KnownCarProblems2003 Acura CL Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 73 complaints with NHTSA about the 2003 Acura CL, most often about the transmission (49% of complaints, typically around 75,000 miles). It is the 2nd most complained-about CL model year since 2000 and has 5 recalls.
Most common 2003 Acura CL problems
Transmission
36 complaints · 49%Half of these problems showed up before 75,000 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission, manual transmission.
The car would not take off when it's on drive fell like it on neutral for a few seconds and would not reverse when it's on r 2003 Acura CL type-s automatic transmission faulty. According to the class action law suit against Acura they are liable to repair or replace the faulty transmission. Acre has offer to extended…
There are two safety issues with my 2003 Acura CL. First, the headlights are flashing like a strobe light. I replaced the bulb and it did not fix the problem. Replaced the fuses and still have the problems. Second, the transmission is failing. After some research, I found out that there was a recall on the…
Air bags
9 complaints · 12%Dt: while driving 60 MPH was cut off on interstate. To keep from hitting another vehicle ran off the road. When consumer's vehicle went off road struck some trees with front impact with extensive damage. The vehicle was totaled and damaged was sustained on the right side as well as the front. The vehicle is equipped…
I was sideswiped by an 18-wheeler on I-40 in arkansas and it caused me to lose control and barrel roll into a wooded area. The car is completely totaled- thank god my seatbelt was on. My Acura CL's airbags did not deploy. I have pictures of the car and the airbags without question should have deployed. I need this…
Brakes
5 complaints · 7%Parts named most often: foundation components, antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip.
I purchased a new Acura 3.2cl type s with a 6 speed manual transmission on 5/24/03. In 6/16/04 with 14,396 miles I had to have the front rotors resurfaced and my brake pads replaced with updated pads per tsb01-017 because of extreme vibration while braking (out of round rotors due to over heating). This was done at no…
Brake caliper mount/bracket developed superficial corrosion which reduced the tolerance for the brake pad,s making them resistant to sliding--bound. Brake pads adhered to chrome bearing material between pad and caliper bracket, and bearing material, acted like a return spring increasing the tolerances to the rotor…
Wheels and tires
5 complaints · 7%Parts named most often: rim.
I bought this Acura CL type s 6-speed saturday, jan. 6, 2007. Dealer had put new tires on vehicle as part of an Acura certified used car program. On monday feb. 5, 2007, I was traveling on business leaving from work with bad weather pending. Co-worker was to drive my car to my home for me, to keep in garage. My…
Lights
5 complaints · 7%Parts named most often: headlights.
I have a 2003 Acura cls that required replacement of a headlight at 66000 miles. This headlight cost $928.85. This is a traffic safety item. It should not cost so much to make a "young" auto safe to drive. I believe this a manufactoring defect. It should be listed as a saftey recall.
There are two safety issues with my 2003 Acura CL. First, the headlights are flashing like a strobe light. I replaced the bulb and it did not fix the problem. Replaced the fuses and still have the problems. Second, the transmission is failing. After some research, I found out that there was a recall on the…
Engine
4 complaints · 6%Erratic/raised engine idle caused by worn idle air control valve creates a condition where engine idle is suddenly higher than 2000rpm in gear which results/resulted in unintended acceleration (vehicle speeds up with no accelerator pedal input) and the engine is more powerful than the braking system (with vehicle in…
Going 5 MPH in parking lot, coasting to a stop at end of aisle with foot off throttle pedal. Put foot on brake and the engine revved to high speed. Barely held car with brake. Shut off ignition. Car restarted fine. This was the second time in a week it had happened. Previous incident was on a residential street coming…
Electrical
4 complaints · 6%Car was parked outside during summer heatwave. Interior was hot. Vehicle started with hesitation, ran for a moment, and then stalled and failed to start in the middle of a busy intersection. Crank, no start, was the final symptom. Occupants were nearly hit by a medium duty truck who had trouble stopping. After the car…
The contact owns a 2003 Acura CL. The contact stated that the vehicle intermittently shut off without warning. The contact had to add starter fluid to the vehicle in order to get it to drive. The dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was notified. The vehicle was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 02v120000…
Fuel system
3 complaints · 4%Parts named most often: fuel injection system.
Car was parked outside during summer heatwave. Interior was hot. Vehicle started with hesitation, ran for a moment, and then stalled and failed to start in the middle of a busy intersection. Crank, no start, was the final symptom. Occupants were nearly hit by a medium duty truck who had trouble stopping. After the car…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2003 Acura CL recalls
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver 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 q5a and y58.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2003 acura 3.2cl, 2002-2003 3.2tl, 2003-2006 mdx, 2001-2007 honda accord, 2001-2005 civic, 2003-2005 civic hybrid, 2001-2005 civic gx ngv, 2002-2006 cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2008 pilot and 2006 ridgeline vehicles. These vehicles are equipped with driver 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.
