Acura MDX Reliability: Best and Worst Years

The Acura MDX is a midsize three-row luxury crossover from Honda's upscale brand, first sold in the U.S. for the 2001 model year. It uses car-like unibody construction and has been built in Ontario, Alabama and Ohio over its life. It has used V6 engines throughout, with all-wheel drive on early models and front-wheel drive offered from 2014. Below, each Acura MDX model year from 2010 to 2024 sits on the same scale, which makes the noisy years and the quiet years easy to spot.

Why these years stand out

2016: most complaints. The 2016 Acura MDX scored 679 complaints per 100,000 sold, 2.8 times the model average. Of its 377 complaints, 285 involve the engine or transmission, and the parts named most often are engine (163), power train (113) and electrical system (35). NHTSA lists 7 recalls for this model year and 3 defect investigations.

2013, 2021 and 2023: fewest complaints. The 2013 drew 30 complaints, or 57 per 100,000 sold; The 2021 drew 0 complaints, or 0 per 100,000 sold; The 2023 drew 43 complaints, or 75 per 100,000 sold. These years have been on the road at least three years, which gives owners time to report problems, so a low count means something.

What Acura MDX owners report most

Engine complaints lead for the Acura MDX, at 33% of all complaints for 2010-2024. Engine and transmission reports together make up 54%. One complaint can name more than one system, so the bars can add up to more than the total.

When problems are reported: mileage

736 Acura MDX complaints list the odometer reading at the time of the problem. 60% were reported before 50,000 miles and 13% after 100,000. The reports are spread across the mileage range rather than bunched at one point.

Acura MDX compared with other luxury suvs

In 9 of 15 model years the Acura MDX drew fewer complaints per 100,000 sold than the average luxury suv we track for the same year. For 2024, the Acura MDX scored 82 against a class average of 83. The class average only uses models with clean, published sales figures.

Acura MDX generations

• 2005-2006
  First generation

  3.5L V6 · 5-speed automatic

  These were the final years of the original MDX, which used Honda's VTM-4 all-wheel-drive system.

• 2007-2013
  Second generation

  3.7L V6 · 5-speed automatic (2007-2009); 6-speed automatic (2010-2013)

  This redesign brought a larger 3.7L V6 and replaced VTM-4 with the SH-AWD torque-vectoring system, and the 2010 update added a six-speed automatic.

• 2014-2020
  Third generation

  3.5L V6; 3.0L V6 hybrid (Sport Hybrid, from 2017) · 6-speed automatic (2014-2015); 9-speed automatic (2016-2020); 7-speed dual-clutch (Sport Hybrid)

  Front-wheel drive became available as the base layout, with SH-AWD as an option.

• 2022-2024
  Fourth generation

  3.5L V6; 3.0L turbo V6 (Type S) · 10-speed automatic

  Acura skipped the 2021 model year, and a higher-output Type S version with a turbocharged V6 was added to this generation.

There is no 2021 model year MDX; the third generation ended with 2020 and the fourth began with 2022. From 2016 the third-generation MDX switched from a six-speed to a nine-speed automatic. The Sport Hybrid version with a 3.0L V6 and seven-speed dual-clutch transmission was added for 2017.

Acura MDX fuel economy

The 2026 Acura MDX is rated at 19 to 22 MPG combined by the EPA, depending on the version. Every year and engine will be on its own MPG page.

Crash test stars

NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program gave the Acura MDX these overall ratings (out of 5) for the model years it tested: 2011: 5, 2012: 4, 2013: 4, 2014: 5, 2015: 5, 2016: 5, 2017: 5, 2018: 5, 2019: 5, 2020: 5, 2022: 5, 2023: 5, 2024: 5. Ratings can differ between body styles and drive types of the same year.

Questions