1998 Acura TL: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 1998 Acura TL
On the 1998 Acura TL, the failure owners report most often is exhaust leak or fumes in the cabin, with 6 reports on file. Across every failure mode on this year, half the dated reports were filed before 100,000 miles. Overall it scores 59 out of 100, elevated risk for a 1998.
Elevated risk for a 1998 — 236th riskiest of the 271 1998 vehicles we can rate. 22 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork.
What owners report breaking
Owners have reported 11 named failure modes on the 1998 Acura TL, and the three most-reported carry 55% of everything filed.
Exhaust leak or fumes in the cabin leads with 6 reports and about 0.4 per 1,000 vehicles.
Engine sensor failure follows with 3 reports, median 85,000 miles.
Other electrical problem follows with 3 reports, median 100,000 miles.
By system, the reports fall mostly into electrical (7), emissions (6) and transmission (2).
When these failures get reported
15 of the reports on the 1998 Acura TL came with an odometer reading, and half of those were filed before 100,000 miles.
Cumulatively, 53% by 100,000 miles and 87% by 150,000 miles of the dated reports had been filed.
The busiest stretch is between 70,000 and 80,000 miles, which alone holds 27% of the dated reports.
0% of the dated reports were filed below 36,000 miles, so this is mostly a story about older, higher-mileage cars.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
How reports accumulate
Every report with an odometer reading, cumulative, from 0 to 200,000 miles. A curve that climbs early is a car with early problems, whatever its total.
- Line share of reports filed by that mileage
- Dashed the median reported mileage
How bad it is when it goes
Across the named modes, 4 mention a crash and 3 an injury. Those are the words owners used in their own complaints, and NHTSA does not verify them, but they are the closest thing in this data to a measure of what a failure actually did.
The average severity weight across every report on this year is 5.45, where a stalled engine or a failed airbag weighs many times more than a rattling trim panel, and a figure this high means the reports are dominated by failures with safety consequences rather than annoyances. The weighting is set out in full on the methodology page.
What the top failures cost to put right, as editorial estimates for an independent US shop rather than figures from NHTSA: exhaust leak or fumes in the cabin at $250–$2,000, engine sensor failure at $180–$900, other electrical problem at $250–$2,000 and other powertrain problem at $400–$4,500. Dealer labour, a seized bolt or a part that is no longer made can push any of these past the top of its range.
9% of the reports on this year sit in the engine, transmission, drivetrain or cooling systems — the four where a repair bill is usually four figures.
Every reported failure mode
| Failure mode | System | Reports | With reading | 25th | Median | 75th | Per 1,000 | Typical repair | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exhaust leak or fumes in the cabin | emissions | 6 | 5 | — | 73k | — | 0.4 | $250–$2,000 | High |
| Engine sensor failure | electrical | 3 | 2 | — | 87k | — | 0.2 | $180–$900 | Moderate |
| Other electrical problem | electrical | 3 | 1 | — | 98k | — | 0.2 | $250–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Other powertrain problem | transmission | 2 | 1 | — | 115k | — | 0.1 | $400–$4,500 | High |
| Other speed control problem | adas | 2 | 1 | — | 115k | — | 0.1 | $250–$2,000 | Critical |
| Control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure | electrical | 1 | 1 | — | 70k | — | 0.1 | $700–$3,000 | High |
| Strut, shock or spring failure | suspension | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | $500–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Control arm, ball joint or bushing failure | suspension | 1 | 1 | — | 107k | — | 0.1 | $400–$2,200 | High |
| Tail light, brake light or signal failure | lighting | 1 | 1 | — | 63k | — | 0.1 | $100–$900 | Moderate |
| Other brake problem | brakes | 1 | 1 | — | 115k | — | 0.1 | $300–$1,800 | High |
| Other body or interior problem | body | 1 | 1 | — | 153k | — | 0.1 | $200–$2,000 | Moderate |
Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound. Repair costs are typical independent-shop ranges for the failure, not figures from these reports.
How often, against how many were built
Scaled by an estimate of how many of these cars exist, the 1998 Acura TL draws about 1.6 per 1,000 vehicles, which puts it in the 75th percentile of complaint rates among 1998 vehicles we can rate.
That denominator is the weakest number on the page and it is fair to say so plainly. Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound.
The working figure is 13,788 vehicles. If the true number is twice that, every rate on this page is half what it says; the ranking against other 1998 vehicles, which is what the risk score uses, is far more robust than the rate itself.
What owners wrote
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint narratives, trimmed for length. The odometer reading is the one the owner gave.
Exhaust leak or fumes in the cabin
Exhaust system on my 1998 acura 2.5 tl has a crack in the exhaust manifold. I've been told the manufacturer replaced this on the 96 & 97 tl's but will not for the 1998. I understand from research there were no changes to the body style or engine between the 96 -98 so why won't they cover the 98? *nm
Auto technician has determined that 1998 acura 2.5 tl has a cracked manifold. Same vehicle from 1995-97 has been mandated by NHTSA to have this repaired by manufacturer. I would like my vehicle year to be included in this mandate.
