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We want to make you aware of upcoming third party wireless technology changes that will impact your AcuraLink subscription services.
North American telecommunications providers are making changes to their legacy cellular networks. As a result, we have been notified by our wireless provider that they will be terminating their CDMA (3G) cellular network. The decision to phase out this technology was made at the discretion of the respective cellular carriers and is beyond the control of Acura.
How This Will Impact Your AcuraLink Subscription Services
Your 2015 Acura TLX relies on the CDMA (3G) cellular network to deliver AcuraLink subscription services to you.
As of August 24, 2022, your AcuraLink complimentary trial services will be terminated. If your complimentary trial expires prior to August 23, 2022, you will be unable to convert to a paid subscription.
These services may include:
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Do we know which years use 3G?
I've got a 2020 TLX (V-6, tech) and, so far, I haven't received the notice. I don't know if this is because later models use different technology, or if this is because I never activated AcuraLink.
Solid information! My guess is that there may be more than a few nasty surprises that pop up when these 3G legacy systems are retired (not just with AcuraLink). I always find it a bit ironic. My car isn't impacted, but I don't use the functionality. On the other hand, YOU use the functionality but you will be shut down.
My guess is that some company will develop a workaround but, since these systems are tied to more than just AcuraLink, the "medicine" might be worse than the "ailment". As I read it the go-dark date is August 2022, so folks will have another year to find alternatives or learn to live without. Not a happy conclusion, but still some time.
is the direct link that displays detailsWhen will my services be terminated?
If your paid subscription is scheduled to renew on August 24, 2021 or later :
As of August 24, 2021, AcuraLink subscription services will no longer be renewed for impacted vehicles. If your annual renewal date is August 24, 2021 or later, your services will be terminated as of August 24, 2021. Acura is not accepting partial year subscriptions.
sounds to me like if your annual renewal date is August 24, 2021 or later, your services will be terminated as of August 24, 2021.
I think that your assessment is likely correct. I guess you'll know for sure in about 3 weeks.
I wonder if this issue had anything at all to do with why Acura/Honda never really addressed the the problem that you were having with the Navigation's traffic status reporting?
when Louis calls me back this week, I'm sure gonna ask him.
Furthermore this solidfies what you (Jim) said before...the traffic info is obtained by wifi NOT satellite
no wunder there are certain places where it drops out!
this is kinda crappy actually and says to us owners, just use the cell fone to get this info
well this saves me the trouble of calling to ask why i'm constantly hearing "optimized route unavailable, please wait until the optimized route is received" but it hasnt worked in over a month, so dragging out my subscription till its end is still a waste to me.
Anyone call a dealer yet to find out what the "new device" cost is?
My guess is at this time we're talking about "VaporWare". Having managed (mis-managed?) some IT implementations I've come to realize that there are three types of "wares" in the IT world... hardware, software and vaporware. The latter "ware" consists of promises and "we're working on it, but we're still not there" updates. I'd be surprised if the Dealers have any real idea of what the "new device" will be... if it ever comes to be.
Hopefully, someone will come up with a viable solution, but I'm not holding my breath. To get idea of the magnitude of the issue I Googled "3G Network shutdown". The problem is pretty significant spanning cell phone, tablets, cars, security systems, etc, etc, etc. Apparently there has been some pushback into Congress but the problem keeps getting kicked down the street.
You 4got one....UNaware
It shouldn't take a congressional act to fix this.
Congress makes big enough messes of things already.
I mean wasn't Congress supposed to have lowered our cable bills at some point?
Acura is passing the buck...plain and simple.
Acura's gonna do the same thing again in the future, assuming automobiles still
exist 5 years from now.
Last week I found out my old Kindle DX will stop working over the cell network because of this shutdown. No big deal, I only use it at the beach. I never thought about this also impacting my car. Ugh. I'd be pretty surprised if Acura really offers a "new device." And if they do, imagine the cost.
How To Continue Using AcuraLink Subscription Services
You may continue to access your AcuraLink subscription services
if the hardware in your vehicle is updated with a new device.
