2021 Acura TLX: owner complaints and recalls

Owners have filed 64 complaints about the 2021 Acura TLX and NHTSA has issued 4 recall campaigns. The most-reported system is power train, named in 23 of them.

64
Complaints
4
Recalls
3
Crash reports
0
Fire reports
3
Injuries
56.2
Severity index

Severity index 56.2 - Medium. It weights crashes, fires, injuries and fatalities per 100 complaints, so a vehicle attracting serious reports scores above one attracting many trivial ones (how this is calculated).

Middle half of all tracked vehiclesThis vehicle: 56.2p25 35p75 96cleanestworst
Where the 2021 Acura TLX sits against the quartiles of every vehicle we track.

Among the 90 2021 vehicles we track with at least 40 complaints on file, the 2021 Acura TLX ranks 42 of 90 by severity, where 1 is the worst. Its severity is higher than 53% of its model-year peers. See the full 2021 ranking.

What actually fails

Power TrainPower Train: 23 complaints (35.9%)23 36%Service BrakesService Brakes: 10 complaints (15.6%)10 16%Electrical SystemElectrical System: 9 complaints (14.1%)9 14%Unknown Or OtherUnknown Or Other: 8 complaints (12.5%)8 12%Air BagsAir Bags: 7 complaints (10.9%)7 11%Forward Collision Avoid…Forward Collision Avoidance: 7 complaints (10.9%)7 11%Fuel/Propulsion SystemFuel/Propulsion System: 5 complaints (7.8%)5 8%SuspensionSuspension: 5 complaints (7.8%)5 8%
Systems named in complaints. One complaint can name several, so shares overlap.
ComponentComplaintsShare of complaints citing it
POWER TRAIN2335.9%
SERVICE BRAKES1015.6%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM914.1%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER812.5%
AIR BAGS710.9%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE710.9%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM57.8%
SUSPENSION57.8%

Complaints filed per year

013262021: 42022: 82023: 72024: 82025: 112026: 26 (partial year)21222324252626
Complaints filed per calendar year, not model year. The hatched bar is the current year and is still incomplete.
YearComplaints
20214
20228
20237
20248
202511
2026 (year to date)26
Complaint volume is rising - the last three years carry 2.2x the filings of the three before them, which usually signals a wear-related defect surfacing with age.

Recall campaigns

CampaignReportedComponentSummary
24V06400001/02/2024AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION:FRONT PASSENGERHonda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Pilot, Accord, Civic sedan, HR-V, Odyssey, 2020 Civic coupe, Fit, 2021-2022 Civic hatchback, 2021 Civic Type R, Insight, 2020-2021 CR-V, CR-V Hybrid, Passport, Ridgeline, Accord Hybrid, 2020 Acura MDX, 2022 Acura MDX
24V95000019/12/2024FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLYAcura (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2021-2023 TLX vehicles. The fuel filler neck and fuel tank may have been improperly welded, which can result in a fuel leak.
25V39100012/06/2025SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:PEDALS AND LINKAGESHonda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2021-2025 Acura TLX, 2023-2025 Acura MDX, and 2023-2025 Honda Pilot vehicles. The brake pedal pivot pin was not secured properly, which can cause the pedal to shift out of position. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with
26V33200021/05/2026AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION:FRONT PASSENGERHonda (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-
Source. US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration public complaint and recall APIs (api.nhtsa.gov), retrieved 2026-07-25. Complaints are unverified consumer reports; volume is influenced by how many units were sold and how long the vehicle has been on the road. Not affiliated with NHTSA or any manufacturer.