2008 Acura RL - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

The 2008 Acura RL is a safe vehicle overall, receiving top scores of 5 out of 5 in the front and side crash ratings. It also has a solid 5 out of 5 rating in rollover tests, indicating a lower risk of rollovers. This car is equipped with standard stability control, which helps the driver maintain control in challenging driving conditions. Additionally, it has an optional forward collision warning system, alerting the driver of potential front-end collisions. Unfortunately, it does not have a lane departure warning system.

On the downside, there have been 13 complaints reported for this model, suggesting some issues that owners have faced. Furthermore, there have been 6 recalls issued for the 2008 Acura RL. It's essential for owners to address these recalls promptly to ensure the safety of the vehicle and its occupants.

Top stats at a glance

Complaint Count

13

Recall Count

6

Investigation Count

0

Safety Rating

Not Rated

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Safety Features

2008 Acura RL 4-DR. w/SAB Safety Features

Here are the safety features that come as standard on the 2008 Acura RL 4-DR. w/SAB

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

ESC is an advanced safety feature in vehicles designed to help drivers maintain control during challenging driving conditions. By continuously monitoring various factors such as steering angle, vehicle speed, and individual wheel speeds, ESC can detect and reduce the risk of skidding or loss of control. It achieves this by automatically applying brakes to specific wheels to stabilize the vehicle.

Standard
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that helps prevent frontal collisions by alerting the driver of an imminent collision with a vehicle or obstacle ahead. Using sensors such as radar or cameras, FCW monitors the distance and speed of vehicles in front, and if it detects a potential collision, it provides visual and/or auditory warnings to prompt the driver to take evasive action.

Optional
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)

Lane Departure Warning (LDW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts drivers when their vehicle unintentionally drifts out of its lane without signaling. Utilizing cameras or sensors to monitor lane markings on the road, LDW detects when the vehicle crosses these lines and triggers visual, auditory, or haptic alerts to notify the driver of potential lane departure.

No

2008 Acura RL 4-DR. w/SAB Safety Ratings

Here we have the crash and rollover ratings for the 2008 Acura RL 4-DR. w/SAB Where possible we've included the ratings for the oldest and latest models of this car so you can compare how the safety ratings have changed over time.

Frontal Crash Ratings

Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.

Test 2005 Score 2008 Score 2012 Score
Overall Front Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Front Crash Driver Side Rating 5 5 Not Rated
Front Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 5 Not Rated

Side Crash Ratings

Combines Side Barrier and Side Pole Star Ratings into a single side rating.

Test 2005 Score 2008 Score 2012 Score
Overall Side Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Side Crash Drivers Side Rating 5 5 Not Rated
Side Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 5 Not Rated
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Front Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Rear Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Overall Side Barrier Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated

Rollover Ratings

The Rollover Resistance test measures the risk of rollover in a single-vehicle, loss-of-control scenario.

Test 2005 Score 2008 Score 2012 Score
Rollover Rating 5 5 5
Rollover Possibility % 0% 0% 0%
Dynamic Tip Result No Tip No Tip No Tip
Side Pole Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated

Complaints for the 2008 Acura RL

This chart show the number of complaints for each car component. A Higher number of complaints could indicate that this car might have a common fault. Something to look out for when purchasing one.

Component Complaints

Choose a component to see what complaints people have made about them.

Complaint:
"2008 acura rl. consumer writes in regards to recall notices 16v-344 & 16v-061 remedy not available within a reasonable time frame- over 60 days. *smd"
Components Involved: AIR BAGS
Date of incident: 2016-01-11

Complaint:
"tl* takata recall. the contact owns a 2008 acura rl. the contact stated that the dealer repaired the vehicle per nhtsa campaign number: 16v061000 (air bags). the dealer was unable to confirm for months if the front passenger side air bag recall would be completed or if the vin was excluded. the manufacturer was contacted concerning the front passenger side air bag recall and had not confirmed if the vin was included in nhtsa campaign number: 16v344000 (air bags). the contact had not experienced a failure."
Components Involved: AIR BAGS
Date of incident: 2016-02-05

Complaint:
"tl* takata recall. the contact owns a 2008 acura rl. the contact received notification of nhtsa campaign numbers: 16v061000 (air bags) and 16v344000 (air bags); however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. the contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. the manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. the contact had not experienced a failure. vin tool confirms parts not available."
Components Involved: AIR BAGS
Date of incident: 2018-06-06

Complaint:
"tl* takata recall. the contact owns a 2008 acura rl. the contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 16v344000 (air bags); however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. the contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the repair. the manufacturer was made aware of the issue. the contact had not experienced a failure."
Components Involved: AIR BAGS
Date of incident: 2017-07-07

Complaint:
"tl* takata recall. the contact owns a 2008 acura rl. the contact received notification of nhtsa campaign numbers: 16v344000 (air bags) and 16v061000 (air bags); however, the parts needed to repair the vehicle were unavailable. the contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. the manufacturer was not notified of the issue. the contact had not experienced a failure. vin tool confirms parts not available."
Components Involved: AIR BAGS
Date of incident: 2016-01-07

Complaint:
"tl* takata recall. the contact owns a 2008 acura rl. the contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 16v061000 (air bags); however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. the contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. the manufacturer was made aware of the issue. the contact had not experienced a failure. vin tool confirms parts not available. updated 06/10/16*lj updated 06/20/16.*jb"
Components Involved: AIR BAGS
Date of incident: 2016-03-02

