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Recently bought a 2019 A-Spec. Activated 3 mo AcuraLink trial. Vehicle showed expiration date 1 year from enrollment. All was well.
Decided to update maps. Got 2021 maps as 2 disc pack from Acura Navigation. System and map updates went fine. Database Ver.ST009.08.00X. Software Ver.4.01.2801.
AcuraLink has not worked since the update. Vehicle shows current contact is “AcuraLink Factory Default” with expiration dates of 2012-09-15. 2012!
Rep at AcuraLink assured me that my subscription was valid and to talk to the dealer. Local dealer wondered why AcuraLink sent me to the dealer. Still, dealership opted to order a new telematics module to be installed this Thursday (8/5).
In the interim, AcuraLink has run me up the tech support chain. I’ve had calls every other week that mostly entail me doing a factory reset and refreshing my app — without any success.
Has anyone else had AcuraLink stop working? After a system / map update? Anyone with a 2012 expiration date?
I’ll post an update after new module is installed.
Forgot to add that I had read threads about 2018 Brown DVD updates killing AcuraLink with 2012 expiration date.
I mentioned to AcuraLink that there were documented cases where map update killed AcuraLink. In other words, this is (or should be) a known issue to AcuraLink. Rep replied that they never heard of this, which was probably true. I asked if they had any entries in a knowledge base. No comment on that. Just started the first or many unproductive factory resets.
No knock to whomever posted in 2018 about AcuraLink issue, but no real resolution details were shared. I suspect that AcuraLink never divulged what the root cause was, however. Magic I guess.
Last edited by Try2BWise; Aug 3, 2022 at 10:19 AM.
Reason: Caleity
Personally, I did not even bother with Acuralink, even when the car was new and there was a 3 month free period. With Apple Carplay, I just use Waze. Data does not matter as it is unlimited. I would think Waze is a better system for the maps. I really do not see any use for Acuralink as a cell phone will work just fine for most issues, which you are already paying for anyway.
Dealer replaced telematics unit. Provided picture of the new unit’s IMEI code to Honda as part of my open ticket. AcuraLink magically works again.
Will I keep it? Maybe? This is one of those expenses where I let my wife decide if the cost and perceived safety it provides balance. She’s the one that went from “SH-AWD on your (1st gen) RDX is unnecessary” to “the MDX must have SH-AWD or I won’t drive in the rain”. Who knows …
December 10, 2023. Dealer spent close to a year and a half trying to get the correct updated telematics unit for my 2015 low mile MDX after CDMA went offline. Acura did it under the extended warranty and eventually they got it working perfectly. A couple weeks ago I updated the NAV maps using the Acura approved HERE site, and it killed my Acuralink; I verified that my subscription is good but the console shows 2015 as the expiration date. The dealer is going to shoot me after what they went thru to get it working again. What a PITA. Here we go again. Now I have to open a case with tech support tomorrow, and see if they can figure out how to get it working again. This is my last Acura I think. Too much work trying to keep things working, I just spent a lot of money on the front suspension because the rubber cracked and disintegrated in 60K miles. On top of it the front brakes are shuddering again after 30,000 miles on new rotors. And I drive easy too.
Last edited by merlin the wrench; Dec 11, 2023 at 12:38 AM.
As an update to this thread. I recently applied the correct NAV update and it did the exact same thing to the telematics unit. Have an open case with Acuralink tech support at this time. Waiting on a resolution.
12/13/2023 update for anyone who has similar. HERE technical support answered and said that in their opinion the NAV update reset the system to defaults and that Acuralink Technical support are the ones to fix it. I thought about it before falling asleep last night and realized there are hidden tools on the NAV unit for testing so I Googled testing telematics and followed the procedure. There were no DTCs, the unit reports active with good signal strength, and a test status report gave all the information on the unit that someone would need to reach it (like what is on your smart phone card). I forwarded screenshots to Acuralink of those three screens. I will post back in a few days if they fixed it.
Update 12/23/2023. Nothing yet, Acuralink basically is taking a we'll get to it when we get to it attitude and when I ask to speak with my casemanager, the liaison tells me not allowed. My suggestion is DO NOT UPDATE YOUR NAV UNIT UNTIL ACURALINK CAN HANDLE THE PROBLEMS. Dealer tells me they get the same run around from Acuralink staff. FWIW, do a search, Acura forums have multiple reports of failed updates.
as of Jan 7 2024, still doesn't work. NEVER buy a Honda or Acura again. It has been 6 years since the 2018 fiasco in other models, and they haven't solved the problem where NAV updates hose the Acuralink. In my humble opinion, they are either incompetent, or they don't care.
as of Jan 7 2024, still doesn't work. NEVER buy a Honda or Acura again. It has been 6 years since the 2018 fiasco in other models, and they haven't solved the problem where NAV updates hose the Acuralink. In my humble opinion, they are either incompetent, or they don't care.