Please contact your dealer for more information.
I wonder what the explanation for that is. I saw T Mobile Verizon plan on shutting down their CDMA network in 2022. I suppose Acura needs to get in front of that.
How To Continue Using AcuraLink Subscription Services
You may continue to access your AcuraLink subscription services
if the hardware in your vehicle is updated with a new device.
Please contact your dealer for more information.
I will post here when I get more info.
I called the service dept at my local dealer here in Kansas City and they said they only found out about it this week and told me to call back in few weeks. I have a 2016 MDX, which is included in the list that will stop working by August 2022. I have an active subscription till July 2022. Verizon is shutting down their 3G/CDMA in December of 2022. Both AT&T and T-Mobile is doing it earlier in 2022. So unless Acura provides a hardware upgrade for the cellular radio chip, guess I won't be sending anymore destinations to the navi from my phone after July of 2022.
Maybe Acura doesn't care much about this because not that many owners subscribe?
I mean in 2018 and later Acuras can't you use Android Auto to send traffic from your phone
to the display in the car? If so, no traffic sub needed in 2018 or later models.
I understand your frustration, but I don't see where Acura (or any other manufacturer) is to blame. Technologies are born, then they mature, then they die, and finally they're no longer supported. This is especially true in the fast moving technology area. Your profile says you're 71, so you likely remember the early PCs. Most used DOS as their operating system. If you've got time on your hands try and find ANY program/apps on the market today that use the operating system. Or, if you enjoy music try to find anyone who makes 8 track, cassette, or CD players.
Now take 3G for example. When it was first rolled out the car manufacturers (and cellphone manufacturers, as well) had to make a choice (they only can make ONE choice)... Do they immediately switch their applications to use 3G (at that time the latest and greatest), or wait and use older technologies until the rollouts mature? Major rollout take many years, and are very expensive. If they move too quickly to the newest technology then Drivers in large areas of the country might be caught in No Man's land. Their car's electronics might be designed to connect to the newest technology, but the local carriers might only offer only older legacy signals. The same dilemma faced the manufacturers when 4G came out, and its happening again with 5G.
Now fast forward to today's issue. The rollout to 5G is underway. Engineers say that the 5G technology is a HUGE leap in technology, complexity and cost. In fact there are more than a few experts who question if the technology's benefits are worth the cost to install. In order to partially offset these new costs the major carriers (AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, etc) have elected to wind down and eliminate 3G. The technology is obsolete, expensive to maintain, and usage is dropping fast. Instead, they'll redeploy these resources to continue 4G/LTE support and rollout out 5G (5G requires considerably more towers for equal coverage). This is out of the auto manufacturer's control.
Technology will continue to evolve. Today's "hot new" systems will become mainstream, then they'll die away. We may not like it, but expecting a manufacturer to continue to support obsolete technology and systems past a certain "Use by" date is not realistic.
I get all that. But I was surprised because Acura's email said to contact their dealer for hardware (cell chip) upgrade options, but the dealers have zero clue about this annoucement!
^it doesnt say cell chip upgrade... from a business stand point, that doesnt make sense. buy millions of 5G chips, de-solder individual cars, solder new chip in place.. there's no way that's happening. and it's micro soldering...meaning it takes a lot more skill and equipment to do so.
what makes more sense is retrofitting the whole unit over to models that have expired.
My guess involves the commercial relationships between the 3 parties, you the car owner, Honda/Acura North America, and your local dealer who sold the car (and sells parts).
The "going out of business" email was sent by Honda/Acura because they are the provider of the AcuraLink service. The 3 year freebie is footed by Honda/Acura, not your local dealer (just like Honda/Acura provides the overall car warranty... they send any warranty/recall notices, not the dealer). In a like fashion Honda/Acura sells and profits from any renewals and/or upgrades to AcuraLink that the car owner may purchase. They "own" the commercial relationship with you, the car owner.
