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2018 Acura TLX

Gas
Compact Cars
5 EPA-rated configurations
Data refreshed 2026-09-11
D
Safety Signal
61 / 100 from the NHTSA recall record
Recalls1 critical4
Complaintsowner reports to NHTSA94
Crash ratingNHTSA overall5★
Fuel economybest combined, EPA27 mpg
2025202420232022202120202019201820172016

The 2018 Acura TLX is sold in the U.S. as a gas compact car with 5 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the TLX FWD, is EPA-rated at 27 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 4 recall campaigns for this model year, 1 rated critical, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of D. Owners have filed 94 complaints, most often about the engine. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy

Source: EPA fueleconomy.gov
ConfigurationPowertrainDriveEngine / motorCityHwyCombAnnual fuel*
TLX FWDGasFWD2.4L 4-cyl233327$2,850
TLX AWDGasAWD3.5L 6-cyl213024$3,250
TLX FWDGasFWD3.5L 6-cyl203224$3,250
TLX AWD A-SPECGasAWD3.5L 6-cyl202923$3,350
TLX FWD A-SPECGasFWD3.5L 6-cyl203023$3,350

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year at EPA reference fuel and electricity prices. fueleconomy.gov record ids: 38756, 38759, 38757, 38760, 38758.

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Recalls (4)

Source: NHTSA recall database
▲high

Air Bags

Refer to Comments
98,892 vehicles
ProblemHonda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 Acura TLX, 2019-2024 RDX, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 MDX, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 Honda Ridgeline, 2017-2022 Pilot, 2019-2021 Passport, 2018-2026 Odyssey, 2019-2022 Insight, 2019-2021 HR-V, 2018-2020 Fit, 2020-2022 CR-V Hybrid, 2017-2022 CR-V, 2017-2018, 2021 Civic Type R, 2017-2021 Civic hatchback, 2016-2020 Civic coupe, 2016-2022 Civic, 2017-2022 Accord Hybrid, and 2016-2022 Accord vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, which can cause the air bags to deploy unintentionally during a crash.RiskAir bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.FixDealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 7, 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are BOL, WO9, OOA, WOM, XOH, NOC, POD, BOE, UOF, POB, EOG, AOI, QO8, TOJ, DO7, and SOK. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 24V064. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning May 29, 2026.
NHTSA campaign 26V332000reported May 21, 2026Honda (American Honda Motor Co.)
▲high

Fuel System, Gasoline

KGC, KGD
2,490,460 vehicles
ProblemHonda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013-2023 Honda Accord, Civic Coupe, Civic Sedan, Civic Hatchback, Civic Type R, CR-V, HR-V, Ridgeline, Odyssey, Acura ILX, MDX, MDX Hybrid, RDX, RLX, TLX, 2019-2022 Honda Insight, Passport, 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda Clarity PHEV, Fit, and 2015-2020 Honda Accord Hybrid, Pilot, Acura NSX vehicles. The fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.RiskFuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.FixDealers will replace the fuel pump module, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed September 6, 2024. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are KGC and KGD. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall numbers 21V-215 and 20V-314.
NHTSA campaign 23V858000reported Dec 18, 2023Honda (American Honda Motor Co.)
!critical

Engine And Engine Cooling

XG1, GG0
248,999 vehicles
ProblemHonda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2015-2020 Acura TLX, 2016-2020 Acura MDX, 2016 and 2018-2019 Pilot, 2017 and 2019 Ridgeline, and 2018-2019 Odyssey vehicles. Due to a manufacturing error, the connecting rod bearing in the engine may wear and seize, damaging the engine.RiskA damaged engine may run improperly or stall while driving, increasing the risk of a fire, crash, or injury.FixDealers will inspect and repair, or replace the engine as necessary, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed March 28, 2024. 2016-2017 Acura MDX owner letters were mailed November 1, 2024. 2016-2020 Acura MDX owner letters are expected to be mailed in mid-December 2024. Honda began mailing owner notification letters as of March 18, 2024. 2015-2016 Acura owner letters are expected to be mailed mid-December 2024, 2018 Acura TLX owner letters are expected to be mailed the end of March/early Apr
NHTSA campaign 23V751000reported Nov 13, 2023Honda (American Honda Motor Co.)
▲high

Fuel System, Other

N3X, P3W
437,032 vehicles
ProblemHonda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Acura MDX, 2015-2019 Acura TLX and 2015-2017 Honda Accord vehicles, equipped with a 3.5L V6 engine. Particulates in fuel may adhere to the internal components of the fuel pump, reducing its performance.RiskReduced fuel pump performance can result in an engine stall, increasing the risk of crash.FixHonda will notify owners, and dealers will update the fuel injection engine control unit (FI-ECU) software and, if necessary, replace the fuel pump, free of charge. The recall began March 25, 2019. Owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Acura's recall number for this recall is P3W. Honda's recall number for this recall is N3X.
NHTSA campaign 19V060000reported Jan 29, 2019Honda (American Honda Motor Co.)