Engine sensor failure
My 1998 acura 2.5 tl has had noticeable exhaust leak into the passenger compartment from about 100,000 miles point, since january 2008l about one year ago. All the outside smells come right in even though I always have vents and air cond or heater set to "inside air only" setting. Along with exhaust I smell the catalytic converter odor, refinery odor when I drive past refinery, skunk smell when I drive over even a spot where a skunk was removed a few days ago, etc and also the check engine light came on a year ago, as many other owners have reported, I had it diagnosed as failed oxygen sensor but it seems that goes with the cracked engine manifold. This widely reported condition should be a mfgr recall notice. There is no excuse for the failure to recall over this persistent defect. Owners now know that it was the very same problem in 1996 and 1997 where it was a recall notice item; it should be for 1998 as well. I have been the most loyal of acura owners (this is our fourth acura as a family) but I and my husband will no longer tolerate such dishonesty in acura co. *tr
Exhaust system on the 1998 acura 2.5 tl. I have had to have the o2 sensor replaced and now as told the exhaust manifold is cracked. I was aldo told by the dealer that there have been a number of cases were the manifold cracked. If this is a problem that you see repeated in a particular vehicle is it not fairly safe to say there is a problem from the manufacture? What can be done to save consumers the expense of about $1200.00 to repair what seems obvious to be a manufacturer defect with the exhaust system?*ak
Other electrical problem
Tl* the contact owns a 1998 acura tl. The contact referenced NHTSA campaign number: 05v025000 (electrical system), but the VIN was not included. While the vehicle was in drive position, the key was removed from the ignition. The vehicle rolled away. The contact stated that he would forget to place the vehicle in park sometimes. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 98,000. Updated 12/19/14*cn updated 05/26/2015 *js
Recalls on the 1998 model year
NHTSA has issued 2 recall campaigns covering the 1998 Acura TL, affecting an estimated 21,133 vehicles. A recall is a different kind of evidence from a complaint: it is the regulator and the manufacturer agreeing that something has to be fixed, and the fix is free for as long as the car exists.
The campaigns cover power train:automatic transmission and suspension:front:control arm:lower ball joint. Whether the work was actually done on the car in front of you is a question only the VIN can answer, and the manufacturer or NHTSA will answer it free.
One caution about reading these together: a recall usually raises the complaint count for the same part, because owners who read about it go and file. The mileages stay informative; the counts get noisy.
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
96,518 vehicles 1999-08-19- Defect
- Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. A transmission case bolt can loosen and fall out allowing the transmission to disengage from the differential.
- Consequence
- The vehicle could lose power to the drive wheels without warning. Also, shifting the transmission into the park position would not lock the wheels, and a parked vehicle could move unexpectedly if the parking brake is not set.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install a redesigned bolt.
SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM:LOWER BALL JOINT
124,875 vehicles 1999-05-10- Defect
- Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. Certain vehicles were manufactured with ball joints that can prematurely wear out and, in the worse case, the ball joint would separate causing the front suspension to collapse.
- Consequence
- This condition would result in vehicle deceleration and a sudden loss of power. Also steering controllability would be reduced.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the front suspension lower ball joints.
Recall work is free at a franchised dealer regardless of the car's age. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before assuming it was done.
How it ranks in the 1998 field
The score at the top of the page, placed among its peers. The zones are the same thresholds the scorer applies, read out of the scorer itself, so the picture and the band word cannot disagree.
Scores are ranked within the model year, never across years, because an older car has had longer to accumulate reports.
- Left fewer and less serious reports
- Right more, or worse
- Marker this vehicle
Better and worse years of the same car
Elevated risk for a 1998 — 236th riskiest of the 271 1998 vehicles we can rate. The comparison is always within the same model year, so an older car is never penalised for having had longer to break.
Across the 19 model years of this car that carry enough reports to score, 1998 comes out best at 59 and 2012 worst at 72, with 1998 itself at 59.
No other year of this model scores meaningfully better than 1998, so if this generation is what you want, the year is not the lever.
Within the 1996–1998 generation specifically, 1998 is the strongest year at 59 and 1996 the weakest at 63.
Scores compare each year against other cars of the same model year, so a low number on an older car is a real result and not an artefact of age.
Shorter is better. Years with too few reports to score are shown without a bar rather than as a zero, because no data is not good news.
Within the 1996-1998 generation, 1998 Acura TL scores best at 59 and 1996 Acura TL worst at 63.
The limits of complaint data
22 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork. Every count on this page is therefore a floor: it is the number of owners who went to the trouble of filing with a federal agency, which is a small and self-selected fraction of the owners who had the fault.
Of those 22 reports, 15 carried an odometer reading, so the mileages here describe 68% of the sample rather than all of it. Owners also round: readings pile up on multiples of ten thousand, which is why this site publishes "about 90,000 miles" and not "91,438".
The failure modes are assigned by software reading the owner's own words, which is accurate in bulk and wrong in individual cases. A mode with a handful of reports may contain a misfiled one.
And nothing here predicts what one car will do. These are other people's complaints, filed years apart, on cars maintained by strangers. Read the page as a map of where this model year has previously gone wrong, then have the specific car in front of you inspected.
Questions this page answers
What are the most common problems with the 1998 Acura TL?
The most-reported failures are exhaust leak or fumes in the cabin (6 reports, median 75,000 miles), engine sensor failure (3 reports, median 85,000 miles) and other electrical problem (3 reports, median 100,000 miles). Counts come from owner complaints filed with NHTSA, which are voluntary, so they show what owners bothered to report rather than every fault that occurred.
Is the 1998 Acura TL reliable?
It scores 59 out of 100 on our risk index, which is elevated — 236th riskiest of the 271 1998 vehicles we can rate. The score is a comparison against other 1998 vehicles, not a prediction about any individual car, and it is built from complaint rates, severity and how early failures appear.
Which year of the Acura TL is best?
Within the 1996–1998 generation, 1998 scores best at 59 out of 100 and 1996 worst at 63. Same body, same engines, different luck.
Where this comes from. Every figure above is computed from NHTSA owner complaints and recall records for this exact make, model and year. Complaints are voluntary and self-selected, so treat counts as a floor. The methodology page writes out each formula, and the same numbers are available as JSON.
What breaks at my mileage Compare with another car
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed