1999 Acura TL problems & reliability
157 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1999 Acura TL, alongside 4 safety recall campaigns. 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.
8 complaints report injuries (9 injured, 2 deaths reported).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 1999 Acura TL vehicles were involved in 14 fatal crashes with 8 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical System | 58 | 37% |
| Power Train | 37 | 24% |
| Air Bags | 13 | 8% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 12 | 8% |
| Unknown OR Other | 11 | 7% |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 10 | 6% |
| Steering | 8 | 5% |
| Visibility | 7 | 4% |
| Structure | 6 | 4% |
| Engine | 5 | 3% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 112,000 miles (middle 50% between 81,000 and 161,500 miles), based on 83 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“My 99 will unexpectedly shut off while driving down the road whether it be 5 miles an hour or 60 miles an hour. When this happens all power is off then kicks itself back on but won’t start until about 5 minutes to 10 minutes later and then runs smoothly but sometimes it will shut off again and take longer to start.”
Unknown OR Other · filed Sep 12, 2022
“At random times the engine dies while driving the car which has resulted in unsafe handling and loss of power steering while in traffic conditions. I was unaware of a recall (02V120000) until recently. I have owned this car sense 2002 and the current millage is 109,000 miles. I contacted Findlay Acura in Henderson NV…”
Electrical System · filed Feb 19, 2022
“Tl* takata recall. The contact's father owns a 1999 acura tl. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 20v026000 (air bags). The contact stated the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact called acura of concord (1340 concord ave, concord, ca 94520 (925)…”
Air Bags · filed Sep 21, 2020
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- IGNITION-PARK INTERLOCK
Preliminary Evaluation PE05002 · opened Jan 13, 2005 · closed Feb 2, 2005 · led to recall 05V025000
Technical service bulletins
144 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1999 Acura TL. The 10 most recent:
Dealer message - Today, Acura is notifying dealers of a voluntary noncompliance recall for a small number of Acura vehicles due to an error on the replacement (service part) underhood emissions labels. American Honda…
BBOM08092018901 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 9, 2018
Service bulletin - Emission certification labels that were replaced on a small number of vehicles may have been replaced with a label listing incorrect information. The affected emission labels are replacement service…
B18034 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 9, 2018
Service bulletin - You are required to install a remanufactured A/T (automatic transmission) and torque converter on any vehicle with an internal failure that calls for A/T disassembly that is covered under any of the…
B90-009 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 30, 2017
Sending vehicle data to tech line.
BJA46167 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 1, 2017
Special Tool Loan Program: Under TOOLS AVAILABLE FOR LOAN, the list has been updated.
B98015 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 18, 2016
"service bulletin - this bulletin updates the troubleshooting procedures for dtc p1456 (evap control system leakage [fuel tank system]) and dtc p1457 (evap control system leakage[evap canister system]). Depending on the…
B99-040 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Dec 8, 2015
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
Warranty extension: 3.2 tl and 3.2 cl automatic transmission. *nj
02-027 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 5, 2008
Rough idle, stalls at stops, and dtc's p0172 or p0175 appear when inspected. *kb
307 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 16, 2007
Remote audio controls do not work properly. *tt
03015 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 20, 2006
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
The 1999 Acura TL has 4 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
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 1999 Acura TL?
- · 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.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 112,000 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.