Reliable Auto DB

2013 Acura TSX reliability

Is it reliable?

The 2013 Acura TSX has 33 complaints with NHTSA after 14 years, or 1 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most TSX years here — under the median of the other years, which is 1. NHTSA has 4 recalls on file, including Inflator.

2012 Acura TSX
Photo by IFCAR, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons Public domain
Complaints

33

Per year

1

Recalls

4

Years on the road

14

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Steering (19 of 33), then Air bags (5) and Electrical system (3). Those filings include 2 that report a crash and 2 that report an injury.

Next to 2012 and 2014

The 2012 TSX has 133 complaints, 2 per year, and the 2014 has 7 complaints, 0 per year. The 2013 has fewer complaints per year than the 2012. The 2013 has more complaints per year than the 2014.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2013 Acura TSX. How we count. Data as of .

Recalls (4)

Recall air bags, frontal, passenger side, inflator 2019-06-27 · NHTSA campaign 19V502000
Summary Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2009-2014 Acura TSX, 2011-2014 TSX Sport Wagon, 2010-2013 ZDX, 2008-2012 Honda Accord, 2010-2011 Accord Crosstour, 2006-2011 Civic and Civic Hybrid, 2008-2010 Civic GX NGV, 2012-2015 Crosstour, 2007-2011 CR-V, 2009-2013 Fit, 2014 Fit EV, 2010-2014 Insight, and 2009-2015 Pilot vehicles. The vehicles are equipped with passenger frontal air bag inflators assembled as a recall remedy part or replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Remedy Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began August 12, 2019. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are F5F and Q5E.
Recall air bags, frontal, passenger side, inflator 2019-05-16 · NHTSA campaign 19V378000
Summary Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2009-2014 Acura TSX, 2011-2013 TSX Sport Wagon, and 2010-2012 ZDX and 2008-2012 Honda Accord, 2010-2011 Accord Crosstour, 2006-2011 Civic, Civic Hybrid and Civic NGV, 2012-2014 Crosstour, 2007-2011 CR-V, 2009-2013 Fit, 2010-2013 Insight, and 2009-2015 Pilot vehicles. The front passenger air bag inflator may have been installed incorrectly during replacement.
Remedy Honda will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the inflator installation and, if necessary, replace the passenger frontal air bag module assembly, free of charge. The recall began July 5, 2019. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are M4O, P4R, T4Q, and W4P.
Recall air bags, frontal, passenger side, inflator 2018-09-27 · NHTSA campaign 18V661000
Summary Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2014 Honda Insight and Acura TSX and TSX Wagon, 2014-2015 Honda Crosstour and Pilot vehicles nationwide, as well as certain 2014 Honda FCX Clarity and Fit EV vehicles in Florida, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Texas, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, California, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan) and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Honda is also recalling certain 2011-2013 Acura TSX, TSX Wagon and ZDX, Honda Crosstour, Insight, Fit and Pilot vehicles, 2011-2012 Honda Accord and 2011 Honda Civic NGV, Civic, Civic Hybrid and CR-V vehicles in Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. Lastly, Honda is recalling certain 2010-2013 Acura TSX and ZDX, Honda Crosstour, Fit, Insight and Pilot, 2011-2013 TSX Wagon, 2010-2012 Honda Accord and 2010-2011 Honda Civic NGV, Civic, Civic Hybrid and CR-V vehicles in Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag air bag inflators assembled as part of the frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment (such as after a vehicle crash necessitating replacement of the original air bags), may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to higher absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Remedy Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began November 6, 2018. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are M2J and S2K.
Recall air bags, frontal, passenger side, inflator 2018-01-09 · NHTSA campaign 18V042000
Summary Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2010-2013 Acura TSX, ZDX, Honda Accord Crosstour, Fit, Insight and Pilot vehicles, 2011-13 Acura TSX Sportswagon, 2010-2012 Honda Accord,, 2010-2011 Honda Civic, Civic NGV, Civic Hybrid and CR-V vehicles and 2013 Honda FCX Clarity and Fit EV vehicles ever registered in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, Honda is recalling certain 2010-2012 Acura TSX, Honda Accord, Accord Crosstour, Fit and Pilot, 2010-2011 Honda Civic, Civic NGV, Civic Hybrid and CR-V, and 2010 Acura ZDX and Honda Insight vehicles ever registered in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Unless included in Zones A or B above, Honda is recalling certain 2009 Acura TSX, Honda Accord, Civic, Civic NGV, Civic Hybrid, CR-V, Fit, and Pilot vehicles ever registered in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C." These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment (such as after a vehicle crash necessitating replacement of the original air bags), may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to higher absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Remedy Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began February 16, 2018. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are B0K and L0J.

