Buyer Research

2012 Acura TSX — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $8,000–$12,000. There are 3 high-severity known issues you need to know before handing over a check.

Deciding between model years? Compare the 5 Acura TSX years we've written up →

Kestrel Take

Seventy-five percent of every complaint filed on this car is the steering, and a further chunk of the electrical filings turn out to be the same part logged under a different heading. That is as concentrated a record as we see: one module, failing at 90,000 to 100,000 miles, on a car that is otherwise a genuinely good ownership proposition. Acura never recalled it and owners have been loud about that for a decade. So the whole decision is this — has the EPS module been replaced, and is there a receipt? If yes, buy with confidence. If no, assume you are buying the repair with the car and offer accordingly.

What we checked

Reconciled against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 133 owner complaints for the 2012 Acura TSX, and 6 recall campaigns.

A big number here usually means a lot of these were sold, not that it is a bad vehicle — popular models collect more complaints for the same rate of trouble. So the total on its own says little. What is worth reading is the shape of it. 75% of them are about one thing — steering. That much concentration is a genuine pattern rather than background noise, and it is the first thing to check on any example you look at.

6 recall campaigns cover this model year. Recalls are repaired free, for any owner, with no time limit on most safety campaigns — but only if someone books it in. Ask the seller to show it was done, or have any dealer check the VIN; it takes them a couple of minutes and costs nothing.

Counts come from the NHTSA complaint and recall database — free, public, and worth checking yourself.

Known Issues for the 2012 Acura TSX

Ranked by wallet impact. These are documented, recurring problems — not freak accidents. How we decide that.

Electric power steering module failure — the dominant fault on this carHigh — wallet impact

One hundred filings, and they read alike: a warning appears, the assist disappears, and the wheel becomes extremely heavy, often at speed. Owners describe losing it while merging onto a highway, while stationary at start-up, and in one case with the wheel seizing at 55 mph. Reported mileages cluster around 90,000 to 100,000. Parts alone were quoted at $900 by one owner. One mechanic diagnosed the module wiring rather than the module, which is worth knowing before you authorise the expensive part. There is no recall; this is your money.

Repair cost (estimate): $900–$1,800

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under steering (100).

Bluetooth module draws current with the car off, and door lock actuators quitMedium

Two separate nuisances sit in this cluster. The hands-free module keeps running after shutdown and flattens the battery — one owner replaced five batteries in eight years before the cause was found. Separately, the lock actuators fail so the doors stop responding to the fob or the interior switch. A third of this cluster is actually steering complaints filed under the wrong heading. Test it by leaving the car locked for a few hours and then seeing whether it starts briskly, and cycle every door lock.

Repair cost (estimate): $250–$700 for the hands-free module; $200–$460 per door lock actuator

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under electrics and electronics (16).

Brake pedal turns wooden in cold weather for the first several stopsHigh — wallet impact

Owners describe the pedal feeling frozen or wooden below about 30 degrees Fahrenheit, taking several attempts before the car will stop, and returning to normal once warm. One owner says it takes nine or ten pumps below 16 degrees. The same pattern appears on the 2010, 2011 and 2014 TSX records, so it is a characteristic of the car rather than a one-off. There is no recall and dealers have told owners it is normal. If you are in a cold climate, test it first thing on a freezing morning before money changes hands.

Repair cost: Not yet priced — a safety matter first, a repair bill second

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the brakes (9).

Takata passenger airbag inflator, including a campaign for botched earlier repairsHigh — wallet impact

Six campaigns reach this year. 17V030, 18V042, 18V661 and 19V502 are successive expansions of the passenger inflator recall; 17V545 and 19V378 cover inflators installed wrongly during previous recall work at certain dealers. A rupture throws metal fragments at whoever is in the front passenger seat. All of it is performed at no charge. Because a car can be repaired and then re-recalled, an old repair order is not proof — the current VIN lookup on nhtsa.gov is the only answer that counts.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under airbags (6); 6 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Check power steering warning, or heavy effort at the wheel when parking
✗Damp or musty driver's footwell carpet — one owner traced water entering under the steering column
✗A battery that has been replaced more than once in recent years
✗Brake pedal that stays wooden for several stops on a cold morning
✗Any door that ignores the key fob

Good Signs

✓An EPS module or its wiring harness replaced, with the part number on the invoice
✓All six airbag campaigns reading closed on NHTSA's VIN lookup
✓A car that starts briskly after sitting locked overnight
✓Dry carpet under the driver's pedals on a car that has been out in rain
✓Transmission fluid changed on Acura's interval with dated receipts