Acura Engines in Dallas, TX
Acura runs Honda engine families with different variants in them. Knowing which variant your model received is most of the job.
Acura engines come out of the same families as Honda engines — the K-series fours and the J-series V6s — and a good deal of what you learn about one transfers to the other. That is genuinely useful, and it is also where Acura engine buying goes wrong, because the family being shared does not make the engines interchangeable.
What separates them is which variant a model received. The TSX got a K24A2 with a different head from the K24 in a CR-V. The TL Type-S got a larger engine than the base TL sitting next to it in the showroom. The MDX changed families between generations without changing its name. Three vehicles, three different ways the same mistake gets made.
The three questions that settle an Acura order
Which model, and which generation. Acura generations do not always line up with the Honda models they share parts with, and the generation is what decides the engine family on the MDX in particular.
Is it a performance trim. Type-S is the one that catches people. It is not a badge on the same engine.
What is stamped on the block. On these cars — most of which have been through several owners — the stamp is the only thing that knows whether the engine in the car is still the one it was built with.
Acura models
Each page breaks the model down by generation and trim, and names what changes between them.
- Acura TLA J-series V6 across its generations, with a Type-S variant that is a genuinely different engine.
- Acura TSXThe K24A2 years are what most TSX engine demand is about, and the second generation is a different engine.
- Acura MDXA J-series SUV, but not the same J-series engine across generations — the second generation is a J37.
Engine families used across Acura models
Two families cover most of it. The K24 is the four-cylinder answer, and the TSX variant is the one with a reputation. The J35 and its J-series relatives cover the V6 models — the TL, the MDX and the V6 TSX — with the caveat that “J-series” spans several displacements and the family name alone does not identify an engine.
The full set of families, including the Honda-only ones, is listed here. If you would rather work from the engine code than the car, that is the place to start.
Before an Acura engine is quoted
The engine gets verified against your specific vehicle first. That means the year, the model, the generation and the trim, and where you can supply it, the VIN or the stamped code. Nothing on this site treats a factory application table as a fitment answer, because that table records what these cars were built with and not what will work in yours.
The process is set out in full here, and collection and freight across the metroplex are covered here.
Common questions
Are Acura engines the same as Honda engines?
They come from the same engine families. Acura models use Honda K-series and J-series blocks, and in some cases the identical variant. What differs is which variant a given model received and how it was installed — the ancillaries, the mounting and the engine management follow the application, not the family. So the family knowledge transfers and the fitment answer does not.
Why does the Type-S matter so much on a TL?
Because it is a different engine, not a trim badge. In the third-generation TL the base car used a J32 and the Type-S used a larger-displacement J35. An order that says only "2007 Acura TL" is missing the field that decides which engine it needs.
What is special about the TSX K24A2?
The head and the compression ratio. The K24A2 fitted to the 2004–2008 TSX differs from the CR-V and Accord K24 variants, which is why builders seek it out specifically. If you are replacing a TSX engine it is simply the correct part; if you are buying one for a swap, the stamped code is worth confirming rather than accepting "K24" in a listing.
Does an MDX use a J35?
The first generation does. From 2007 the second-generation MDX uses a J37, which is a larger-displacement J-series engine rather than a J35 variant. Ordering a J35 for a second-generation MDX is the most common mistake made on that vehicle, and freight in both directions makes it an expensive one.
Where to go next
- Honda EnginesHonda engine families, what they came in, and how availability is checked.
- K24 EngineThe 2.4 K-series, including the K24A variants sold as JDM units.
- J35 EngineThe 3.5 J-series V6 from the Odyssey, Pilot, MDX and Accord.
- VehiclesStart from the car rather than the engine code.
- How to Find Your Honda Engine CodeWhere the code is stamped, and what the characters mean.
- Engine FinderTell us the vehicle and we identify the engine before quoting it.
Find the right engine for your vehicle
Tell us the year, model and trim. We identify the engine your vehicle takes and come back with current availability and pricing.