crash events. The subject vehicles may be equipped with an airbag control unit (ACU) for the supplemental restraint system (SRS) Electronic Control Unit (ECU) manufactured by ZF-TRW. The ECU receives signals from crash sensors mounted in the vehicle and deploys the vehicle air bags and seat belt pretensioners in accordance with manufacturer design specifications. The ECU in the subject vehicles contains a model DS84 application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) which controls the communication of the crash sensor signal, firing commands (i.e., when to deploy the airbag(s) and/or pretensioners), and fault information (e.g., diagnostic trouble codes). In September 2016, FCA announced recall 16V-668 for certain model year (MY) 2010 to 2014 Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep products manufactured with the subject ZF-TRW ACU. In this recall, FCA discussed an EOS condition that resulted in a failure of the subject DS84 ASIC, which caused air bag non-deployment. FCA noted that the defect condition had only been observed in vehicles equipped with sensor harnessing routed across the front of the vehicle. Other FCA vehicles that also used the subject ACU, but were not equipped with cross-car harnessing, had not experienced EOS failures, despite similar time in service. During the course of this investigation, ODI sent two separate Information Request (IR) letters to six vehicle manufactures (including FCA, Hyundai, Honda, Kia, Mitsubishi, and Toyota) and one IR letter to ZF-TRW. These IR letters resulted in ODI receiving comprehensive data from these manufacturers and suppliers. Studies of this data found that the DS84 ASIC does not have sufficient protection against negative electrical transients or electrical overstress (“EOS”) that can be generated in certain severe crashes. An electrical transient occurs when the electrical power supplied to a circuit changes momentarily over a short duration of time. In these severe crash cases, the crash sensors and other powered wiring can be damaged and short circuited so as to create a negative electrical transient of sufficient intensity and duration (that are outside the vehicle manufacturer's specification) to damage the ASIC before the restraint device deployment signal is received by the SRS ECU. This damaged signal can lead to incomplete or nondeployment of the air bags and/or pretensioners. Airbag non-deployment and/or lack of pretensioner operation can increase the risk or severity of injury in a crash.A total of 8 fatalities and 14 injuries were associated with known EOS events. The common element in all investigated manufacturers vehicles is the SRS ECU containing a DS84 ASIC manufactured by ZF-TRW. The risk associated with the ASIC is equally shared among all OEMS involved in the investigation. The actual real-world risk can be mitigated by other factors which were assessed by ODI during this investigation. The first mitigating factor involves protections built into the ACU design which protect the DS84 ASIC from damage. There are multiple strategies and levels of protection employed by different OEMs that provide effective EOS mitigation. The two most common strategies at the ACU level are circuit protection diodes on the remote senor signal lines, and current limiting resistors that protect critical components. The second mitigating factor is found at the vehicle level and involves the location and routing of the wires leading from the crash sensors to the SRS ECU. If the wires are well protected in a crash and are not routed with other power wires carrying large currents, the risk for an EOS event is significantly reduced or eliminated. These design specific factors combine to produce a spectrum of risk for the vehicles equipped with ACUs using the DS84 ASIC. Given the many of years of field exposure, it is possible to divide the subject population into two groups; vehicles which have experienced EOS events, and vehicles which have not experienced EOS field events. Four of the six OEMs involved in this investigation have experienced EOS field events on at least one of their models equipped with a DS84 ASIC. All vehicle models (including the Toyota models identified in the Failure Report Summary of the opening resume for this investigation) with field events have been recalled. In an abundance of caution, ODI kept this investigation open five years to monitor field performance and did not identify any field events on vehicles not included in existing safety recalls. Given the spectrum of risk identified in this investigation and that all vehicles with a demonstrated unreasonable risk have been recalled, ODI is closing this investigation. ODI is closing this investigation with the following manufacturer safety recalls: 16V-668, 18E-043, 18V-137, 18V-363, and 20V-024. With the recall actions taken by the subject vehicle and equipment manufacturers, this investigation is closed. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exists on other model or model year vehicles outside of the recall scopes. The agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.