Complaints by component (33 total)

Steering
19
Air bags
5
Electrical system
3
Service brakes
2
Tires
2
Chest clip, buckle, and harness
1
Electronic stability control (ESC)
1
Engine
1
Exterior lighting
1
Hydraulic brakes
1
Powertrain
1
Speed control
1
Structure
1
Visibility and wipers
1
Show 6 more Show less
Crash-flagged

2

Fire-flagged

0

Injury reports

2

Death reports

0

Complaints filed per year

12013120141201512017620186201962020420211202232023120241202512026
Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings
  • "ABS / VSA module failed at 90k miles causing spongy brakes. Acura quoted me $3500 for a new module which is more than the value of the car."
    Electrical system, Service brakes · filed 2026-05-28
  • "The airbags did not deploy when I got in the front end accident"
    Air bags · filed 2025-06-06
  • "Power steering electronic module went out and can’t find any replacements. Other models as the same as mine have been recalled."
    Steering · filed 2024-05-17
  • "I first reported this on July 7, 2023 under NHTSA ID#11530893. My wife was driving when the Continental tire size 225/50/R17 suddenly blew out at approximately 70 MPH. Immediately pulled to shoulder of highway. This was…"
    Tires · filed 2023-10-12
  • "The contact owns a 2013 Acura TSX equipped with Continental Tires, Tire Line: Pure Contact, Tire Size: 225/50/R17, DOT Number: VY40WD4A2320. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed,…"
    Tires · filed 2023-07-07

NHTSA crash ratings

Version Overall Front Side Rollover
2013 Acura TSX Sport Wagon SW FWD Not rated Not rated Not rated 5 stars
2013 Acura TSX 4 DR FWD Not rated Not rated Not rated 5 stars

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim Engine Transmission Drive City Hwy Combined Annual fuel cost
TSX 2.4L, 4-cyl Automatic (5-speed) Front-wheel drive 22 31 25 MPG $3200
TSX 3.5L, 6-cyl Automatic (5-speed) Front-wheel drive 19 28 22 MPG $3650
TSX 2.4L, 4-cyl Manual 6-speed Front-wheel drive 21 29 24 MPG $3300
TSX Wagon 2.4L, 4-cyl Automatic (5-speed) Front-wheel drive 22 29 24 MPG $3300

Specs and fitment

Second generation (CU2), 2012–2014
Body styles Sedan, Sport Wagon
Oil 0W-20 (about 4.2 qt with filter on 2.4L; about 4.5 qt on 3.5L V6)
Tire size 225/50R17 or 225/45R18 (4-cyl); 235/45R18 (V6)

Known issues for this generation

Multiple Takata passenger frontal air-bag inflator recalls cover certain 2009-2014 Acura TSX and 2011-2014 TSX Sport Wagon vehicles among other Honda/Acura models, including campaigns 17V-030, 17V-545, 18V-042, 18V-661, 19V-378, and 19V-502. Upon deployment, the inflator may rupture and spray metal fragments. These are multi-model populations; dealers replace the passenger inflator. Check NHTSA VIN lookup for which campaigns remain open on a specific vehicle.

Compare

Previous year 2012 Acura TSX Next year 2014 Acura TSX See every Acura TSX model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2013 Acura TSX reliable?

The 2013 Acura TSX has 33 complaints with NHTSA after 14 years, or 1 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most TSX years here — under the median of the other years, which is 1. NHTSA has 4 recalls on file, including Inflator.

What are common problems with a 2013 Acura TSX?

The complaints owners file most often name Steering (19 of 33), then Air bags (5) and Electrical system (3). Those filings include 2 that report a crash and 2 that report an injury.

Is the 2013 Acura TSX more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2012 TSX has 133 complaints, 2 per year, and the 2014 has 7 complaints, 0 per year. The 2013 has fewer complaints per year than the 2012. The 2013 has more complaints per year than the 2014.

Has the 2013 Acura TSX been recalled?

The 2013 Acura TSX has 4 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2013 Acura TSX?

Owners have filed 33 complaints about the 2013 Acura TSX with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2013 Acura TSX get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2013 Acura TSX is 23.8 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What engine oil does an Acura TSX use?

Acura specifies 0W-20; capacity is about 4.2 qt with filter on the 2.4L and about 4.5 qt on the 3.5L V6.

What tire sizes does an Acura TSX use?

4-cylinder models commonly use 225/50R17 or 225/45R18; V6 models commonly use 235/45R18.

What air-bag recalls cover certain Acura TSX models?

Multiple Takata passenger frontal air-bag inflator recalls cover certain 2009-2014 TSX and 2011-2014 TSX Sport Wagon vehicles among other Honda/Acura models.