2016 Acura TLX

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Below Average

Quick Summary

The 2016 Acura TLX has 159 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 2.0x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is engine problems (26% of all complaints), specifically: unusual noise from engine when idle, which increases gradually.

6 crash reports 2 injuries

159

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

2.0x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

ENGINE

41 complaints

26%

• UNUSUAL NOISE FROM ENGINE WHEN IDLE, WHICH INCREASES GRADUALLY
• THE TRANSMISSION IS JERKY, CLUNKY, BOUNCES TO A STOP, BOUNCES AND LURCHES FORWARD WHEN STOPPING, WILL TAKE 2-3 SECONDS TO RESPOND TO PEDAL PUSH AND THEN TAKE OFF. IT'S VERY DANGEROUS IN STOP AND GO TRAFFIC. IT'S VERY DANGEROUS WHEN STOPPING FOR PEDESTRIANS. IT'S VERY DANGEROUS WHEN DRIVING, PERIOD.
• MY CAR STALLED WHILE DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE AT 75MPH. IT HAPPENED IN MAY, JULY, AND SEPTEMBER 2019. WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE LOST POWER AND WOULD NOT ACCELERATE. THE TACHOMETER REGISTERING THE RPMS DROPPED TO 1,000 AND STAYED THERE. AFTER PULLING OVER, SHUTTING THE CAR OFF, WAITING, AND RESTARTI

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 2 crashes

“UNUSUAL NOISE FROM ENGINE WHEN IDLE, WHICH INCREASES GRADUALLY”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ELECTRICAL

23 complaints

14%

• TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 ACURA TLX. THE CONTACT WAS UNABLE TO UNLOCK THE FRONT DRIVER SIDE DOOR FROM INSIDE THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT HAD TO EXIT THE VEHICLE FROM THE OUTSIDE DOOR HANDLE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 2,000.
• DRIVING ON THE EXPRESSWAY AT 70 MPH, THE CAR STARTS SPUTTERING THEN DECELERATED, IT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE EVEN WHILE PRESSING THE GAS PEDAL. I PULLED OFF TO THE EMERGENCY LANE AND THE LIGHTS STARTED FLICKERING, WARNING LIGHTS APPEARED "CHECK HILL START ASSIST SYSTEM", "CHECK EMISSION SYSTEM", "CHECK
• VEHICLE DOES NOT START. TOTAL ELECTRIC FAILURE. NOT A BATTERY PROBLEM PER DEALER. STILL AT DEALERSHIP.

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 ACURA TLX. THE CONTACT WAS UNABLE TO UNLOCK THE FRONT DRIVER SIDE DOOR FROM INSIDE THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT HAD TO EXIT THE VEHICLE FROM THE OUTSIDE DOOR HANDLE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 2,000.”

— NHTSA complaint filing

TRANSMISSION

16 complaints

10%

• 1. WHEN ACCELERATING FROM A STOP, THE TRANSMISSION OCCASIONALLY FEELS LIKE IT SLIPS INTO NEUTRAL. THE ENGINE RES BUT DOES NOT MOVE FORWARD FOR 1-2 SECONDS. 2. CAR DOWNSHIFTS INTO 1ST GEAR AND LURCHES FORWARD AFTER COMING TO A STOP. 3. TRANSMISSION SHIFTS VERY ABRUPTLY AND ROUGH DURING ALMOST A
• DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEED, CRUISE CONTROL ON. TRIED TO ACCELERATE, USING PEDAL, TO PASS. NO RESPONSE FROM VEHICLE. DRIVER INFO CLUSTER WAS FLASHING "N" FOR NEUTRAL. MULTIPLE ERROR MESSAGES " CHECK TRANSMISSION", "CHECK EMISSIONS SYSTEMS", "CHECK PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM". CONFIRMED ENGINE WAS STILL ON
• WHILE DRIVING 30 MILES PER HOUR ON A CITY STREET, I NOTICED THE CAR STARTED WAS SHIFTING HARD. TWO MINUTES LATER, THE WARNING LIGHTS APPEARED "CHECK VSA SYSTEM", "CHECK PRECISION ALL WHEEL STEER SYSTEM", AND "CHECK TRANSMISSION" AND THE CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE. THIS HAPPENED AT 16,721 MILES. THE DI

