2004 Acura TL Owner's Manual

See page f or important saf etyinf ormation about how to properlyposition the steering wheel. 16
Make any steering wheel adjustment
bef ore you start driving. Push the lever up to lock the
steering wheel in that position.
To adjust the steering wheel: Push the lever under the steering
column all the way down.
Move the steering wheel up or
down, and in or out to the desired
position, making sure the wheel
points toward your chest, not
toward your f ace. Make sure you
can see the instrument panel
gauges and the indicators. Make sure you have securely
locked the steering wheel in place
by trying to move it up, down, in,
and out.
1.
2. 3.
4.
Steering Wheel A djustment
Inst rument s and Cont rols78
Adjusting the steering wheel
position while driving may
cause you to lose control of the
vehicle and be seriously injured
inacrash.
Adjust the steering wheel only
when the vehicle is stopped.

The master key fits all the locks on
your vehicle.
The valet key works only in the
ignition and the driver’s door lock.
You can keep the trunk pass-through
cover and the glove box locked when
you leave your vehicle and the valet
key at a parking f acility.Youshouldhavereceivedakey
number tag with your key. You will
need this key number if you ever
have to get a lost key replaced. Use
only an Acura-approved key blank.
These keys contain electronic
circuits that are activated by the
Immobilizer System. They will not
work to start the engine if the
circuits are damaged.
Donotdropthekeysorsetheavy
objects on them. Protect the key f rom direct
sunlight, high temperature, and
high humidity.
Keep the keys away f rom liquids.
If they get wet, dry them
immediately with a sof t cloth.
The keys do not contain batteries.
Do not try to take them apart.
Keys
Inst rument s and Cont rols79
KEY
NUMBER
TAG MASTER
KEY
(BLACK)VALET
KEY
(GRAY)

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The ignition switch has f our
positions: LOCK (0), ACCESSORY
(I), ON (II), and START (III).
You can insert or
remove the key only in this position.
To turn the key, you must push the
key in slightly. If your vehicle has an
automatic transmission, the shif t
lever must also be in park. If the f ront wheels are turned, the
anti-thef t lock may make it dif f icult
to turn the key. Firmly turn the
steering wheel to the lef t or right as
you turn the key.
You can
operate the audio system and the
accessory power sockets in this
position.
This is the normal key
position when driving. Several of the
indicators on the instrument panel
come on as a test when you turn the
ignition switch f rom ACCESSORY
(I) to ON (II).
Use this position
only to start the engine. The switch
returns to ON (II) when you let go of
the key. You will hear a reminder beeper if
you leave the key in the ignition
switch in the LOCK (0) or
ACCESSORY (I) position and open
the driver’s door. Remove the key to
turn of f the beeper.
If your vehicle has an automatic
transmission, the shif t lever must be
in Park bef ore you can remove the
key f rom the ignition switch.
Inst rument s and Cont rols
LOCK (0)
A CCESSORY (I)
ON (II)
ST A RT (III)
Ignition Switch
80
Removing the key from the
ignition switch while driving
locks the steering. This can
cause you to lose control.
Remove the key from the
ignition switch only when
parked.

The Immobilizer System protects
your vehicle f rom thef t. If an
improperly-coded key (or other
device) is used, the engine’s f uel
system is disabled.
When you turn the ignition switch to
ON (II), the Immobilizer System
indicator should come on f or a f ew
seconds, then go out. If the indicator
starts to blink, it means the system
does not recognize the coding of the
key. Turn the ignition switch to
LOCK (0), remove the key, reinsert
it, and turn the switch to ON (II)
again.
The system may not recognize your
key’s coding if another immobilizer
key or other metal object (i.e. key
f ob) is near the ignition switch when
you insert the key.If the system repeatedly does not
recognize the coding of your key,
contact your Acura dealer.
Do not attempt to alter this system
or add other devices to it. Electrical
problems could result that may make
your vehicle undriveable.
If you have lost your key and cannot
start the engine, contact an Acura
dealer.As required by the FCC:
This device complies with Part 15 of theFCC rules. Operation is subject to thef ollowing two conditions: (1) This devicemay not cause harmf ul interf erence, and(2) this device must accept anyinterf erence received, includinginterf erence that may cause undesiredoperation.
Changes or modif ications not expresslyapproved by the party responsible f orcompliance could void the user’sauthority to operate the equipment.
This device complies with IndustryCanada Standard RSS-210.Operation is subject to the f ollowing twoconditions: (1) this device may not causeinterf erence, and (2) this device mustaccept any interf erence that may causeundesired operation of the device.
Immobilizer Syst em
Inst rument s and Cont rols81