The Acuralink is sure a hit and miss. I remember I purchased the subscription in my 2nd year of MDX but all in a sudden it would stop working. I didn't do anything to the car but it just stopped working. I did call Acura and they did say everything was fine on their side. It happened a few times. Occasionally it would come back on its own after a few days or weeks. There was once that the tech said he did something at the back that seemed to make it working again, but I could have remembered it wrong.
But op's case where it has been so long is very unusual, gold luck..
Whish I would have seen this before map update killed my acuralink
Just updated the maps in my 2020 RLX-SH and 2019 MDX for the first time since buying the 4 and 5 years ago. Acuralink is broken in both. Tech support has not been useful assured me despite coincidence of timing that it was not the map update. As others have said expiration says default dates before the car was even made. They are ordering the telematic unit for the RLX now. On the MDX the android auto also stopped working when I did the update. So not only did I pay money for an update, I paid for them to break acuralink on both cars.
Just updated the maps in my 2020 RLX-SH and 2019 MDX for the first time since buying the 4 and 5 years ago. Acuralink is broken in both. Tech support has not been useful assured me despite coincidence of timing that it was not the map update. As others have said expiration says default dates before the car was even made. They are ordering the telematic unit for the RLX now. On the MDX the android auto also stopped working when I did the update. So not only did I pay money for an update, I paid for them to break acuralink on both cars.
This has happened to me twice in 2024: Upgrading the Nav software kills AcuraLink. Then, the finger pointing starts and no one knows how to fix it. Here's how to get AcuraLink working again: if you are a monthly subscriber, it will start working again on your next billing cycle. It seems to have something to do with enabling the subscription. If you're a yearly subscriber, I'm guessing it will reset and start working on the next billing cycle, which could be quite a while.
Same happened me a month ago. AcuraLink support is useless. 2020 Acura RLX hybrid I updated the map academic support is no help at all. We’ll see if it’s true that it starts working after the next billing cycle. I think they’re stringing me along until that happens. but they are no help at all. Nothing they do works.
we need a class action suit on this to get Acura's attention. They have broken mine again. One day it shows the correct subscription date and works fine then poof it back dates itself and no longer works. They become parrots when you call them and want to send you to the dealer who will tell you it is Technical Support's problem. You get to pay to fix what they broke. I am so tired of this run around from them.
Seems like the only thing that fixes this is a subscription renewal. i'd suggest a monthly sub so the renewal date changes each month and at most you have a 30 day outage.
So my 2020 RLX SH they replaced the telemetrics unit then reactivated it and after 9 months it was working. My 2019 MDX they are still giving me the run around 14 months later, charging me a monthly fee and it still does not work, dealer says it is fine on their end and points me to tech support who in tern says it is not their problem because it looks fine on their end. It is pretty redicoulous that a nav update caused this and they won't admit it and don't have a real fix.
I'm curious, what are people using Acuralink for? I tried it a few times during the free period, and never used it again because I found it to be clunky, slow, and unreliable.
I liked having the tire information and oil life available on the app. Plus the ability to send an address to the car. Then there is the emergency notification and stolen vehicle locator that were nice to have functions.
Termination of AcuraLink subscription services for certain Acura models
What changes are coming to AcuraLink Subscription Services in 2025?
Subscription Services for certain Acura vehicles are being deactivated. Certain enrollment and renewal options for Subscription Services will also change. This change applies to both US and Canada customers.
I can understand dropping Acura Link for vehicles with the 3G modules? I thought we were safe for awhile with the updated Acura Link module. I'm assuming there is no upgrade path for the current Acura Link module?
I get a lot use from Acura link when travelling out west even with Carplay. I sometimes only get 1-2 bars and sometimes down to zero bars when traveling with our AT&T iphones. Even in city limits can be low bars depending on your carrier. It just makes it easy for the spouse to search Acura Link on her iphone and send to the MDX on the go. I was once in San Antonio and the wife was in ABQ, NM, and she sent me an Acura Link address I wanted to check out when I was out and about. Sometimes the Carplay apps can have a little lag for real time data if you have low bars.
It was a decision, not a technical issue. Just like they decided not to renew with Onstar when they used them in their 2006 or so cars, but told no one about the switch off. My traffic and some other features quit in May of this year about the time they announced they were pulling out of Acuralink, except for brand new cars. They wanted me to pay the dealer like up to $1000 - $1500 to troubleshoot the unit when all that is wrong with it was they and Sirius had some kind of falling out, same as like when Onstar stopped working in the older RLs. I asked the rep who called me earlier this week what I should do if the rebate was incorrect or missing, and she said to effect in what I thought was a snotty tone, "just call Sirius and take it up with them, it is their problem, not Acura's." I said but I paid Acura not Sirius, and she just ended the call. I was pretty upset with this whole thing. I actually planned to buy two new Acura later this summer, depending on the new EPA thing here for California, but decided we are done with Acura after 37 years of them being the car of the family. It is pretty sad when a company convinces someone they can't be trusted.
