2014 Acura TL: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 2014 Acura TL
On the 2014 Acura TL, the failure owners report most often is airbag inflator rupture, with 7 reports on file. Across every failure mode on this year, half the dated reports were filed before 35,000 miles. Overall it scores 63 out of 100, high risk for a 2014.
High risk for a 2014 — 248th riskiest of the 270 2014 vehicles we can rate. 17 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork.
What owners report breaking
Owners have reported 9 named failure modes on the 2014 Acura TL, and the three most-reported carry 53% of everything filed.
Airbag inflator rupture leads with 7 reports and about 0.2 per 1,000 vehicles.
Torque converter failure follows with 1 report, median 35,000 miles.
Loss of power steering follows with 1 report.
By system, the reports fall mostly into airbag (7), body (3) and steering (2).
When these failures get reported
Too few of the reports on this year carry an odometer reading to describe the timing: 5 of them do. The mileages quoted elsewhere on this page come from the modes that have enough of them.
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
What happens when these parts fail
Nothing in the reports on the 2014 Acura TL mentions a crash, a fire or an injury. That is the ordinary case and it is worth stating: most defect complaints are about a car that stopped working, not one that hurt somebody.
The average severity weight across every report on this year is 4.82, 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: airbag inflator rupture at $0–$0, torque converter failure at $1,100–$3,200, loss of power steering at $600–$2,800 and rust or structural corrosion at $500–$6,000. Dealer labour, a seized bolt or a part that is no longer made can push any of these past the top of its range.
6% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbag inflator rupture | airbag | 7 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.2 | $0–$0 | Critical |
| Torque converter failure | transmission | 1 | 1 | — | 36k | — | 0.0 | $1,100–$3,200 | High |
| Loss of power steering | steering | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $600–$2,800 | Critical |
| Rust or structural corrosion | body | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $500–$6,000 | High |
| Sunroof failure or glass breakage | body | 1 | 1 | — | 200 | — | 0.0 | $700–$4,500 | High |
| Air conditioning failure | hvac | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $400–$2,800 | Moderate |
| Other steering problem | steering | 1 | 1 | — | 57k | — | 0.0 | $350–$2,400 | High |
| Other visibility problem | glass | 1 | 1 | — | 500 | — | 0.0 | $150–$1,400 | Moderate |
| Other body or interior problem | body | 1 | 1 | — | 90k | — | 0.0 | $200–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Unclassified problem | other | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.1 | — | 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 2014 Acura TL draws about 0.5 per 1,000 vehicles, which puts it in the 71st percentile of complaint rates among 2014 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 36,003 vehicles. If the true number is twice that, every rate on this page is half what it says; the ranking against other 2014 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.
Torque converter failure
Transmission/torque converter issue. In lower speed car jerks. Really bad in stop and go traffic.this issue is with 2013/2014 tl. On slow speed from 0 -40. Dealer say they aware of the issue but dont have a fix. They have a release (s/b #16046) from manufacture regarding the problem judder from torque converter lock-up clutch.
Recalls on the 2014 model year
NHTSA has issued 3 recall campaigns covering the 2014 Acura TL, affecting an estimated 47,884 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 air bags:frontal:driver side:inflator module. 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.
Recalls also distort complaint counts. Publicity about a campaign reminds owners that complaining is possible, so reports for a recalled component often spike after the recall rather than before it.
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE
1,558 vehicles 2019-06-27- Defect
- Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013 Acura ILX, 2015 RDX, 2005-2010 and 2012 RL, 2009-2014 TL, 2010 and 2012 ZDX, 2007-2011 CR-V, 2011-2013 and 2015 CR-Z, 2009-2013 Fit, 2013 Fit EV, 2010-2011 and 2013 Insight and 2007-2014 Ridgeline vehicles. These vehicles are equipped with driver frontal air bag inflators assembled as a recall remedy part or replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
- Consequence
- An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began August 12, 2019. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are S5B and W59.
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE
1,101,534 vehicles 2019-03-06- Defect
- Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling specific 2003 Acura 3.2CL, 2013-2016 ILX, 2013-2014 ILX Hybrid, 2003-2006 MDX, 2007-2016 RDX, 2002-2003 3.2TL, 2004-2006, and 2009-2014 TL, 2010-2013 ZDX and 2001-2007 and 2009 Honda Accord, 2001-2005 Civic, 2003-2005 Civic Hybrid, 2001-2005 Civic GX NGV, 2002-2007 and 2010-2011 CR-V, 2003-2011 Element, 2007 Fit, 2002-2004 Odyssey, 2003-2008 Pilot, and 2006-2014 Ridgeline vehicles. The affected vehicles received a replacement driver air bag inflator as part of a previous Takata inflator recall remedy or a replacement driver…
- Consequence
- An explosion of an inflator within the driver frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver, front seat passenger or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began April 10, 2019. Honda owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is O41. Acura owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Acura's number for this recall is U40.
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE
2,232,187 vehicles 2016-02-03- Defect
- Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain model year 2007-2011 Honda CR-V, 2011-2015 CR-Z, 2010-2014 FCX, and Insight, 2009-2013 Fit, 2013-2014 Fit EV, 2007-2014 Ridgeline, 2013-2016 Acura ILX, 2013-2014 Acura ILX Hybrid, 2007-2016 RDX, 2005-2012 Acura RL, 2009-2014 Acura TL, and 2010-2013 Acura ZDX vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion which, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.
- Consequence
- In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
- Remedy
- Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the inflator, free of charge. The recall began March 2017. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are JY0, JY1, and JY2.
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 2014 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
Where 2014 sits in the model line
High risk for a 2014 — 248th riskiest of the 270 2014 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 2014 itself at 63.
If the model year is negotiable, 1998 and 2007 score lower than 2014 by a margin worth acting on. Same body, same engines, different luck — usually a supplier change or a mid-cycle fix, which the complaint data can show but never explain.
Within the 2012–2014 generation specifically, 2014 is the strongest year at 63 and 2012 the weakest at 72.
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 2012-2014 generation, 2014 Acura TL scores best at 63 and 2012 Acura TL worst at 72.
Where these figures stop being useful
17 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 17 reports, 5 carried an odometer reading, so the mileages here describe 29% 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".
Named failure modes come from matching phrases in the complaint text, so a badly worded complaint can land in the wrong bucket. The effect washes out across hundreds of reports and does not wash out across five.
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 2014 Acura TL?
The most-reported failures are airbag inflator rupture (7 reports), torque converter failure (1 report, median 35,000 miles) and loss of power steering (1 report). 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 2014 Acura TL reliable?
It scores 63 out of 100 on our risk index, which is high — 248th riskiest of the 270 2014 vehicles we can rate. The score is a comparison against other 2014 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 2012–2014 generation, 2014 scores best at 63 out of 100 and 2012 worst at 72. 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