On the other hand, if a workaround (chip?) were to be developed it would be sold to you through your local dealer, not Honda/Acura. The workaround may come from a 3rd party vendor, or via a Honda/Acura parts number, but the transaction it will most certainly be through the local dealer. If it did happen the commercial relationship would be between you the car owner and the selling/installing dealership.
Kind of convoluted, but that will likely be the flow of the transactions.
Too much tech.
Get traffic from your phone and display on your big screen via Android Auto, at least on 2018 tlx and later.
Companies like Hona/Acura should know that tech is a moving target and anything 3rd party is a recipe for disaster.
I'd like to upgrade the electronics in my 2015 tlx but even that's not possible...probably insufficient memory for
the new "bloatware."
^it's only as of recent that auto manufactures are doing OTA(Over The Air) updates...which means they can keep up with the evolving tech...
in the past; auto manufactures, supply chains and engineers have to design, test, implement the various tech YEARS in advanced before the car debuts...meaning, when the car comes out the tech is already outdated.
And as Jim2301 has pointed out, it's a careful balance of not using too old and too new tech
justnspace i agree with you
that's why the auto manufacturers are losing the tech battle
and we (customers) PAY to be the beta testers of quickly obsolete tech
at least with a phone, when it's obsolete you can buy a new one relatively cheaply
can't do that with an automobile
I'm simply a 2015 TLX Tech owner (purchased brand new from the dealer), but perhaps this may be what is required in order to "upgrade" the affected vehicles from 3G CDMA to LTE. According to the service news article "B17020D Version 1", it appears that Acura migrated to LTE solutions sometime in 2017. Per the article: https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/20...08701-9999.pdf
"AFFECTED VEHICLES
2016−17 ILX (Tech Plus and Tech Plus A-Spec), 2014−17 MDX (Tech and Advance), 2016−17 RDX (Tech and Advance), 2014−17 RLX, and 2015−17 TLX (Tech and Advance)
We’ve made an important change to the AcuraLink telematics unit that you need to be aware of. This change switches the coverage of the internal cellular module from Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) to Long Term Evolution (LTE). You can easy tell a CDMA unit from an LTE unit by its label. CDMA units have a white label; LTE units have a blue label."
My guess is that everyone affected by this "CDMA Shutdown" currently has the white labeled telematics unit, and we would need to "upgrade" to the blue labeled telematics unit. However based on the tone of Acura's announcement of the CDMA shutdown and impact on traffic data, I seriously doubt that any dealerships would pay for such an upgrade - unless perhaps your vehicle was still under factory warranty. Even then, they may have reasons why they won't pay for it.
I purchased an extended warranty at the dealership when I bought my 2015 TLX Tech brand new, and I doubt even that warranty would cover a "free" or "deductible only" replacement of the telematics unit - unless we could somehow show that the telematics unit was broken or faulty. I don't know if the shutdown of the CDMA-based traffic service would be enough for the warranty vendor to consider the CDMA unit as faulty. My guess is that the warranty vendor will tell me that I'm out of luck.
Anyway, perhaps someone who has some technical knowledge about these things can chime in here. How much does this part cost? What's the installation fee? I doubt this is something a technical person could simply swap on their own, seeing as the new LTE device would have to be registered with a cell provider and configured to work in our individual vehicles.
Hope this info helps, as I think we could all be stuck until enough people are affected and choose to complain to Acura. (Would they even listen?)
no, they wouldn't listen. no, the dealers would not perform this under warranty.
it happens all the time in tech.... product gets old, devs stop developing for said product.
sounds like the best thing is do nothing and let the dealer deal w/it if/when we trade in
I suppose you're probably right, or do something like install NavTool or Naviks and do a smartphone mirror via Google Maps w/traffic (or something similar).
If the correct telematics part for my car is around $800, I'm guessing the dealership would probably charge me $1200+ to acquire and install it. I'd have to contact them to find out for sure.
