Acura MDX
Midsize three-row luxury SUV · 2001–present. 50,112 units sold in the US in 2024
How it began
It was created by Acura, Honda's luxury brand, with a North American team: it was the first SUV Acura designed in California, at Honda R&D Americas in Torrance. The exterior design lead was Catalin Matei, who had joined Honda in 1988 and repeated the job on the fourth generation of 2022. Documented engineers include Frank Paluch (first-generation development and development leader of the second), Jason Widmer (off-road and towing capability of the first) and Art St. Cyr. Jim Keller was chief engineer of the third generation and Tom Nguyen global development leader of the fourth. Executive vice president Dick Colliver introduced it to the public.
It was styled in Torrance, California, and developed at Acura's R&D centers in Los Angeles and Ohio. The first two generations were built by Honda of Canada Manufacturing in Alliston, Ontario. From May 2013 the third generation was assembled in Lincoln, Alabama, and on May 31, 2017 the East Liberty, Ohio plant was added. The current fourth generation is built only in East Liberty, Ohio, with engines from Anna, Ohio and transmissions from Tallapoosa, Georgia.
Acura showed the MD-X concept in 2000, and the production MDX reached U.S. dealers on October 5, 2000 as a 2001 model. Before it had been on sale a month, Motor Trend named it the 2001 Sport/Utility of the Year.
Honda explained the name in its 2003 Japanese launch: MDX means Multi Dimension X, a vehicle with multiple advanced features and unknown potential. The U.S. introduction had already called it Multi-Dimensional. X also appears in the RDX, ZDX and ADX names.
Acura set out to offer, in the words of executive vice president Dick Colliver, the first luxury SUV to deliver both the sport and the utility buyers wanted. The answer was a unibody with three rows for seven passengers, the industry's first, with a 240 hp V6 and VTM-4 all-wheel drive that shifted torque before the wheels slipped. Acura expected to sell 35,000 to 40,000 units in the first year.
Generation by generation
- Gen. 12001–2006 · YD1
The first unibody three-row luxury SUV
Photo: IFCAR · Public domain What changed. It was the first SUV Acura designed from the ground up; before it the brand had only sold the SLX, another maker's truck with an Acura badge. It arrived with an all-aluminum 3.5-liter VTEC V6, 240 hp and 245 lb-ft, a five-speed automatic, seven seats with second and third rows that folded flat into the floor, and a projected price in the mid-to-high $30,000s. It met California's ULEV standard at 17/23 mpg. It won 2001 North American Truck of the Year and Motor Trend's Sport/Utility of the Year.
The innovation. VTM-4 (Variable Torque Management) all-wheel drive: an electronic system that sent torque to the rear wheels before the fronts slipped, with a dashboard button to lock maximum rear torque at low speed. All of it on a three-row unibody, the industry's first.
If you buy one usedBy model year, these are 20- to 25-year-old vehicles in 2026, and NHTSA lists several campaigns. The most relevant for daily use: the automatic transmission on certain 2001–2002 MDXs (04V176) could overheat the second gear and lock up, with mileage-dependent inspection, an oil-cooler return-line revision or transmission replacement if overheating discoloration is found. For certain 2001–2002 vehicles sold or registered in the listed road-salt states, front coil springs could corrode and break (05V385). The ignition switch could let the key out without the shifter in Park, letting the vehicle roll away (12V573, 2003–2006 models). The 2001–2006 MDX is also in the Takata airbag inflator recalls (including 19V499 and 19V501). Check by VIN at nhtsa.gov that everything was done and ask for transmission records. The Takata examples 19V499/19V501 concern replacement driver/passenger inflators on certain 2003–2006 MDXs; previous replacement may be the reason another remedy is needed. Separate 20V026/20V027 NADI programs address eligible 2001–2002 vehicles. Confirm the actual inflator history and VIN. - Gen. 22007–2013 · YD2
300 horsepower, SH-AWD and the Nürburgring
Photo: EurovisionNim · CC BY-SA 4.0 What changed. It debuted as the MD-X Concept in New York in April 2006 and arrived that fall. It grew 2.1 inches in length and 2.3 in width on a wheelbase 2 inches longer. The new 3.7-liter V6 made 300 hp and 275 lb-ft, then the most powerful naturally aspirated six in an SUV sold in America. Engineers tuned it at the Nürburgring, benchmarking the BMW X5 and Porsche Cayenne, and the Sport package added magneto-rheological dampers that change firmness in about 5 milliseconds. It was still built in Alliston, Ontario.
