AI Damage1997 Acura TL: common problems
Owners of the 1997 Acura TL filed 23 complaints with NHTSA, most often about electrical system and vehicle speed control. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 23
- involving a crash
- 3
What fails most often
- 1 Electrical system 35% of all complaints
- 2 Vehicle speed control 17% of all complaints
- 3 Powertrain 13% of all complaints
- 4 Service brakes 9% of all complaints
- 5 Air bags 4% of all complaints
- 6 Engine and cooling 4% of all complaints
- 7 Equipment 4% of all complaints
- 8 Steering 4% of all complaints
- Electrical system: 8 complaints (35% of all).
- Vehicle speed control: 4 complaints (17% of all), 2 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Powertrain: 3 complaints (13% of all).
- Service brakes: 2 complaints (9% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Air bags: 1 complaints (4% of all).
Engines and transmissions
US-market versions per EPA. On the right: how many NHTSA complaints name this engine or transmission type.
- 2.5 L · petrol · 5 cyl
- 3.2 L · petrol · 6 cyl
- automatic, 4-speed
Drive: FWD
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 23 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical system | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| Vehicle speed control | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| Powertrain | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Service brakes | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Air bags | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine and cooling | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Equipment | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Structure | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Tires | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Visibility | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Wheels | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 2 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
Vehicle lurched forward / suddenly accelerated, causing a crash. Dealer could not determine the cause of the problem. Please provide further information.
Vehicle suddenly accelerated, resulting in a minor collision. Dealer has been notified.
Brakes: driving approximately 35mph, slowed down to 10mph to make a right turn and there were no brakes. Pushed pedal to the floor and brakes did not catch , ran into the side of another car, resulting in a collision/injuries and vehicle wa stotalled.
My key will not start my engine and has gotten stuck inside the cylinder many times. I just replaced the battery as well due to my vehicle stalling when I turn it on. There should be no reason other than the faulty machinery that's giving me all this trouble.
It would stall periodically without any warning (I.e when I was going on the highway, the car ran just fine; but all the sudden I lose power and the car stall. It also happen when I took the inside road.) when I tried to restarted the car. It wouldn't started.
The only hot wire was in the door locking mechanism. The fire would not have happened if there was a fuse operational in the circuit. The battery was almost brand new, and it was almost dead. The caller stated that the only reason the fire died out was because it ran out of oxygen.
Automatic transmission keeps popping when changing gears. Brought back for service when under warranty. Transmission fluid was flushed. Problem went away for a month. After a month problem would arise again. This has been going on since purchase of vehicle. I friend was the same model, has the same problem.
1997 acura 3.2 tl faulty airbag. My acura recently displayed a srs error. I brought the car into radley acura in falls church where they told me that a potentially faulty airbag is not covered by acura and that to have the airbag replaced to prevent it from either deploying randomly or not deploying at all it would…
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 7,735 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 21% most complained about).
On average one model year of the TL has 156 complaints (20 years in the data). This year has 23, below average.
What to check before buying
- Electrical system. Scan all modules, test the battery and alternator, inspect connectors near the impact zone.
- Vehicle speed control. Accelerator pedal, cruise control, throttle codes.
- Powertrain. Shift quality under load, harsh shifts, transmission codes, CV joints.
- Service brakes. Pedal feel, ABS operation, leaks, discs and hoses.
Other years of this model
- TL 199626 sources
- TL 199820 sources
- TL 1999157 sources
- TL 2000249 sources
- TL 2001149 sources
- TL 2002333 sources
- TL 2003391 sources
- TL 2004551 sources
- TL 2005388 sources
- TL 2006247 sources
- TL 2007124 sources
- TL 2008124 sources
- TL 200942 sources
- TL 201064 sources
- TL 201120 sources
- TL 2012130 sources
- TL 201362 sources
- TL 201417 sources
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 1997 Acura TL?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: electrical system, vehicle speed control, powertrain. Total complaints: 23. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: smoke, burning smell, fire (13%), stalls while driving (13%), warning lights, check engine (9%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 1997 Acura TL?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 1997 Acura TL from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 1997 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.