Power Train Problems of Acura TLX - part 2

• transfer case failure, leading to transmission damage. • vehicle gives no indication of transfer case failure, in turn, giving the driver the impression that the vehicle is awd. Potential risk to safety as the failure happened under normal driving conditions, vehicle suddenly jolts, with loss of power. • problem addressed by dealership service dept. But not able to recreate, as this is a drivetrain fault. • vehicle and components inspected by dealership service dept. Only. • no indications or warning lights for tc failure. Awd system on dashboard indicates power is going to all four wheels when this is not the case.

See all problems of the 2021 Acura TLX 🔎.

Transfer case failure. Spline is stripped after 40k. Awd is disabled. Requires new transfer case and transmission.

While driving normal, I heard a pop sound coming from the bottom of the car which resulted in my awd not working. On acceleration the car would spin the front wheels and the traction light would light up. Took to dealer and they confirmed the transfer case and transmission failed and had to be replaced. The splines between both components had stripped.

The contact owns a 2015 Acura Tlx. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle hesitated while accelerating. The message to stop driving and have the vehicle serviced immediately was displayed. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who diagnosed that the automatic transmission fluid (atf) warmer had failed. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle with other undisclosed failures due to the atf warmer failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failures and opened a case. The failure mileage was approximately 77,000.

See all problems of the 2015 Acura TLX 🔎.

I was driving on the freeway for about 5 minutes and literally out of no where my car began to make a strange noise and then my engine light came on. Following that my car shut off and I immediately lost power I pulled over as best I can and turn my hazard on eventually the car died because I couldn’t get a tow out fast enough and I’ve had it sitting at a shop ever since this incident. . Tell.

The vehicles awd system has prematurely failed as confirmed by the car dealership Acura of pembroke pines that I have taken it to. The lack of traction to the rear wheels causes excessive torque steering and constant engaging of the vsa system if the road is even remotely wet and the vehicle is under anything more than mid level acceleration. There are several Acura Tlx type-s trim vehicles that are being reported to have this common issue and Acura / Honda is keeping this quiet and replacing the prematurely failing transmission and transfer cases with what I fear are the same faulty parts instead of properly developing a revised updated part that will properly correct the issue. An awd system is meant to give the driver confidence on the road and premature failure under slippery road conditions be it rain or snow is putting peoples lives in jeopardy.

See all problems of the 2022 Acura TLX 🔎.

Went to accelerate and heard loud bang. Transfer case shaft snapped internally into transmission. Transfer case and transmission assembly both replaced under warranty. Will happen again in another 40-50k miles.

Transfer case failure with no warnings or symptoms of problem prior to failure. This is a safety issue as my car was only operating in front wheel drive due to the transfer case failure. This is a common issue that needs to be investigated.

The all-wheel-drive stops working and the car becomes front wheel drive only. There are no warning lights on. The only way you could tell is to jack the car up with all four wheels off the ground and put it in drive to see if all four wheels are spinning. Also the driveshaft should be turning out of the transfer case. The the roads are wet or with snow the front wheels brake free very easy and the traction light comes on, which is also sign. I took it to the dealer and they verified the issue. They said it needs a new transmission and transfer case because the splines on the output shift of the transmission strip out and also damage the splines on input shaft of the transfer case.

The transfer case splines between the transfer case are stripping causing the car to lose power in the rear wheels forever. This is a safety hazard as now the wheels lose traction and massive oversteer. This is dangerous in many conditions especially rain as turns are much more prone to sliding and losing traction. It was confirmed at the dealer and is a known issue in the Acura car community. The only way to diagnose the problem is putting it on the left and putting the car in drive to see if the all wheel drive system is working (all 4 wheels spinning). This is a scary problem for owners as no codes are generated since there is no sensor to catch this . The cars other system were also designed with the intention of the car being all wheel drive so this could lead other systems to fail causing a likely accident or collision.

Transmission harsh and delayed gear engagement, sometimes it won’t shift unless it’s done manually, few times it didn’t shift even though I shifted manually, I had to increase engine speed to about 5000 rpm so it shifts, transmission goes into neutral when trying to to accelerate while it’s in drive and intermittent vibration caused by hydraulic circuit pressure issues, I’ve had the vehicle since it had 7900 miles and all these issues been present in the car since then, the car now have 29000 miles and it’s only getting worse. These issues have been reported by a lot of Honda/Acura vehicles owner with the 9 speed transmission.