Each f ront door has a master door
lock switch. Either switch locks and
unlocks all doors. Push the bottom of
the switch to lock the doors and the
toptounlockthem.
Each door has a lock tab on the top.
Push the tab down to lock the door
and pull it up to unlock. When you
push down the lock tab on the driver’s
door, all the doors lock.All doors can be locked f rom the
outsidebyusingthekeyinthe
driver’s door. To unlock only the
driver’s door, insert the key, turn the
key, and release it. The remaining
doors unlock when you turn the key
a second time within a f ew seconds.
With the driver’s door open and the
key in the ignition, both master door
lock switches are disabled. If you try
to lock an open driver’s door by
pushinginthelocktab,thetabson
all doors pop up.
To lock any door when getting out of
the vehicle, push the lock tab in and
close the door.
Door L ocks
Inst rument s and Cont rols
L ockout Prevent ion
82

To open the trunk, press the trunk
releasebuttonontheleftcornerof
the dashboard. To open the trunk
f rom the outside, press the trunk
release button on the remote
transmitter.
To close the trunk, press down on
the trunk lid.If your vehicle’s battery goes dead or
is disconnected, you can open the
trunk f rom the rear seat by pulling
the trunk release handle. Reach the
handle through the trunk pass-
through.
Keep the trunk lid closed at all times
while driving to avoid damaging it
and to prevent exhaust gas from
getting into the interior. See Carbon
Monoxide Hazard, page .To protect items in the trunk, you
can disable the trunk-release button
on the dashboard by turning off the
trunk main switch in the glove box,
locking the glove box, and locking
the trunk pass-through cover with
the master key.
If you need to give the key to
someone else, give them the valet
key.
46
Inst rument s and Cont rols
Trunk
83

The childproof door locks are
designed to prevent children seated
in the rear f rom accidentally opening
the rear doors. Each rear door has a
lock lever near the edge. With the
lever in the LOCK position, the door
cannot be opened f rom the inside
regardless of the position of the lock
tab. To open the door, pull the lock
tab up and use the outside door
handle.
As a saf ety f eature, your vehicle has
a release lever on the trunk latch so
the trunk can be opened f rom inside.
To open the trunk, push the release
lever to the lef t.
Parents should decide if their
children should be shown how to use
this feature.
T runk, Childproof Door L ocks
Inst rument s and Cont rols
Emergency T runk Opener
Childproof Door L ocks
84

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Press this button once to
lock all doors. Some exterior lights
will f lash. When you push LOCK
twice within 5 seconds, you will hear
a beep to verify that the doors are
locked and the security system has
set. You cannot lock the doors if any
door is not f ully closed or if the key
is in the ignition switch. Press this button once
to unlock the driver’s door or all the
doors (depending on the Keyless
Memory Setting). Press it twice to
unlock the other doors. Some
exterior lights will f lash twice each
time you press the button.
The ceiling light (if the ceiling light
switch is in the center position) will
come on when you press the
UNLOCK button. If you do not open
anydoorswithin30seconds(or
whatever setting the relock timer is
set to), the light f ades out. If you
relock the doors with the remote
transmitter before 30 seconds have
elapsed, the light will go of f
immediately. Pressthisbuttonfor
about 1 second to open the trunk.
You cannot open the trunk with the
remote transmitter if the trunk main
button is turned of f .
Pressthisbuttonfor
about 2 seconds to attract attention:
thehornwillsoundandtheexterior
lights will f lash f or about 30 seconds.
To cancel panic mode, press any
other button on the remote
transmitter or turn the ignition
switch to ON (II).
If you unlock the doors with the
remote transmitter, but do not open
anydoorswithin30seconds,the
doors automatically relock and the
security system sets. To change this
setting, ref er to Keyless Memory
Settings on page . 66
Remote Transmitter
Inst rument s and Cont rols
LOCK UNL OCK
T RUNK
PA NIC
85
TRUNK
RELEASE
BUTTON
LOCK
BUTTON
UNLOCK
BUTTON PANIC
BUTTON
LED