2005 Acura RL problems
Owners have filed 153 complaints about the 2005 Acura RL with NHTSA. Exterior lighting accounts for 32.7% of them — narrowly the most common, ahead of air bags at 23.5%.
Complaints153
Crashes4
Fires1
Injuries2
Deaths0
What owners report breaking
Exterior lighting 32.7% · 50
Air bags 23.5% · 36
Electrical system 11.8% · 18
Structure 4.6% · 7
Service brakes, hydraulic 4.6% · 7
Unknown or other 3.3% · 5
Suspension 2.6% · 4
Vehicle speed control 2.6% · 4
Severity
Of those complaints, 4 describe a crash, 1 describe a fire and 2 report an injury.
Reading the numbers
Filings have fallen off, 4 in the last three years against 6 in the three before. That is normal as a generation leaves the road.
The median odometer reading at the time of complaint was 74,000 miles.
In owners' own words
1. Dangerous driving conditions 2. Headlights flickering and shutting off 3. Need to go to dealership. Reading online about problems from google.Com when I typed 2005 Acura RL headlights, a search came up where multiple people have had the same problem that I have had. The dealership keeps saying it's just the headlight that needs to be replaced and from what I know and read it is much more than that. Exterior lighting · reported at 56,000 miles
Own 2005 Acura RL, that has afs light system. While driving vehicle on interstate, the headlights are intermittent and goes off at times, leaving me without visibility of the road ahead. I've contacted Acura and they state that vehicle is out of warranty and cannot service. My concern is that is a safety issue. I have also googled issue and have seen numerous complaints abut the afs system. Exterior lighting · reported at 81,000 miles
2005 Acura RL passenger headlight intermittently will turn off while driving. The headlight will turn back on if I turn off the headlights & turn them back on. There is no telling when it will occur. It can occur 6 or 7 times in a 20 minute drive or not at all during the same drive the next evening. This has been occurring since I've owned the car in 12/2007. Exterior lighting
Verbatim from NHTSA filings. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
Safety recalls
Checking NHTSA for open recalls…