2004 Acura TL review: Dashboard cracks 77

I have a 2004 Acura TL with 4 giant cracks in the dash. I have always kept a silver sun reflector in the windshield. My 1986 Porsche had no cracks in the dash, but I get them in a 9 year old vehicle? How am I ever going to get any resale value out of this car unless I replace the dash for $1800?

I have a 2005 Acura TL with the same cracked dash defect. It's just cracked everywhere, never seen anything like it before. Acura really needs to man up do the right thing and accept the cost of replacement, sooner rather later. As the word gets out it is evident that these are not isolated issues but a manufacturers defect on all these cars.
Regards MM

My 2004 Acura TL is having the same issues as everyone else and are mainly located over the passenger air bag. I would really love to see a recall on this just because I think it's dangerous considering it's happening above the air bag.

I have similar case of dashboard crack on my Acura tl which I bought in Nigeria. What options are available for me as remedy please?

My 2004 TL has 4-5 bad cracks on the dash. It happened about 6 months ago, and got bigger quickly. Also, I have major issue with my paint. I was told there was a defect with the paint and that it would have been repainted from [protected]. So now I have a bad dash and peeling, bad paint.
Only have 50, 000 miles. Very upset. Not sure which way to turn at this point. Any suggestions.

I also have a 2004 TL w/NAV and my dash just cracked a few months ago over the passenger air bag. Something has to be done about this issue

I purchased a brand new 2005 Acura TL. Within the past few months, the dash has started to crack along the airbag. I feel this could potentially be a safety issue. I have contacted my local Acura TL and was told that more than likely I would be responsible for replacing the dash but they would check with their corporate office. That was over 30 days ago and I have yet to receive a response. My car only has 60, 000 miles and is garage kept. The TL is considered a luxury vehicle and I am disappointed in the quality of the dash. Since there are thousands of complaints regarding the dash, clearly Acura should issue a recall.

This is an addendum to the comment just left above...It appears that age - not miles -is the catalytic factor in this defect as my 04 TL only has 38, 000 miles (was a garage kept car of "snowbirds" whom only used it when they were in Florida ...maybe 2 -3 months a year). Unfortunately, the "five year, 50, 000 mile" warranty expired in 2009. If this is only happening in southern states, and is "a humidity issue", than Acura should have disclosed this as soon as they realized there was a problem, or better yet, NOT sell them in the south. I am printing these comments out and sending them to Palm Beach Post after I fax them to Schumacher Acura in West Palm Beach. The news at 11:00(WPTV, I believe) runs an investigative consumer report segment...I will send this information to them as well. What worries me is the outline of the airbag that became visible almost overnight on the passenger side...Is that safe? Will they still deploy on impact? Or are they going to deploy for no apparent reason, the same way the crack and the airbag outline appeared? And will I be driving and cause an accident if that happens? Or will my passenger die as a result of the airbag/dashboard malfunction? If Acura insures me that it IS safe, how do they know? I know they couldn't have tested it with a then unknown dashboard defect. Do we have to wait for someone to get seriously hurt or even killed before Acura takes notice? At the very least, Acura is guilty of greed. They put a $3.00 dashboard in a $35, 000 car.They know it. They need to rectify their mistake before their attempt to cut corners and increase their profit ruins their reputation and ultimately their business.

I am soooo glad my husband pulled this site off the web...My 2004 TL with only 38, 000 miles on it started with a crack along the passenger side airbag that I noticed last week, and is getting bigger and wider by the day. There has only been a passenger in that car once in the last month, so of course, he thought something happened to the car and I was afraid to tell him...This car drives 40 miles a day mon-fri, and is garage kept both at work and at home. It was meant to replace my 2001 BMW 525i with 152, 000 miles, which incidentally, DOES NOT have a crack in the dashboard. I've had two BMW's, and loved them so much, I didn't want to get rid of them. They lasted forever, and I felt safe in them. If the dashboard in the Acura is cracking for no apparent reason, what would happen if I was in an accident? The only thing I liked about this car was the headlights (It's so easy to see at night!), and the XM radio. Otherwise, I'm NOT impressed, and this makes me even more convinced that this car was made in a hurry with substandard materials. I told him I wanted to try an Infinity! I'm calling Acura tomorrow. If they will buy this car back for fair market value, I'll do it in a heartbeat. BTW, with 38, 000 miles, this car has already required stereo repair ($800-), and new suspension. Like I said, I'm NOT impressed. Acura to me is on the list of cars I DON'T want EVER again!