See all problems of the 2020 Acura TLX 🔎.

2 1/2 years before the current connecting rod bearing recall, my engine failed due to the connecting rod bearing at 53,000 miles. After fighting with Acura for almost a year, they agreed to replace the motor. However, when I picked it up, they had only rebuilt the motor. Now that motor's rod has failed at 68,000 miles and they refuse to replace the motor. They say it doesn't have anything to do with the connecting rod bearing but it is knocking with a thrown rod.

Transfer case failed, awd system inoperable. Only front wheel drive when it is suppose to be awd. Vehicle is at the Acura dealership getting repaired.

All wheel drive system began to fail. Experienced a loud bang followed by a leak from the transfer case that was observed when I arrived home. No check engine lights of any kind just car is stuck in front wheel drive. Dealer confirmed awd system is not working. No safety risk and no insurance notifications or police because item is covered under warranty.

Power take off unit on the Tlx type-s’s are stripping at the splines where the drive shaft and ptu meet. This disables the cars awd system without triggering any codes, giving drivers false confidence to drive in low traction environments which may lead to accidents. The car retains fwd function but struggles to gain grip on the road at all speeds because it is an awd designed platform. The dealership of spreen Acura diagnosed my car and confirmed that the ptu fluid was previously leaking and had metal shavings. They also confirmed that the car was now fwd and struggled with getting traction with acceleration. This is a problem as it does not show any indication during failure, there could be many people with failed ptu’s who are unaware and driving daily. With rainy season coming up, this could pose a big risk as drivers with these cars will think their type-s is awd and my end up getting into accidents when driving unaware.

Transfer case and drivetrain failure from spline stripping. No hard driving performed yet parts still failed. Car went from awd to fwd without codes. Car failed to gain traction when going up hill and nearly rolled back into another car.

My car is now a front wheel drive car instead of all wheel drive car … no check engine no light nothing except the car is bringing no more power from the back wheels.

The engine failed and lost all power to the car. It is available for inspection. My safety was put at risk because if I was going on a freeway and freeway speeds I probably would have crash and potentially crash into other people, causing a huge safety issue. The problem has been confirmed by dealer. They said it is very possible the engine rod bearing could have caused this. This is being inspected by Acura. Prior to failed there were no warning lamps or indicators. They all turned on once the car died.

I understand Honda isn't doing soo well so I hope this is added to the list of the feds research we just bought this Tlx aspec don't understand how these cars need to be 4000lbs but anyway the gas mileage advertised is not what you get I've seen on multiple forms people are saying they experience 13 mpg and on a cylinder engine that is just not acceptable 2 hear grinding noises in our drive train that the dealership doesn't hear unless it shows up in a scan tool 3 the engine has very loud valve tapping sound the tail tips have alot of black soot on them also evident of too lean gas mixture 200 dollars in gas in 8 days of owning this new car the transmission also has a mind of its own in sport mode reving the motor to 2 and 3k rpm all by itself and staying there till I tap on the gas pedal a few times and no the rug is not interference with the pedal it's all these companies going to electrical sensors instead of a cable that goes from the pedal to the throttle body like it should have always stayed. Getting rid of this thing as soon as possible soo the fed should also look at the newer ones . . . .

See all problems of the 2024 Acura TLX 🔎.

