1988 Acura Legend problems & reliability
33 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1988 Acura Legend. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
5 complaints report injuries (12 injured).
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Vehicle Speed Control → | 12 | 36% |
| Power Train | 8 | 24% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 5 | 15% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 3 | 9% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 2 | 6% |
| Equipment | 2 | 6% |
| Tires | 2 | 6% |
| Electrical System | 1 | 3% |
| Exterior Lighting | 1 | 3% |
| Parking Brake | 1 | 3% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
All 12 reported components →Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“Tl* the contact owns a 1988 acura legend. The contact stated that while attempting to reverse out of a parking space, the transmission was not able to be engaged in reverse. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to diagnose the failure. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vin was not…”
Power Train · filed Feb 15, 2012
“I experienced sudden violent full acceleration with a 1988 acura legend, which resulted in a crash into a building, and a very badly broken leg for me. I have been made aware of possibly thousands of complaints of the same problem with the 1986-1988 acura legend, and am sure there must be thousands more still on the…”
Fuel System, Gasoline · filed Apr 22, 2004
“When the gear was shifted from park to drive, the vehicle suddenly accelerated which caused the consumer to lose control of the vehicle and hit a wall. *jb”
Vehicle Speed Control · filed May 23, 2003
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- SEAT BELT BUCKLE FAILURE
Engineering Analysis EA94035 · opened Oct 27, 1994 · closed Jul 31, 1995 · led to recall 95V103001
- SUDDEN ACCELERATION
Engineering Analysis EA88026 · opened Mar 8, 1988 · closed Jan 10, 1991
- SUDDEN ACCELERATION
Defect Petition DP88005 · opened Nov 10, 1987 · closed Mar 8, 1988
Technical service bulletins
3 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1988 Acura Legend.
Acura: there are guidelines for various situations and procedures including: tire pressure valve stem installation, trailer stability malfunction light is on, engine oil application guide, new software, new transmission…
SB-0708 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 1, 2010
Intermittent sra diagnostic trouble code 1-1 to 1-5, driver's airbag inflator circuit. October tech line information. *tt
1002 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 16, 2002
Clicking noise while clicking. *tw
92009 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 1, 1995
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
No NHTSA recall campaigns name the 1988 Acura Legend in our current data. Recalls may apply only to certain VIN ranges — always confirm with a VIN check.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 1988 Acura Legend?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.