| 2021 |
When Acura launched, it promised the performance of a European car with the reliability of a Honda. They've often fulfilled this promise. But not always--the second TL was notorious for transmission failures. The first-year TLX V6 also had issues (if relatively minor ones) in this area. With the new TLX, the iffy ZF-supplied nine-speed automatic transmission has been replaced by a more solid Honda-developed ten-speed that first appeared in the 2018 Honda Odyssey.
Another potential source of concern: turbocharged engines have replaced the old TLX's naturally aspirated ones. Will the boosted engines prove as long-lived? The first turbocharged Acura, the 2007-12 RDX, was among the make's least reliable cars. But Honda has been producing turbocharged engines in volume since 2016, and (aside from some cases of disappearing coolant in CR-Vs) so far these have been reliable. While the V6 in the Type S is all-new for 2021, and thus might warrant some caution, the turbo four in other TLXs has been in production for four years. Still not sure you want a turbo? Well, if you're buying a new car in this class you don't have much of a choice: nearly all of the TLX's competitors are also turbocharged.
We should also take a step back and wonder whether the widespread belief that an Acura will require less frequent and less expensive repairs than the typical European sedan remains valid. In some well-known reliability surveys, the TLX has scored no higher and sometimes considerably lower than the Audi A4 / S4 and BMW 3 Series--which have improved in recent years.
That noted, it's important to realize that the scores from these surveys cover at most the first three years of ownership, and often much less. TrueDelta's car reliability data suggest that many German-brand cars have become reliable for the first four years of ownership, and even the first six. (It's probably a coincidence that CPO warranties last for six years.) Any sizable advantage of Asian-brand cars begins after that point, and can become quite large after their tenth birthdays. Will this be the case with the new Acura TLX? It's too soon to know for certain. But based on past history it likely will be. So the TLX retains an attraction for people who want the driving experience of a European sedan without the long-term reliability concerns of a European sedan.
The TLX doesn't have this space to itself. People can now hope for the same from two Korean competitors, the Hyundai G70 and Kia Stinger. For this reason as well as pricing, I've opted to primarily compare the new TSX to the G70 and also note how it compares to the Stinger.
I haven't indicated which car should be more reliable as the 2021 TLX is too new to really know.
full 2021 Acura TLX review |
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