2021 Acura Tlx type s. Car has 53k miles on it. No modifications, bone stock. When accelerating from a stop at ~50% throttle, there was a sudden loud pop from the front of the car, followed by immediate loss of power to the back wheels (awd car) . The vehicle was about to shift from first to second gear, so thankfully I was still only going about 10-15 mph at the time. Had I been traveling faster, turning, or if the roads were wet/slick, it could have caused an accident due to my loss of control of the car. There were no warning lights or indication prior to this occurring, and no warning lights or indication after the incident occurred either. In fact, the torque distribution screen on the console showed power to the back wheels, despite that not being true. All recommended maintenance and oil changes were performed on the car at appropriate times. The problem ended up being a completely stripped transfer case housing / damaged splined shaft on the transmission (picture of transfer case attached). This was finally diagnosed after 2-3 weeks once the dealer lifted the vehicle and checked for power in all 4 wheels (of which only the front two tires would spin). Dealer replaced the parts under warranty after it was shown that the back wheels had no power. However, I believe the same part number was used in the replacement, indicating a potential likelihood of another failure in the future if this part is defective. I'm not sure if this has been reported by others, but I was only able to identify the problem by finding a post on an owners forum that showed identical problems to mine. Conversations in other owners groups suggests this is a wide spread problem with the early renditions of the new Acura Tlx type s line (~2021-2023). A poll in a Tlx type s owner facebook group I am in, indicated that 16% of folks have had similar failures (out of 170 members polled).

At 36,823 miles and October 11,2024 I was taking off from a stop. About 10 seconds into my take off I heard a loud bang and hard jerk. Dash cam caught it happening. As soon as it happened I was still moving forward but just coasting. As soon as I accelerated a tiny bit it sounded like metal being beaten around inside something. No warning light or cel came on. Nothing. After I parked it the sound disappeared and it seemed to drive fine but a little different. I noticed then that I would lose traction easily and my front wheels would spin out like a fwd civic. I called the dealership immediately and told them what happened. They put a note in my file. They said they couldn’t do anything unless it happened again. I had to go to the dealership 3 separate times to try to get them to look at it. At the third trip and me being a little pissy that they took me seriously and found out that in fact my rear wheels wouldn’t spin and my driveshaft wasn’t spinning either. In December of 2024 my transfer case and transmission were replaced under warranty. The splines in the transmission were totally stripped.

Transfer case splines sheared, causing the awd system to fail. This eliminates power output to the rear wheels and could cause a loss of control while driving in sub par road conditions. This appears to be a very common issue among the type-s trim.

Transmission jerks at low speeds, car jerks when it is downshifting. The car only has 14,000 miles. Dealership refusing to do any work due to car not having any codes. The car feels like it is having a misfire.

The contact owns a 2018 Acura Tlx. The contact stated that while slowly coasting and turning the steering wheel towards the right into a parking space when the vehicle suddenly accelerated crashing into a pillar in front of the parking space. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle's front end was damaged, and the contact noticed a significant amount of fluid on the ground underneath the front end as well. The pillar that was in front was damaged as well. The vehicle was towed to a collision center. The contact had received injuries to their neck and upper back areas. Medical attention was needed. A police report had been filed. The contact had not received any diagnosis from the collision center. The vehicle had not been taken to the dealer however the dealer was contacted and informed the contact was informed that the failure was not associated with the recall attached to the vehicle with NHTSA campaign number: 23v751000 (engine and engine cooling). The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 48,000.

See all problems of the 2018 Acura TLX 🔎.

Engine is having an issue causing noises and symptoms of rod knocking which I suspect is the connecting rod bearing failing.

Car experiences intermittent electrical system failure. Upon failure, drivers will experiance random and rapid clicking, clanking, and electrical systems discharging like lights, screens, and alarm. After restarting the car, users will find, all warning lights displayed with a few blinking: transmission, parking brake, traction control, a few more. Headlights will randomly turn on, as well as the alarm, intermittently. All adas offline. Experienced sudden system failure causing all adas to fail while stationary/parked or moving/(actively driving on highway). Does actively affect driving ability more specifically: disrupts steering ability, causes random malfunctions with electrical components, cannot exceed 40 mph, car will not shift above 3rd gear, engine does seem much louder. After a thorough investigation/diagnosis with the dealership I concluded the main fault is due to the "Smart power control unit" located behind the glovebox compartment of the vehicle. More specifically, one of the chips on the circuit board is not fully coated with sealant from the factory, leading to a potential for some kind of mold, dust, or organic growth to form and short one of the ground pins on the end of the chip. Driver states: this is a control unit failure, I believe a small short on a single ground pin with the positively charged chip housing was causing a short within the control unit circuit board where the chip was not fully covered with non-conductive coating/sealant. This caused a handful of issues, like electrical systems prematurely wearing due to rapid discharge of electronics. Impairs drivers ability and ability in turning, braking, and accelerating. Also car will roll backwards if driver is not careful. Biggest concerns: fire, partial loss of control while driving, and premature wear on electrical components. A extra note: disconnecting battery does temporarily fix issue but rarely, most time it will start discharging electrical systems immediately or in the day.

