Looking to buy a first car for about $3000 and I've become an Acura fan somehow. I know I should just get an Accord or a Civic, but they're so ugly to me for some reason. I've been looking into TLs and TSXs and haven't had much luck finding some that aren't completely trashed or have super high miles. I happened to stumble upon a 2000 RL for sale, and I thought it was a pretty good deal so had my dad take me to go check it out.

It's a blue 2000 Acura RL with 140,000 miles being sold for $3500 by a dealership/shop, and I believe they'll go down to $3000. Visually it's in very good condition and my dad found no mechanical issues, and said it felt fine to drive. We only saw the tiniest bit of rust and a few small spots where the paint was fading. However, the dash had I believe 3 lights that made my dad decide it wasn't a good buy. 1 was regarding the ABS not working (it wasn't, but not necessarily a deal breaker), the 2nd was regarding some sort of driving stability assistance, maybe cruise control related? (I kinda forgot, not super important), and the 3rd was about the SRS sensor. We thought this light meant that the airbags were deployed or non-operational, and my dad thought that would be a terrible idea for a new driver like me to drive, so we decided it wasn't worth it. However, after I got home I did some research and have come to find this SRS light being on is a common issue on RLs as well as many other Honda's from this time and doesn't necessarily mean the airbags are nonfunctioning.

I read that the SRS light falsely displaying could potentially be fixed by a dealership under free warranty, while some people also said they found ways to get it to turn off at home. If neither of those work, how much would it be to have a dealership fix the issue assuming it wasn't covered by lifetime warranty? I feel like we saw this light as a deal breaker, where it really shouldn't be. Also, my dad is convinced that Acura vehicles will cost much more to fix or get maintenance done on than corresponding Hondas from the same years. I'm wondering if this is true, or if they're about the same cost to fix. Also, I'm wondering how the reliability of the RL stacks up to TLs and TSXs from the same relative years, as I heard those have some transmission issues, as well as how the reliability/longevity compares to early 2000 accords or civics with 4 cylinders instead of V6's.

Sorry for this absolute essay of random questions, I just haven't been able to find much about this specific car on Reddit or YouTube. I know I probably should just look for a simpler first car, but I want something both cool but also a smart choice lol.

 

Also, any issues you guys recommend to look out for if we do ever go have a second look at the car? Not sure what some common signs of wear or damage on these cars are.

 

On why the SRS light is triggered. it is usually the seat belt buckle, which is free under warranty. Have someone with a proper scan tool get the codes. As for the other lights, it could be a wheel speed sensor which triggers the 2 lights at the same time. Again, get the codes read and understood before you buy. These things are reliable. The issue is finding parts as these cars have almost nothing in common with most other Acuras/Hondas. The engine and transmission is different to the CL, TL, and MDX of the era. The only thing that commonly goes with the trans is the mount splits and causes creaking and rough shifts. The most important thing is to change the diff oil. It is usually forgotten and will kill the diff since the diff is its own separate assembly.