Buyer Research

2024 Acura TLX — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $32,000–$48,000. There is 1 high-severity known issue you need to know before handing over a check.

Deciding between model years? Compare the 11 Acura TLX years we've written up →

Kestrel Take

Five complaints and one recall is the entire public record on the 2024 TLX, and a file that small cannot rate a car in either direction — nearly every 2024 is still under the 4-year/50,000-mile warranty, so whatever has gone wrong has gone to a dealer, not to NHTSA. The 2024 brought a mild facelift, a bigger screen and a lighter trim lineup; the transmission and the SH-AWD transfer case are the ones from 2021–2023, and one of the five complaints is a Type S already leaking at the seam between them, which is how the spline failure on our earlier pages usually announces itself. Two more describe the infotainment or the whole dash shutting off while driving, once draining the battery flat. The one recall is the brake-pedal pivot pin. Buy on the Acura service printout, the VIN lookup, and a flashlight under an SH-AWD car; and price the remaining factory warranty as the real asset it is.

What we checked

Checked against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 5 owner complaints for the 2024 Acura TLX, and 1 recall campaign.

That is too small a record to read a pattern from, so we are not going to pretend otherwise — with numbers this low one owner moves the percentage by a lot. What has been filed is grouped under the transmission and drivetrain (2), electrics and electronics (2), the engine (1). Treat those as things to look at, not as the vehicle's known weaknesses. A thin file usually means few of these were sold or few owners filed. It is not evidence the vehicle is trouble-free, and the issues below are our own research rather than a reading of this record.

One recall campaign covers 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 2024 Acura TLX

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

Brake pedal pivot pin not secured — the pedal can shift out of position (recall)High — wallet impact

Recall 25V391 covers 2021–2025 TLXs and the 2023–2025 MDX and Pilot: the brake pedal's pivot pin was not properly secured, so the pedal can move out of position and stop you applying the brakes as intended. Dealers inspect and replace the pedal assembly free; letters went out July 2025, and a car sold new in 2024 may well have had it done at its first service or not at all. It is the only campaign on this year and takes a minute to confirm on the NHTSA VIN lookup. Press the pedal hard with the engine off and feel for sideways movement.

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

Source: 1 NHTSA recall campaign on this model year.

Type S leaking at the transmission-to-transfer-case seam — the first sign of the spline failure on earlier yearsMedium

One 2024 Type S owner found fluid running down the case, pooling where the transmission meets the transfer case and collecting on the splash shield. On our 2021 and 2022 pages that leak is the opening chapter of the largest cluster on the car: the splines between the two strip, the rear axle stops driving, and no warning light says so. The 2024 shares the ten-speed and the transfer case, and the second complaint in this cluster is only a note about real-world fuel economy, so it is one car — a check, not a verdict. On any SH-AWD car, get under it with a flashlight, look at that seam and the shield below it, then pull away hard on a wet surface and feel the rear wheels bite. Inside the 6-year/70,000-mile powertrain warranty the fix is free; note the in-service date.

Repair cost (estimate): $0 under the powertrain warranty; $4,000–$8,000 for a transfer case and transmission outside it

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the transmission and drivetrain (2).

Infotainment shuts down while driving and drains the battery; a dash that went dark at speedMedium

Two owners, two screens. One had the infotainment shut off mid-drive and then pull the battery down until the car would not start — repaired by Acura under 1,000 miles and back again later. The other watched the instrument display go black while driving, with no speed and no warning indicators until it came back. Both are warranty repairs on a car this new — a module swap or a software update — but a car that has already had them and a car that has not been looked at are different purchases. Keep the screen in use through the whole drive, watch the cluster on rough pavement, and ask for the dealer history; if the seller mentions a jump-start, that is the clue.

Repair cost (estimate): $0–$300 under the bumper-to-bumper warranty; $1,200–$2,500 for a head unit or cluster outside it

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under electrics and electronics (2).

Same platform as 2021–2023 — carry over the fuel-tank, seat-sensor and rotor checks from those yearsLow

The 2024 is not listed on the fuel-tank weld recall or the passenger seat-sensor recalls that cover 2021–2023 cars, and nothing on the 2024 record suggests it should be. What does carry over: this is a 4,000-pound sedan that warps front rotors early on our 2021 and 2023 pages, and every engine in it asks for premium. Brake firmly from 60 mph and feel for a pulse in the pedal; read the tire date codes, and price a set of rotors into the offer if the wheel shakes.

Repair cost (estimate): $400–$800 per axle for rotors and pads if the wheel shakes under braking

Source: not yet checked against public records.

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Brake-pedal recall still open on the NHTSA VIN lookup
✗Fluid at the seam between the transmission and the transfer case, or on the splash shield below it
✗Screen or instrument cluster flickers or goes dark on rough pavement
✗Seller mentions a jump-start or a dead battery on a car this new
✗Pulse in the pedal or a shimmy in the wheel braking from 60 mph

Good Signs

✓Recall 25V391 shown complete on the NHTSA lookup
✓In-service date recent enough to leave two or more years of bumper-to-bumper warranty
✓Dry transfer-case seam under a flashlight after a warm drive
✓Acura dealer printout showing every visit, including any warranty work on the screen
✓Screen and cluster up instantly and steady for the whole drive