I had a 2006 TL with very low mileage, close to 38k in June. I noticed the cracks late last year where it was just out of the warranty for about a year. I went to the dealership and see what they can do. The dealership told me I need a new dashboard which would cost about $1800 plus tax but they will submit assistanceship from Accrua Warranty and see how they can help. The result came back acceptable. They'll cover 80% of the replacement cost, which ended up about $300 for me. However, I am still very disappointed with this issue as I didn't expect the cracking on a high end car.

I too bought a 2004phone acura tl about a year ago. It only has 73, 000 miles on it now. It now has cracks all over the dashboard. I didn't know that this many people have the same problem. I knew it was unusual for this dash to be cracking this fast or even cracking at all. I never had a car where the dashboard cracked. And for this to be a acura, they definitely. Need to fix this problem.

I just bought an 04 with just 80, 000 miles started out small the boom huge crack from my windshield to my glove compartment. HATE IT! this is the nicest car i have ever drivin and owned now it looks like complete crap. when i go to show this vechical off to friends they immediantly notice the crack first. i dont have the money to replace this expensive piece. please recall!

I also have a 04 Acura with a cracked dash (out laying the airbag) - how can we pool together to see that this should be a recall? Not happy... :(.

My wife has a 2004 Acura TL and in the past couple of months has had 3 giant cracks appeared from the windshield to the glove-box and the odometer housing. The cracks DEFINATELY have something to do with the airbag because they outline the airbag... I hope something is done to fix it because it is embarrassing to have a nice car with a horribly cracked dash...

Follow-up to my above comment. I spoke w/the corp.office. They opened a case # for me & instructed me to go my Acura dealership and this time speak w/the service mgr.. I did this. Long story, short, I'm taking my car in tomorrow to get a new dash for $550.00!
The service mgr. told me, that NO ONE will get a new dash "for free", said that's simply impossible. I didn't believe him, and he didn't believe me, when I told him that on-line I read of three people who got them for free. The corp. office wasn't much help, except for lighting a fire w/the service mgr., if you call $550.00 results of a fire. I'm STILL "ROYALLY" pissed off! Oh, the corp. office does recognize this as a "FLAW" problem & says that all the protectant in the world won't keep it from happening...it's caused by "HUMIDITY"!

I woke this morning to a 5-6" crack in my dashboard! I am in shock! My TL has been treated like a baby! When it IS in the sun, it has the silver sun shield on it. When there is no rain, it wears a $300.00 TL cover. I don't work on week-ends, and that's when my TL is under a carport. This '04 TL looks "Brand New"...seriously. I am semi-retired, therefore, I do very little driving. My car has barely 50K miles on it.
I read the above comments and find that this is an on-going issue. I called my Service Advisor, at Crown Acura, in Clearwater Florida, and he told me, "There is no fix, you need to buy a new dashboard". I said, "How much would a new dashboard cost me'? His response was, "$2, 200.00". I said, "$2, 200.00 for a new dashboard that will last me another 8 years"? His reply was, " Well, we would hope that you might get more than 8 years". I'm totally distraught, to say the least. I sold my last car for $2, 000.00...it was a 21 year old Nissan 240SX, and got my first dashboard crack on that car at age 18 years...and I thought I was up-grading, huh! I was thinking of a newer TL...not anymore. I'm royally pissed off, too!

I have a cracked dash in my 05 TL that is located along the side of the area bag and was informed that the rest of it was going to crack...I am pissed...

I filed my complaint today! It's a bunch of crap that this dash is just cracking on its own! I will NOT buy another Acura because of this!

I have a 2004 TL and in the last two months, the dash has developed two very long cracks. The car is garage kept and protected against the sun. I am very disappointed in the quality of this Acura.

I have a 2004 Acura TL and keep it sun protected and have cracks all over it im in tampa fl i ask the ferman acura dealer and they state sorry its not a recall and it can be replaced at 1400.00. Im so pist as this vehicle is a great car and looking at the dash makes your car look not good. We need a recall Acura Corp please this is to expensive and honestly the vehicle isnt a cheap car to have a cheap dash! PLease us out with a recall

Hi i bought an 2006 Acura TL from Pembroke Pine dealer from Miami and after driving that car for over an year i started getting some cracks on the dashboard. Its kind of messed up how the dealer told me that it will cost me $1800 dollars to fix the manufacture defects. Then after i started complaining that its a luxury car and my old 1995 corolla never gave me problems like that then he started telling me about the good will thing and that they will cover about 60% of the price.. still after the 60% i m looking at paying about $900 dollars for something that i didn’t break...