Complaint:
"received0 a notice about the air bag. call trying to get it replaced in march 2016. still have not heard anything about getting it replaced. it's now may 2016."
Components Involved: AIR BAGS
Date of incident: 2017-06-02

Complaint:
"takata recall: my car is under the takata recall. when i contacted my local dealer, they informed me i had to bring the car in first and then they would issue an ron so a rental car could be obtained. they said i could then take my rl home and park it in the garage until the parts were obtained. since i bought the car at the dealer, they have serviced it, and i received an official safety recall notice from acura, why am i required to make a 40 mile round trip in a vehicle that acura admits driving the car can cause serious injury or death. it seems the dealership can simply supply the ron over the phone. or am i missing something here?"
Components Involved: AIR BAGS
Date of incident: 2017-04-04

Recalls for the 2008 Acura RL

Component Recalls

Choose a component to see what recalls people have made about them.

Recall:
"honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2003-2006 acura mdx, 2005-2012 rl, 2003-2007 honda accord, 2001-2005 civic, 2003-2005 civic hybrid, 2001-2005 civic gx ngv, 2002-2006 cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2007-2008 fit, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2008 pilot, and 2006-2014 ridgeline 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."
Consequence:
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy:

Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal airbag 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 E5D and X5C.

Component(s) Involved: AIR BAGS > FRONTAL > PASSENGER SIDE > INFLATOR MODULE
Date of incident: 2019-06-27

Recall:
"honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain model year 2003-2006 acura mdx, 2005-2011 acura rl, 2005-2006 honda cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2007-2008 fit, 2003-2008 pilot, 2002-2004 odyssey, and 2006-2011 ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or that have ever been registered, in 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, unless included in "zone a" above, honda is recalling certain model year 2003-2006 acura mdx, 2005-2008 acura rl, 2005-2006 honda cr-v, 2003-2008 element, 2007-2008 fit, 2003-2008 pilot, 2002-2004 odyssey, and 2006-2008 ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or that have ever been registered, in 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." lastly, unless included in "zone a" or "zone..."
Consequence:
An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy:

Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began June 27, 2016. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are KA0, KA1, KA2, and KA3.

Component(s) Involved: AIR BAGS > FRONTAL > PASSENGER SIDE > INFLATOR MODULE
Date of incident: 2016-05-24

Recall:
"honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2005-2006 acura mdx and honda cr-v vehicles, 2005-2011 honda element vehicles, 2005-2012 acura rl vehicles, 2006-2012 honda ridgeline vehicles, 2007-2008 honda fit vehicles and 2005-2008 honda pilot vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in 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, if not included in "zone a" above, honda is recalling certain 2005-2006 acura mdx and honda cr-v vehicles, 2005-2009 acura rl and honda element vehicles, 2007-2008 honda fit vehicles, 2005-2008 honda pilot vehicles and 2006-2009 honda ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in 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." additionally, if not included..."
Consequence:
An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Remedy:

Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall bagan March 2017. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are KD9 and KE0.

Component(s) Involved: AIR BAGS > FRONTAL > PASSENGER SIDE > INFLATOR MODULE
Date of incident: 2017-01-10

ACURA Overall Complaint Ranking

This table shows the ranking of car manufacturers when it comes to most complaints and recalls. The manufacturer with the most complaints is at the top. However this doesn't necassarily mean they should be avoided. Some manufacturers might just have more popular or affordable cars which a lot of people have bought. Which means there's more scope for a complaint to be made. Use the ranking table below as a part your wider research into buying a car.

ACURA ranks 25 out of 44 in the complaints ranking table.

Manufacturer Complaint Count Recall Count Ranking
FORD 208,358 3,259 1
CHEVROLET 111,306 2,082 2
TOYOTA 81,019 1,852 3
HONDA 61,937 1,268 4
NISSAN 56,226 930 5
DODGE 45,756 827 6
HYUNDAI 44,150 649 7
GMC 34,441 1,410 8
KIA 29,832 501 9
CHRYSLER 27,698 254 10
TESLA 26,230 730 11
BMW 24,890 1,877 12
VOLKSWAGEN 23,125 829 13
MERCEDES-BENZ 19,066 2,925 14
SUBARU 18,513 703 15
MAZDA 10,599 364 16
PONTIAC 10,430 138 17
CADILLAC 9,434 444 18
AUDI 7,865 1,093 19
BUICK 7,851 279 20
SATURN 7,672 84 21
MERCURY 7,374 135 22
LEXUS 6,373 408 23
LINCOLN 5,897 423 24
ACURA 5,722 382 25
MINI 5,585 366 26
INFINITI 4,000 187 27
MITSUBISHI 3,912 397 28
VOLVO 3,875 727 29
PORSCHE 2,646 1,231 30
SUZUKI 2,272 123 31
FIAT 2,205 80 32
SAAB 1,536 76 33
JAGUAR 1,195 198 34
SMART 528 17 35
GENESIS 436 42 36
ISUZU 249 37 37
ALFA ROMEO 161 37 38
MASERATI 76 46 39
BENTLEY 46 159 40
POLESTAR 42 2 41
LUCID 14 6 42
CODA 4 2 43
MAYBACH 0 0 44

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