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An explosion of an inflator within the driver frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver, front seat passenger or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began april 10, 2019. Honda owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is o41. Acura owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Acura's number for this recall is u40.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling specific 2003 acura 3.2cl, 2013-2016 ilx, 2013-2014 ilx hybrid, 2003-2006 mdx, 2007-2016 rdx, 2002-2003 3.2tl, 2004-2006, and 2009-2014 tl, 2010-2013 zdx and 2001-2007 and 2009 honda accord, 2001-2005 civic, 2003-2005 civic hybrid, 2001-2005 civic gx ngv, 2002-2007 and 2010-2011 cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2007 fit, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2008 pilot, and 2006-2014 ridgeline vehicles. The affected vehicles received a replacement driver air bag inflator as part of a previous takata inflator recall remedy or a replacement driver air bag module containing the same inflator type as a service part. Due to a manufacturing error, in the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver frontal air bag, these inflators may explode.
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on july 1, 2015. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Owners may contact acura customer service at 1-800-382-2238, select option 4. Note: vehicles that have had their driver frontal air bag replaced previously as part of a recall remedy prior to september 12, 2014 need to have their air bag replaced under this recall as well. Vehicles that, on or after september 12, 2014, received a remedy for a prior driver frontal air bag inflator recall already rec
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain model year 2001-2007 accord, 2001-2005 civic, 2001-2004 honda civic gx, 2003-2005 honda civic hybrid, 2002-2006 cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2008 pilot, 2006 ridgeline, 2003 acura 3.2cl, 2003-2006 acura mdx, and 2002-2003 acura 3.2tl vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion and other factors, including manufacturing variability that, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.
Transmission: automatic transmission
Risk: Gear failure could result in transmission lockup, which could result in a crash.
Fix: On vehicles with 15,000 miles or less, the dealer will update the transmission with a simple revision to the oil cooler return line to increase lubrication to the second gear. On vehicles with more than 15,000 miles, the dealer will inspect the transmission to identify gears that have already experienced discoloration due to overheating. If discoloration exists, the transmission will be replaced if discoloration is not present, the dealer will perform the revision to the oil cooler return line. The recall began on april 21, 2004, for pilot, odyssey, and mdx owners. Owners of the accord vehicle
Full defect summary
On some mini vans, sport utility and passenger vehicles, certain operating conditions can result in heat build-up between the countershaft and secondary shaft second gears in the automatic transmission, eventually leading to gear tooth chipping or gear breakage.
Engine
Risk: If the timing belt breaks, the engine will stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the water pump and if it is one of the defective pumps, the water pump and timing belt will be replaced. Owner notification began august 30, 2002. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact honda at 1-800-999-1009 or acura at 1-800-382-2238.
Full defect summary
On certain minivans, sedans, coupes, and sport utility vehicles equipped with v6 engines, a timing belt tensioner pulley on the water pump is misaligned and could cause the timing belt to contact a bolt on the cylinder head. Eventually the belt could be damaged and fail.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Desiccated air bag inflator rupture
Summary
From 2000 through 2017, takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("psan") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004l. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 blomquist report at www.NHTSA.gov/sites/NHTSA.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substa
Air bag inflator rupture
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe14-016 in june 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.all six vehicles were operated in florida or puerto rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag systems.during the course of pe14-016, odi determined that five additional vehicle manufacturers used inflators of a similar design and vintage also supplied by takata. No evidence of field failures was found in vehicles produced by these five additional manufacturers.nonetheless, at odi's in
Air bag inflator rupture
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe14-016 in june 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.all six vehicles were operated in florida or puerto rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag systems.during the course of pe14-016, odi determined that five additional vehicle manufacturers used inflators of a similar design and vintage also supplied by takata. No evidence of field failures was found in vehicles produced by these five additional manufacturers.nonetheless, at odi's in
Automatic transmission sudden downshift
Summary
See attached report.
Questions about the 2003 Acura CL
- What are the most common problems with the 2003 Acura CL?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: transmission (36 complaints, typically around 75,000 miles); air bags (9 complaints); brakes (5 complaints).
- How many recalls does the 2003 Acura CL have?
- 5 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from June 27, 2019 (air bags). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2003 a bad year for the Acura CL?
- It is the 2nd most complained-about CL model year since 2000, with 73 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.