2020 Acura TLX: True Cost, Problems & Verdict
62 NHTSA owner complaints · 5 recalls · data-computed verdict. No opinions — public data only.
Editor's note
Avoid the 2015 TLX, the nameplate's first year, which scores 38 on 341 complaints with Power Train at 160 and Engine at 82. Buy a 2016 or 2017, which score 78 and 84 on 110 and 70 complaints, or a 2022 to 2025, which score 85, 84, 89 and 87 on 25, 10, 5 and 4 complaints, evidence low. Read the full note on the model page. 2020 specifically: a year the record favours — 62 complaints, score 73/100. The caveats in the note apply to other years of this nameplate more than to this one.
Read the guide
Used Acura MDX, RDX and TLX: the years to avoid, including 2020 — written and signed by Adir Trabelsi, 2026-09-16.
Owner complaints: 62 filed with NHTSA
Complaints per year on the road: 10.33
What owners say
Verbatim reports filed with the United States safety regulator (NHTSA) by owners of this exact model year. Public record.
The cars Emission Systems and Parking Brake lights come on, and the dealer can not diagnose this issue properly. I have taken it in 4 times, and it continues to happen. I fear the parking brake coming on while driving.
Transmission harsh and delayed gear engagement, sometimes it won’t shift unless it’s done manually, few times it didn’t shift even though I shifted manually, I had to increase engine speed to about 5000 RPM so it shifts, transmission goes into neutral when trying to to accelerate while it’s in drive and intermittent vibration caused by hydraulic circuit pressure issues, I’ve had the vehicle since it had 7900 miles an…
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.
Recalls: 5 campaigns (4 severe)
| Campaign | Component | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 24V064000 | Air Bags:Sensor:Occupant Classification:Front Passenger | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Pilot, Accord, Civic sedan, HR-V, Odyssey, 2020 Civic coupe, Fit, 2021-2022 Civic hatchback, 2021 Civic Type R, Insight, 2020-2021 CR-V, CR-V Hybrid, Passport, Ridgeline, Accord Hybrid, 2020 Acura MDX, 2022 Acura MDX, 2020-2022 Acura RDX, and 2020-2021 Acura TLX vehicles. The front passenger… |
| 23V751000 | Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine:Hard Parts Internal/Mechanical | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2015-2020 Acura TLX, 2016-2020 Acura MDX, 2016 and 2018-2019 Pilot, 2017 and 2019 Ridgeline, and 2018-2019 Odyssey vehicles. Due to a manufacturing error, the connecting rod bearing in the engine may wear and seize, damaging the engine. |
| 23V858000 | Fuel System, Gasoline:Delivery:Fuel Pump | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013-2023 Honda Accord, Civic Coupe, Civic Sedan, Civic Hatchback, Civic Type R, CR-V, HR-V, Ridgeline, Odyssey, Acura ILX, MDX, MDX Hybrid, RDX, RLX, TLX, 2019-2022 Honda Insight, Passport, 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda Clarity PHEV, Fit, and 2015-2020 Honda Accord Hybrid, Pilot, Acura NSX… |
| 26V332000 | Air Bags:Sensor:Occupant Classification:Front Passenger | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 Acura TLX, 2019-2024 RDX, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 MDX, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 Honda Ridgeline, 2017-2022 Pilot, 2019-2021 Passport, 2018-2026 Odyssey, 2019-2022 Insight, 2019-2021 HR-V, 2018-2020 Fit, 2020-2022 CR-V Hybrid, 2017-2022 CR-V, 2017-2018, 2021 Civic Type R, 2017-2021 Civic… |
| 21V215000 | Fuel System, Gasoline:Delivery:Fuel Pump | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Acura MDX, MDX Sport Hybrid, RDX, TLX, Honda Accord, Civic Hatchback, Insight, 2019 Acura ILX, Honda Accord Hybrid, Civic Coupe, Civic Coupe Si, Civic Sedan, Civic Sedan Si, Civic Type R, Fit, HR-V, Odyssey, Passport, Pilot and Ridgeline, and 2018-2019 CR-V vehicles. The low-pressure fuel pump… |
What it costs to buy — and what owning it really takes
Class-level estimates, priced as a mid-size premium car of its model year, re-priced to your country. Not a quote, not a valuation of one specific car — condition, mileage and options move it. How these are computed.
What it costs to run
EPA combined 23 MPG · estimated annual fuel cost $3,300
Re-priced automatically from your country's retail fuel, electricity and parts indices — change country in the bar at the top. Estimates; see methodology.
What this car's problems cost to fix
Ranked by the components owners of this exact model year actually complain about. Each figure is flat-rate labour hours x the local shop rate plus a parts band — an estimate of what this kind of failure costs, not a quote, and not a prediction that this car will need it. Formula.
- Engine19 complaints · typical job: Cooling-system or timing-drive repair (6.0 h labour + parts)$1,040–$2,220
- Fuel System12 complaints · typical job: Fuel pump or injector replacement (3.5 h labour + parts)$680–$1,620
- Gasoline12 complaints · typical job: Fuel delivery and emissions repair (3.0 h labour + parts)$580–$1,360
- Electrical System9 complaints · typical job: Alternator, battery-drain or body-module diagnosis and replacement (3.0 h labour + parts)$540–$1,310
- Engine And Engine Cooling8 complaints · typical job: Water pump, thermostat and coolant service (3.5 h labour + parts)$600–$1,040
- Power Train7 complaints · typical job: Transmission service or clutch-pack repair (7.0 h labour + parts)$1,290–$4,040
Other Acura TLX years
FAQ
What is the most common problem with the 2020 Acura TLX?
The most-reported issue in NHTSA complaint data is Engine (19 complaints in our indexed sample).
Is the 2020 Acura TLX a good used car to buy?
Our data verdict is BUY with a reliability score of 73/100, computed from 62 NHTSA complaints and 5 recall campaigns. See the verdict card for the top reasons.
How much does it cost to fix the 2020 Acura TLX's most common problem?
19 of the NHTSA complaints filed against the 2020 Acura TLX sit in the Engine group — more than any other component on this model year. The representative job there is cooling-system or timing-drive repair: about 6.0 hours of labour plus parts, roughly $1,040–$2,220 at a US independent shop and re-priced to your country at the top of the page. It is an estimate of what this class of failure costs, not a quote for this car.
What does a 2020 Acura TLX cost to run per year?
About $5,006 a year in fuel or energy plus the maintenance band — roughly $25,030 over five years, before purchase price, insurance and depreciation. Figures come from available EPA fuel-economy data and industry maintenance averages, and are re-priced to your country.
Does the 2020 Acura TLX have recalls?
Yes — NHTSA lists 5 recall campaign(s) for the 2020 Acura TLX, 4 of them touching fire, crash or stall risk, the most recent recorded 01/02/2024. Check this car's VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before you buy.
Compare with
Other luxury midsizes of about the same age.
What will a 2020 Acura TLX really cost YOU per year?
Fuel, maintenance band and depreciation — computed from public data in 10 seconds.
Open the true-cost calculatorData sources
Complaints & recalls: NHTSA ·
Fuel economy: EPA fueleconomy.gov ·
Scoring: our published methodology.
Maintenance bands are industry-average estimates (AAA Your Driving Costs, CarMD index) — labeled estimates, not measurements.
Last updated: 2026-10-04.
Moderate evidence — 62 complaints, 5 recalls on record
- 62 NHTSA complaints on record (10.3/yr of exposure) — in line with a typical year of this model (10.3/yr)
- 5 recall campaigns, 4 touching safety-critical systems