I am also a victim to the cracking of the dashboard & I have a 2004 TL. It's just not a good look and we are paying a lot of money for something like this.

I'm just buy my 2006 tl and I have the same problem on my dash, the car have only 57, 000 miles on it .So I hope that the people from the acura get together and take action with the situation because its look like is a manufactured defect

I just posted an article on CNN I Report about this cracked dash issue: http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-708135

The same happen to my 2004 TL. It is the only complaint with my car but Acura need to respond for this defect.

I bought my Acura TL 2004 4 months ago. I was in Puerto Rico for 2 month and my car was parked in my garage the whole time. My dash was cracked when i got back! I have cracks all over my dash too. We need to get Acura to stand up and take responsibly for there products!

Wow! I thought I was alone in this matter. Everyone ! PLEASE go to the following website and document your complaint on the cracked dashboard. If there are enough complaints filed, they will open an investigation and look into a recall. For those who already paid for the repair, keep your receipt! I was told you too, can receive reimbursement if we can get them to recall. So lets mount up and get to sending in the complaints!

https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/

I picked up an 07 Acura TL type S this weekend with the same issue. Two huge cracks down the dashboard. Fortunately for me, the car still has two months left on the manufacturers warranty. The only issue is that i have to wait till the car is titled under my name for Acura to cover the damages. While i was at Acura of Pembroke Pines FL, a couple of the customers that were there getting their cars serviced said they had the same thing happen to their cars as well. Another buddy of mine said he had the same thing happen to his 05 Acura. The problem according to Acura seems to be happening only in the southern states. This is an expensive car and should not be having this problem at all and definitely not so soon. I also own a 1992 mercedes benz 300E with a perfectly intact dashboard. There is a facebook page where customers have united to voice their complaint on the issue. An Atlanta news station recently carried the story on their station. http://www.wsbtv.com/news/27832796/detail.html. The only bright side to the whole thing is that so far, this is the only issue i have heard of concerning the Acura TL.

I have a 2004 TL which I bought brand new off the lot. I am having problems with cracking of my dashboard also. It began as a small crack over the passenger side air bag and has grown to 4 cracks which run from the windshield almost to the glove compartment. This is my third Acura and I love their products. I have never had more than usual wear and tear problems with any of them; however, this is clearly a defect/design flaw. The materials used to manufacture the dashboard cannot handle, the stress and strain associated with typical dail shifts in climate. Acura needs to step up and take responsibility for this issue.

My Acura TL 04 dash started cracking and spread quickly like a disease. The cracks are ALL over my dash, right left - to top - over the speakers, etc. I called Acura Corp today and got a case number and I am taking it in to the Acura dealership in the morning so to service manager can take a look at it and see if I can get any good will. I sure hope so, for this expensive of a car this is ridiculous! I cannot believe there is not a recall and for cracks all around the airbag, I would think that would be a bit dangerous.

I got the same problem on mine. Started along the passenger side airbag. Now the stress has spread cracks all over my dash. Poorly done cheap constructed dash! Acura knows the issue, but won't admit it, they should be ashamed. Will never buy another Acura and will deter anyone I know from buying this POS as well. Cars from 1994 still have a good dash, can't say the same for my 04 TL. Sad sad sad.

I have a 04 TL 73000 miles and it is cracked all over. What a piece of junk. First it was rodents chewing up the wires, the power steering pump noisy when cold, the srs light stays on, and now the dash. This car is driven once a week and parked under a carport the rest of the time. Facebook has a page on this as well.

I too have an '04 Acura TL and a long crack just appeared on the dash over the passenger side airbag. I've contacted the dealership and they only want to cover half of the $1700 quote to replace it. After reading all these complaints, its obvious that it is a factory defect with the 2004 model and should have been recalled.

I have 2004 Acura TL with the same problem, will take it to the dealer on Monday for the problem

Mine 04 TL just cracked too. I have 70k miles. I'm taking it to the Rick Case dealership tomorrow to see what can be done. It is a factory defect that corporate should pay for.