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Acura TLX headlights problems

14 of the 903 owner complaints about the Acura TLX describe headlights failing or too dim, most of them for the 2018 model year.

owner complaints
14
worst model year
2018
Is there a fix? No recall or service bulletin covers this area of the car yet.

By model year

  • 2020
    3
  • 2019
    1
  • 2018
    4
  • 2017
    2
  • 2016
    3
  • 2015
    1

What owners say

Filed Jun 9, 2026 · Electrical · NY

The keyless access unit broke around 100k miles. Car acted like it was having a seizure. If car was locked, alarm goes off nonstop (during these episodes, which are intermittent) and all dash lights and head lights blink on and off over and over in quick succession. If car was not locked, only the lights had a seizure, there would be no audible alarm. Seemed to happen more near towers (cell towers, fire station broadcast tower, absolutely could not leave the car alone in nyc and had to go home). So so so embarrassing. So many people with this issue.

Filed May 31, 2026 · Electrical · CA

The alarm on my car would intermittently and randomly go off at any time while car was parked and locked. After much research I deduced that it is the Smart Power Control Unit located behind the glove box. The epoxy clear covering on the circuit board is not fully covering the entire board allowing for dendritic growth and random surges. These surges can cause the alarm to go on and off, the head lights to turn on and off, and instrument panels to go haywire. I haven't experienced this issue while driving but it could certainly happen, which would obviously be very dangerous. I did not take it in to a mechanic or dealer to reproduce the problem, however I have confirmed with others with various honda models having the same issue.

Filed May 30, 2026 · Lights · NV

Both headlight lenses on my 2019 Acura TLX developed severe internal stress cracking (crazing) with no external damage of any kind. The cracking appears to originate from inside the housing, consistent with heat stress or a manufacturing defect. Both headlights cracked identically and simultaneously, which rules out accidental damage. Acura corporate has denied a goodwill repair, classifying this as normal wear and tear. Estimated repair cost is $4,000. I believe this is a manufacturing defect and may affect other 2019 Acura TLX owners.

Filed Jan 30, 2026 · Driver assistance · OH

The front camera that operates the cruise control, lane assist, automatic braking, automatic high beam has stopped working. After further research it seems to be a popular problem with this car in a short amount of time. This car is a 2020 with 61,000 miles. The camera costs approximately $2000 to fix and should have a longer life span.

Filed Oct 5, 2025 · Driver assistance · CA

I got 5 lights on my dash stating that I have an auto high beam problem, road departure mitigation system problem, collision mitigation system problem, lane keeping assist problem, and adaptive cruise control problem. I got these lights on my dash at the exact same time and this happened 1 week after my car alarm started going off randomly. I will now have to change my windshield camera sensor. Seems like this is an issue with many Acura owners.

Filed Sep 25, 2025 · Driver assistance · TX

Warning lamps appeared for forward collision, lane keep assist, auto high beam, brakes, adaptive cruise control.

Filed Apr 12, 2025 · Driver assistance, Engine · LA

Oil pump seal leaking, was leaking prior to rod bearing recall repair, Acura didn't recommend nor replace during recall, engine is smoking, also at night, lane keep assist repeatly steers towards passing vehicle headlights almost causing head-on collision, extremely scary, this is ridiculous and I'm stuck with vehicle being I'm upside down on loan, Absolutely a nightmare!!!! Contacted dealership that completed recall and was given run around so I called acura and they spoke with dealer, dealer waived diagnostic fee, but are charging for parts n services which I can't afford. And, I no longer trust them under my hood so unsure of what to do!!! This is my hard earned money at work!!!

Filed Dec 26, 2024 · Driver assistance, Electrical · CA

The vehicle's dash states the following are malfunctioning: Road Departure Mitigation System, Adaptive Cruise Control, Auto High Beam, Collision Mitigation System, and Lane Keeping Assist. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. A few days prior to this message appearing on the dash, the car flashed and beeped that I needed to BRAKE when there wasn't anything in front of me while driving. The car automatically braked without me doing anything. There weren't any vehicles behind me in that specific moment. With how sudden the car braked, this could have caused a collision. This vehicle has been repaired by the dealership where it was purchased, for this exact issue. The first sign of sensors malfunctioning was in January 2022 (I purchased the vehicle in June 2021). I have taken the vehicle to the dealership for repairs 3 times in relation to sensor malfunction and for replacement of rear actuators, which is stated in the Service Repair Summaries. Since the last repair in 2023, the same problem has occurred once again. This latest incident has included the automatic braking without any objects in front of the vehicle. I have not driven the vehicle in two days due to this safety concern.

Filed Jul 29, 2024 · Electrical, Fuel system · PA

Car experiences intermittent electrical system failure. Upon failure, drivers will experiance random and rapid clicking, clanking, and electrical systems discharging like lights, screens, and alarm. After restarting the car, users will find, all warning lights displayed with a few blinking: transmission, parking brake, traction control, a few more. Headlights will randomly turn on, as well as the alarm, intermittently. All ADAS offline. Experienced sudden system failure causing all ADAS to fail while stationary/parked or moving/(actively driving on highway). Does actively affect driving ability more specifically: disrupts steering ability, causes random malfunctions with electrical components, cannot exceed 40 mph, car will not shift above 3rd gear, engine does seem much louder. After a thorough investigation/diagnosis with the dealership I concluded the main fault is due to the "Smart Power Control Unit" located behind the glovebox compartment of the vehicle. More specifically, one of the chips on the circuit board is not fully coated with sealant from the factory, leading to a potential for some kind of mold, dust, or organic growth to form and short one of the ground pins on the end of the chip. Driver States: This is a control unit failure, I believe a small short on a single ground pin with the positively charged chip housing was causing a short within the control unit circuit board where the chip was not fully covered with non-conductive coating/sealant. This caused a handful of issues, like electrical systems prematurely wearing due to rapid discharge of electronics. Impairs drivers ability and ability in turning, braking, and accelerating. Also car will roll backwards if driver is not careful. BIGGEST CONCERNS: FIRE, partial loss of control while driving, and premature wear on electrical components. A extra note: Disconnecting battery does temporarily fix issue but rarely, most time it will start discharging electrical systems immediately or in the day.

Filed Apr 2, 2023 · Transmission · WI

Yesterday a friend of mine was driving my 2018 Acura TLX. She thought she had it in P(park,) but it wasn't in park it was in D(drive) still. She had let her foot off the brake thinking it was in park and the car started moving. It wasn't until she said she looked up and realized it wasn't in park. She stated to me that she pushed the P(park,) but unfamiliar with my car and doesn't know which buttons on the panel are such as P(park,) R(reverse,) N(neutral.) With that said let it be noted that when I bought the car in April of 2022 the D & P were worn out from use. Almost a year later they are even more worn out so my friend didn't know exactly if the vehicle was in P or D because of how worn they are. The dealership I bought it from is aware of the buttons wearing out and said they wouldn't fix/replace it. Please note the 2 pictures submitted with this shows #1 with headlights off #2 with headlights on.

Related recalls

No recalls on record for this model year.

Questions about the Acura TLX headlights

Which Acura TLX years have headlights failing or too dim problems?

The model years with the most reports are 2018 (4 complaints), 2016 (3 complaints) and 2020 (3 complaints).

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