I agree, it was a decision and a poor one from the customer side. First they just killed the traffic with no notice, then followed it by killing the whole service. It probably hurt their customer base when 3g cell service was discontinued. Then their nav updates by Here started killing the 4g units. Instead of figuring out why they couldn't update the nav without killing acuralink, they just got rid of the acuralink. A system that was on some 2022 model year cars and had no technical reason not to work. We have had 12 different Acura vehicles between the two of us over the last 23 years. Things always can change but right now I am thinking these will be our last two.
a map update killed my Acuralink last year. Took them 45 days to fix it. They wanted me to pay the dealer $$$ troubleshoot it but in the end it was something they did on their end that fixed it. Nothing was wrong with the car, they just had to push down the correct subscription date. I am just speculating here but I think the problem is that they have terrible staff who don't know what they are doing, and it is impacting their business model. Instead of hiring or training better staff, they just end the service on all but new cars, which then I wonder when they will be turned off. I spoke with the dealer about it once and they get the same treatment. They said that Acuralink will tie up a technician for $1,000 worth of labor time but it can't be billed so the dealer falls behind on other work. It is just bad management. In their defense, bad management seems everywhere. My other half works in a government unit that has so many DEI hires, the newer workers run multimillion dollar grants and don't know how a check works - everything at their homes is on autopay. Brave new world, but I think this time Acura is going to lose clientele to other brands who do offer emergency services. We've started looking at Lexus, Toyota, and Subaru to see what they offer. I just don't want to pay $15,000 - $20,000 for electronics that I can't use in three to five years. I got totaled in a 2014 MDX six or seven years ago and the car called emergency services due to the severity of the accident. I will miss that feature on my MDX. It was always nice to know it was there. Acura doesn't care about me so I don't care about them.
I came across this, which agrees with what the Acura rep told me. What makes this even more bizarre, is that if Sirius is providing the connectivity for Acuralink, why can't Acura just say, "we have made arrangements for the following cars to work with Sirius Guardian... effective this date these services will be offered by contacting Sirius XM Connected Vehicle Services...? Just guessing but must have been one heck of a disagreement between them to abandon all those Acura clients who will now buy other brand cars. Think of what they pay in marketing to get one client, and in the meantime they throw away ones they already have in their camp. Totally stupid.
About Sirius XM Connected Vehicle Services Inc.
Sirius XM Connected Vehicles Services Inc. is a leading provider of connected vehicles services to Acura, Fiat Chrysler, Honda, Hyundai, Infiniti, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lexus, Nissan, Subaru, and Toyota. Sirius XM Connected Vehicle Services Inc. gives customers access to a suite of safety, security, and convenience services including automatic crash notification, enhanced roadside assistance, remote door unlock, remote start, stolen vehicle recovery assistance, turn-by-turn navigation, and more.
Last edited by merlin the wrench; Jun 29, 2025 at 01:57 AM.
I have written to the people at Sirius Connect, who are running the program for the list of cars above, to find out what the feasibility is of just buying one of their packages directly from them instead of going thru Acura, who has walked away from providing it to their customers. I know that Sirius has been providing the Acuralink because that is what the Acuralink rep told me.
I just got the refund on the Acuralink services since they discontinued them for every model before 2020, and some from 2022. Also got a survey asking if I would buy another Acura. I said no because no one I know buys a car then expects only 3 - 4 year's use from it regardless the miles they drive per year. No way am I paying for a premium car that becomes a so so car just because the factory thinks it is too much trouble to support the services they sold me or they try to bully me to replace it on their time schedule.
Merin the wrench how did get the update disc for the 2015? Do u still have them? Would u be willing to copy them and send them to another 2015 acura mdx owner? I have been trying for weeks to get that update. Acura wont help and here said we're not going to help on that old car. Said to contact acura. Just a damn game. I would message u but says I can direct message anyone yet.
A little late getting back to you. Sorry. My understanding is that the disks are made for one car only and are coded with one vin and the present version of maps in the car. 2015 is no longer available thru HERE on their website. You can try calling them, maybe they will make an exception for you. One of the issues is that in most models you cannot make a 10 year jump. They have to load other patches first. I still have the 2023 patches but they may kill your NAV if you try to run them.
Is there a way u could send the files and I could try it at my risk?. I found a nav file up on acuraoparts
com. Also here was a joke. No help. They told me to call acura and acura told me to call here.