See all problems of the 2017 Acura TLX 🔎.

While driving on the freeway/highway my vehicle went into limp mode and shifted into neutral. My vehicle would not allow me to shift gears and the car would not let me accelerate anymore. I had to think quickly and move out from upcoming traffic. With little speed I had on my vehicle I could only shut down the car and wait for a tow truck. This happened to me twice in 2020 and the mechanics could not find any issue or replicate what had happened. They said this was a software issue. I was still scared to drive my car thinking this would happen again. Then 2 years after ( 2024) again this happened and it was when I was on the freeway. Luckily I was on the left side and was able to stop on the shoulder but stressing out and still traumatized from what occurred 2 years ago. I took it to the dealer and same thing they could not replicate the issue and did re programmed the software. I believe this car is not safe to drive at all knowing this can happen again and again at random times. The attached document is what the dealer gave me stating this remedy was done to the vehicle. This need to be investigated.

I was driving and was making a right turn at a stop light. I stopped, then took a right. As I took the right, I throttled a little from 5-10 mph and my transfer case blew up and made a loud bang and lost power to my rear wheels. Along with losing power to my rear wheels, the computer still did not recognize this mechanical failure. The dash has a feature that shows power to each wheel and when the cars rear power wasn’t working, this feature showed power still. Along with this failure, immediately after the loud bang, the car was jerking and there was sounds of clunking in the rear.

Unknown - called to schedule safety recall inspection and remedy, was told there is a waiting list for 15 months. Cannot inspect my car until September 2025.

The transmission is slow, hesitant and jerky in models with the v6 engine. I almost got into a major car crash due to the transmission’s very hesitant behavior. Other owners have experienced this slow and clunky transmission behavior, after looking in many online forums. The transmission has been way since the vehicle first came out but Honda still has not addressed the issue with the 9 speed transmission. This poses a huge safety risk to me and all other owners.

Transfer case.

See all problems of the 2023 Acura TLX 🔎.

This car exhibits rumbling when goinin to a decreasing downward motion as if its trying to change gear but cant. Coming home from a doctors appointment last month it was raining an coming up to the top of a very small hill and just as I hit the top at the point the shocks start to lift up I almost lost control. This is not the first time its happened. It usually happens in a decelerating turn. But I have tried to get appointments with huntsville and nashvile dealerships. Hunstville had my appointment I waited for for 4 months and it was around June the 14th and they told me not to come in they were out of parts. So they had parts but ran out!.

See all problems of the 2019 Acura TLX 🔎.

Transmission is failing after taking it in for service after noticing a chirp from 2-3 and 3-4 gear. These symptoms are described with service bulletin 17-027 . Dealership claimed transmission warmer was good but replaced the seals. In Acuras own document they said the warranty would be extended to ten years.

Internal transmission error at 60,000 miles. All warning lights illuminated, no sign of transmission failure, but having to replace the entire transmission due to factory defect out of my own pocket.

See all problems of the 2016 Acura TLX 🔎.

Engine failure due to spun rod bearing due to the rod bearing connection failing. Vehicle suddenly became completely immobile stopping on a busy road in the city during morning rush hour. Vehicle not only put me in danger, but many other drivers on the road because it stopped halfway into the street refusing to go forward or shift to neutral to be pushed up. There were no electrical or battery issues. Yes, the dealership has acknowledged there is a recall that has not come out yet on the rod bearing connection as well as letters from Acura regarding this problem. Yes, Acura dealership service center has inspected the vehicle with no solution proposed or a diagnosis even. No warning lights until the engine completely failed. There was a rattling/tickling sound for a few days prior to my appointment to get it checked out. The rattling grew faster upon pressing on the gas while parked and accelerating while driving. The vehicle’s engine failed on my way to the service center. The profession was very quickly on a Monday the rattling began it was driven less than 10 miles daily until the engine completely failed on Friday which was the first available service appointment.