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“1. WHEN ACCELERATING FROM A STOP, THE TRANSMISSION OCCASIONALLY FEELS LIKE IT SLIPS INTO NEUTRAL. THE ENGINE RES BUT DOES NOT MOVE FORWARD FOR 1-2 SECONDS. 2. CAR DOWNSHIFTS INTO 1ST GEAR AND LURCHES FORWARD AFTER COMING TO A STOP. 3. TRANSMISSION SHIFTS VERY ABRUPTLY AND ROUGH DURING ALMOST A”

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

14 complaints

• STRONG REFLECTION OF DASHBOARD PARTS ON FRONT WINDSHIELD AND IN LEFT AND RIGHT BACK TRAFFIC VIEW MIRRORS.
• SIDE MIRRORS-NOT REAL MIRRORS (FUNHOUSE EFFECT); SOMEWHAT WAVY; PLACEMENT OF MIRRORS CAUSE A/C VENTS TO REFLECT IN THEM (BIG DISTRACTION) TOUCH SCREEN IS IMPOSSIBLE TO READ IN SUNLIGHT; REQUIRES AN OVERHAND (NOT RECESSED INTO THE DASHBOARD AS IS THE OTHER SCREEN IN CAR) TOO MUCH TOUCH SCREEN TECHN
• DRIVING ON THE EXPRESSWAY AT 70 MPH, THE CAR STARTS SPUTTERING THEN DECELERATED, IT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE EVEN WHILE PRESSING THE GAS PEDAL. I PULLED OFF TO THE EMERGENCY LANE AND THE LIGHTS STARTED FLICKERING, WARNING LIGHTS APPEARED "CHECK HILL START ASSIST SYSTEM", "CHECK EMISSION SYSTEM", "CHECK

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“STRONG REFLECTION OF DASHBOARD PARTS ON FRONT WINDSHIELD AND IN LEFT AND RIGHT BACK TRAFFIC VIEW MIRRORS.”

— NHTSA complaint filing

FUEL SYSTEM

13 complaints

• TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 ACURA TLX. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY STALLED AND VARIOUS UNKNOWN INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO FRESNO ACURA (7250 N PALM AVE, FRESNO, CA 93711, (559) 431-3400) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE FUEL PUMP FAILED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPA
• I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AND TURNING AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THESE INDICATORS CAME ON WHICH WERE THE VSA, POWER STEERING, CHECK ENGINE LIGHT, AND THE BRAKE SYSTEM CAME ONE. ONCE THESE INDICATORS CAME ON THE CAR STARTED STALLING AND WOULDN'T GO PAST 2 RPM AND HAD LACK OF POWER. SO WE HAD TO AUTO
• AGAIN, WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 75 MPH ON INTERSTATE ALL ERROR CODES ON DASHBOARD (MIL) LIT UP AND THE CAR BEGAN TO FEEL AS IF THE TRANSMISSION WAS NOT ENGAGED AS IF I WAS IN NEUTRAL AND THE ENGINE BEGAN LOOSING POWER. THE SPEED BEGAN DECREASING, BUT THEN WOULD CATCH FOR A FEW SECONDS. THE GEAR I

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 1 crashes

“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 ACURA TLX. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY STALLED AND VARIOUS UNKNOWN INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO FRESNO ACURA (7250 N PALM AVE, FRESNO, CA 93711, (559) 431-3400) WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE FUEL PUMP FAILED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPA”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

ENGINE(~50K mi)

$500

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

TRANSMISSION(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

FUEL SYSTEM(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 159 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
ENGINE: UNUSUAL NOISE FROM ENGINE WHEN IDLE, WHICH INCREASES GRADUALLY
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ELECTRICAL: TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 ACURA TLX. THE CONTACT WAS UNABLE TO UNLOCK THE FRONT DRIVER SIDE DOOR FROM INSIDE THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT HAD TO EXIT THE VEHICLE FROM THE OUTSIDE DOOR HANDLE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 2,000.
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
TRANSMISSION: 1. WHEN ACCELERATING FROM A STOP, THE TRANSMISSION OCCASIONALLY FEELS LIKE IT SLIPS INTO NEUTRAL. THE ENGINE RES BUT DOES NOT MOVE FORWARD FOR 1-2 SECONDS. 2. CAR DOWNSHIFTS INTO 1ST GEAR AND LURCHES FORWARD AFTER COMING TO A STOP. 3. TRANSMISSION SHIFTS VERY ABRUPTLY AND ROUGH DURING ALMOST A
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
OTHER: STRONG REFLECTION OF DASHBOARD PARTS ON FRONT WINDSHIELD AND IN LEFT AND RIGHT BACK TRAFFIC VIEW MIRRORS.
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)