The innovation. Standard Super Handling All-Wheel Drive (SH-AWD): besides splitting torque between the axles, it splits it between the two rear wheels and overdrives the outside wheel 1.7 percent faster to help the SUV rotate through a corner. Up to 70 percent of torque can go rearward on a hill climb and up to 90 percent forward while cruising.
If you buy one usedThis generation has the lowest campaign count in the MDX-family NHTSA inventory checked November 2, 2026; that count does not measure severity or reliability. Listed are a missing A-pillar trim attachment bolt that could leave the trim unsecured when the curtain airbag deploys on 2010 MDX built between October and November 2009 (10V002) and a fuel-tank float valve out of specification on 2012 models (12V063). The 2013 MDX is included in the big 2023 fuel pump recall (23V858). These model years are 13 to 19 years before 2026: what matters is the maintenance history, above all of the SH-AWD and the transmission. - Gen. 32014–2020
Built in America, lighter and with front-wheel drive
Photo: Kevauto · CC BY-SA 4.0 What changed. Unveiled in New York on March 27, 2013 on a new platform, 275 pounds lighter and with a wheelbase 2.75 inches longer. The V6 moved to 3.5 liters with direct injection, 290 hp and 267 lb-ft, and for the first time there was a more economical front-wheel-drive version (20/28 mpg). Production left Canada: from May 2, 2013 it was built in Lincoln, Alabama, and East Liberty, Ohio was added on May 31, 2017. The 2017 refresh brought the diamond pentagon grille, standard AcuraWatch and the 321 hp MDX Sport Hybrid with three electric motors.
The innovation. Jewel Eye LED headlights and the driver-assist package now called AcuraWatch: Collision Mitigation Braking, Adaptive Cruise Control with Low-Speed Follow, Lane Keeping Assist and a multi-angle rearview camera, in 2013.
If you buy one usedCheck the selected campaigns by VIN before buying. The most relevant: connecting-rod bearings that could wear and seize the engine on 2016–2020 MDX (23V751; inspection and conditional engine repair or replacement); the low-pressure fuel pump that could fail on 2019–2020 (21V215) and on 2016–2018 3.5-liter models (19V060); the timing belt that could lose teeth on 2018–2019 (19V298); moisture in the tailgate lights that can shut off interior and exterior lights on 2014–2020 (19V256 and 25V259); automatic braking that could trigger on metal guardrails on 2014–2015 (15V301); and, in June 2026, rear subframe corrosion on 2014–2020 MDX in salt-belt states (26V365); confirm current remedy availability and the exact sale-state/VIN conditions with Acura. For 19V060, the published procedure updates injection-control software and conditionally replaces the low-pressure pump. Campaign 19V256 names 2014–2019, while 25V259 extends through 2020 and requires its newer repair even after earlier 19V256 work. - Gen. 42022–present
Acura's flagship, built in Ohio
Photo: Mr.choppers · CC BY-SA 3.0 What changed. Unveiled December 8, 2020 as the brand's new flagship, on a new light-truck platform with a wheelbase 2.8 inches longer and 6.4 more cubic feet of passenger room. It kept the 290 hp 3.5-liter V6 but swapped the nine-speed for a ten-speed automatic and introduced double-wishbone front suspension, a first for the MDX. Production began in East Liberty, Ohio on January 12, 2021 and it reached dealers on February 2 from $46,900. In March 2021 it set the all-time monthly sales record for an Acura SUV with more than 7,500 units. The 2025 refresh added a 12.3-inch touchscreen with Google built-in and Bang & Olufsen audio.
The innovation. The 2022 MDX Type S: the first Acura SUV to wear the Type S badge, with a 3.0-liter turbo V6 making 355 hp and 354 lb-ft built in Anna, Ohio, Brembo front brakes and Acura's first air suspension. The fourth-generation SH-AWD has 40 percent more rear torque capacity and transfers torque 30 percent faster than before.
If you buy one usedFew campaigns so far. NHTSA lists that on 2023–2025 MDX the brake pedal pivot pin could be improperly secured and the pedal shift out of position (25V391, letters mailed July 2025) and, in May 2026, a recall for the front passenger occupant classification sensor covering 2022–2026 MDX (26V332). IIHS awarded the 2022 MDX Top Safety Pick+ under its 2021 award criteria; its 2025 award table lists the 2025–2026 MDX as Top Safety Pick. Check both recalls by VIN. These are selected examples; confirm every applicable campaign and its completion by VIN.
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