NHTSA defect investigations

Engine — Engine failure open

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received 414 reports of connecting rod bearing failures in the 3.5L V6 engine used in the following vehicles: Model Years (MY) 2018-2020 Acura TLX, MY2016-2020 Acura MDX, MY2016-2020 Honda Pilot, MY2018-2020 Honda Odyssey, and MY2017-2019 Honda Ridgeline.  The subject engine failures were analyzed as part of a Recall Query (RQ24013).  It was determined that these engine failures are outside the scope of Honda Recall 23V-751. Further, evidence gathered in conjunction with RQ24013 does not suggest this failure is caused by the same crankshaft manufacturing defect that is addressed by Honda in Recall 23V-751.  Based on analysis of data from RQ240

Opened Aug 20, 2025 · action PE25008

Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine — No Restart After Auto Start/Stop Engages open

On June 3, 2022, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Preliminary Evaluation PE22005 after the agency received VOQs and several �eld reports concerning the Auto Idle Stop (AIS) feature on 2016-2019MY Honda Pilot vehicles. The complaints allege that the engine fails to restart on its own from a complete stop at a traffic light or road intersection with the AIS function engaged. The subject vehicles are equipped with a 3.5L engine with a 9-speed automatic transmission. On January 6, 2023, Honda released service bulletins 23-008 and 23-009. These service bulletins address the failure to restart issue in the 2016-2019MY Honda Pilot vehicles, as well as the 2015-2020 Acura TLX, 2016

Opened Mar 26, 2025 · action EA25004

Engine — Engine failure closed

On November 8, 2024, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Recall Query RQ24013 to assess the scope of Honda recall 23V-751 after receiving complaints that alleged connecting rod bearing failures in vehicles that were not within the scope of recall 23V-751. In November 2023, Honda recalled 248,999 various Model Year (MY)2016–2020 Honda and Acura vehicles equipped with the 3.5L V6 engine. Honda recalled these vehicles due to a crankshaft manufacturing defect that caused premature connecting rod bearing wear and engine seizure. While the out-of-scope failures involved in these complaints appear to have a very similar failure mechanism as the recalled engines, a thorough analysis o

Opened Nov 8, 2024 · closed Aug 20, 2025 · action RQ24013

Owner complaints

Source: NHTSA complaint database
94complaints filed

3 involved a crash · 1 a fire · 2 injuries · 0 deaths reported

Filed per year: 2017: 3 · 2018: 1 · 2019: 5 · 2020: 5 · 2021: 5 · 2022: 8 · 2023: 13 · 2024: 30 · 2025: 17 · 2026: 7

Most-cited components

Engine31
Electrical System19
Fuel/Propulsion System14
Unspecified13
Power Train11
Lane Departure11

What owners describe

“Vechile starts vibrating when breaks are applied at highway speeds or when stopping completely.”Sep 1, 2023 · Service Brakes · NHTSA owner report
“While on the interstate, the Vehicles check engine light began blinking and the car lost power. Trying to accelerate the vehicle wouldn’t speed up and began sputtering. I had to maneuver to the shoulder without causing an accident. The car was making a knock/rattle while trying to accelerate. Acura dealership service…”Jun 27, 2023 · Engine · NHTSA owner report
“I was driving and a lot of warning lights came on, on the dash and 10 different warning messages in the message center. The alignment instantly messed up jerking my car to the right and I had to try to gain control and correct. Luckily, I was only going about 25-30mph and was able to correct. If this would have occurre…”May 5, 2023 · Steering · NHTSA owner report

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Crash ratings

Source: NHTSA NCAP
ConfigurationOverallFrontalSideRolloverRollover risk
4 DR AWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★10%
4 DR FWD★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★10%

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program. Standard driver-assist: forward collision warning, lane departure warning.

Other TLX model years

B

2025 Acura TLX

2 recalls · 4 complaints

B

2024 Acura TLX

2 recalls · 5 complaints

D

2023 Acura TLX

4 recalls · 18 complaints

D

2022 Acura TLX

4 recalls · 33 complaints

F

2021 Acura TLX

5 recalls · 99 complaints

F

2020 Acura TLX

5 recalls · 62 complaints

F

2019 Acura TLX

6 recalls · 92 complaints

D

2017 Acura TLX

3 recalls · 71 complaints

D

2016 Acura TLX

3 recalls · 110 complaints

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records. Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

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