I appreciate the TSB post, however after reading it I didn't see any actual step-by-step instructions on how to perform the removal/installation myself. Page 2 of the TSB says "Replace the Telematics Control Unit according to the procedure" but I'm not sure if/where the average joe could actually find the procedural steps. Is this "procedure" something that only dealerships have access to? Thanks.
^ Granted this solution would only be a solution to address the loss of traffic data. It wouldn't address the loss of the other safety related cellular based capabilities.
so one would buy the 2018-2020 TLX Telematics unit for around $800 and then follow the TSB
as you can see it has a blue label.
part#
39770-TZ3-A61
JustnSpace - As usual, great job in researching the issue! Many of our Readers/Contributors might not like the answer, but at least you've outlined the situation and possible options to mitigate. Well done!
I suppose you're probably right, or do something like install NavTool or Naviks and do a smartphone mirror via Google Maps w/traffic (or something similar).
If the correct telematics part for my car is around $800, I'm guessing the dealership would probably charge me $1200+ to acquire and install it. I'd have to contact them to find out for sure.
I appreciate the TSB post, however after reading it I didn't see any actual step-by-step instructions on how to perform the removal/installation myself. Page 2 of the TSB says "Replace the Telematics Control Unit according to the procedure" but I'm not sure if/where the average joe could actually find the procedural steps. Is this "procedure" something that only dealerships have access to? Thanks.
according to the diagram;
and the parts list sub-category of "Cabin"
to me; the telematic unit can be found in the front of the car inside the cabin....
looks to be underneath the dash leaning towards the passenger side.
Now, I don't have a TLX, so I can't investigate further, but perhaps if someone were to poke around they will be able to find it.
Thanks for the feedback. With my current lack of expertise, I too will have to wait and see if someone with more skills than me and access to the car and parts decides to go down this path and chooses to share their experience with this process. Thanks.
Maybe Acura doesn't care much about this because not that many owners subscribe?
I mean in 2018 and later Acuras can't you use Android Auto to send traffic from your phone
to the display in the car? If so, no traffic sub needed in 2018 or later models.
I think that's a big part of it. I have a 2015 TLX Tech that I've maintained obsessively. I love the car. With only 47,000 miles on it, that $1500 off a new Acura (which expires in a year) holds no appeal. I recognize that I am more of an exception. Maybe most folks don't keep cars as long. Heck, there's no money in that business model for a car maker.
Still, it's kind of crappy for Acura or any other manufacturer, from a brand loyalty standpoint, to not at least put a bit of effort into finding a reasonably priced solution for those like myself. I'm not saying I should get a freebie but heck...is there no technology workaround that I can get for $500 to keep my live traffic updates and other AcuraLink features going for another few years? Sure would make me feel good about Acura!
Talking to my local dealer, they were somewhat confused and took a lot of digging on their part, they figured out that the part number to update my 2015 TLX Tech would be 39770-TZ3-A53. (seems to be the original part for the 2017 cars)
List price from Acura for that part would be $1,156.21. On a whim found the module on ebay for $120 and decided to give it a try.
as promised new one has a blue label
Glove box has to come out to get at the module, 2x 8mm head bolts hold it in on the bottom, 4 phillips head screws across the top (one hiding behind the passenger side silver trim
left bracket with 2x 10mm bolts holding the module in place, unbolt, unclip the 3 connectors, remove the 3x 7mm bolts holding the module to the bracket and swap, reassembly is the reverse
Power on the car, within about 15 min the green light should come on indicating AcuraLink connectivity has been restored. The car handles all the changeover to the new telematics module and associating it with your account.
When i powered up the car, the nav system downloaded traffic data almost instantly, updated routes from AcuraLink come quicker, remote commands from the app are significantly faster. The telematics module also controls your bluetooth for your phone, you will have to re-pair your phone to the car, reconfigure any speed dials and voice dial options. Music info seems to flow over to the car quicker, track skip requests go faster. By the time i had finished putting the glove box back in I had hit 12 min since startup and noticed the light was on.
08-02-2021, 08:23 AM
