Overview & Reviews

The Acura MDX is a midsize luxury SUV with a carlike unibody platform and three rows of seats. The original MDX bowed in 2001, at a time when most competitors still featured body-on-frame construction and the term "crossover" was but a glimmer in some marketer's eye. Since then, Acura has maintained the MDX's family-friendly packaging, including standard seven-passenger seating, while spicing up the recipe with various styling, performance and handling enhancements. In typical Acura fashion, every MDX comes well equipped, with options generally limited to a few choice features bundled into packages.

New or used, the Acura MDX stands out for its comfort, versatility and refinement. It's one of our top recommendations for a family-oriented luxury crossover SUV. In reviews, we've found the MDX to be a polished performer, as it remains one of the more engaging luxury crossovers to drive and also provides a commendably supple ride. Weak points include cramped third-row accommodations for adults and less sumptuous interior appointments than in some rivals, though the MDX's strong resale value offers ample compensation.

User Reviews:

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  Awsome Car! - 2004 Acura MDX
  By susieqz - October 10 - 2:00 am

  This car has got to be the best I have ever owned. I love everything about it. It drives like a dream. The sound system is great. The cabin is quiet. The seats are comfortable. It does just as advertised on gas mileage--even when using less than premium. It has every gadget I could ever want.

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  Solid SUV - 2009 Acura MDX
  By Will - October 6 - 7:36 am

  We bought our first MDX in Dec 08. 5400 miles later, my wife was T-Boned on the drivers side at a major intersection. The front/side airbags deployed and there was some $20K in damage. I must say I was impressed to the way the vehicle took the direct hit, thus protecting my wife from any serious injury. The other vehicle was totaled. Based on the location, and speed of the vehicle that hit our MDX, this little thing really took it well. We got it fixed and bought another one. They may be pricey, but they sure are safe and dependable.

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  MDX - 2002 Acura MDX
  By Mark Morrison - October 2 - 10:00 am

  Absolutely excellent in every manner possible.

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  Nice Vehicle - 2004 Acura MDX
  By tfmeisen - September 29 - 10:57 am

  I decided that I wanted a luxury SUV. I drove several different types and I believe that the Acura MDX is one of the best vehicles for your money on the market today. It has the size, and space of an SUV, but rides like a luxury car. The interior is plush and the features are great and easy to use. I had every option except for the navigation and DVD player. It had plenty of power and still got good gas mileage, on a long trip I could get over 22 mpg which is incredible considering the size. The only problems I had: the cruise control broke, and I somehow broke the front motor mount and it was expensive. The other downside is the vehicle has to be serviced by Acura for most things.

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  Great choice for our family - 2009 Acura MDX
  By No1UKnow - September 29 - 7:24 am

  After 6000 miles this summer, Im extremely pleased with our MDX. I really wanted a station wagon with a 3rd row seat and this was our best option. Great leg room for the kids in the second row and Ive ridden in the 3rd row. Love the NAV. Easy to use. Bluetooth actually understands me! Love how stable and responsive the car is. Plenty of power when I need it on the highway. Tons of cargo space. Even with every seat in use, plenty of room for backpacks behind the 3rd row. Didnt want a minivan and I feel like weve finally found the perfect family car. I often take 300 mile+ trips by myself with the kids and I feel very safe in the car. I occasionally let my husband drive!

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  Great, responsive car. Terrible interface. - 2016 Acura MDX
  By G. Adams - September 22 - 12:49 am

  Before buying, I test drove a 2016 Pilot EX-L and a 2015 MDX. In my opinion, the MDX felt more agile and responsive than the Pilot, and I preferred the MDXs interior and exterior styling over the Pilot. The Good: Car handles incredibly well. Accelerates, turns, and brakes superbly. If youre looking for a three-row SUV, I cant think of anything that would come even close to the same level of performance and value, except perhaps a Pilot. The only other option I considered was the Volvo XC90, but it would cost around 25-30% more, and although I greatly prefer the Volvos interior and user interface, my friends with Volvos have had issues with reliability. Audi Q7 also looks great, but again price and reliability issues steered me away. So, from a price-performance-reliability standard, the MDX is very hard to beat. I took the MDX on a curvy, secluded mountain highway, and it was truly the most thrilling drive Ive ever had. Im happy with the car. The Bad: The user interface is disgraceful. Acuras worst yet, and thats saying something. Even though the dealer set up the car for my wife and me, my wifes first solo drive in the car had her near tears because of the maddening user interface. For instance, getting the car to accept her phones bluetooth connection instead of mine was crazy complex, and you have to go through two entirely separate menus if you want to transfer both the phone operations and the phones media (e.g., Pandora) from one source to another. Even everyday tasks like turning on the seats heaters, adjusting the A/C, or tinkering with the audio settings (e.g., fade/balance) all take multiple levels of menus, requiring too much of the drivers focus and attention. I sorely miss when I could do any of those things with a single gesture (flip a switch! turn a dial!) without having to take my eyes off the road. Now, I have to find the 1 cm square on the display panel that takes me to the menu to adjust the fan. Then the menu changes, and I have to navigate my hand to the "+" and "-" icons. Even when I know what to do -- which isnt often the case, because the menu system is poorly laid out -- my eyes leave the road for whatd I guess to be about three seconds... just to adjust the fan! Speaking of user interfaces, the displays in the car are terrible. Just plain old washed out and "fuzzy." Im wondering if Acura got a deal on surplus parts from circa 2001. Backup camera quality feels like its made from Soviet-era parts, and the touchpad was probably made from leftover Microsoft Zune panels. Resolution and clarity are shameful. Other annoyances: The glove compartment light apparently only comes on if the headlights are on. I, personally, tend to open the glove compartment when the engine is off, and even if its light outside, the back of my glove compartment is still pretty dark. The chrome trim used all over the center stack reflects the sun like a mirror, creating an annoying and blinding distraction. My wife and I each experienced this independently, so I dont think Im being nit-picky. Look for a recall on this in future months, where your dealer installs non-reflective stickers over the chrome trim to solve this safety issue. ;-) With Acuras button-based transmission system, it seems impossible to park the car, turn off the engine, and keep the radio on. Theres a ridiculous "car wash" mode that lets you turn off the car and keep it in neutral, but good luck remembering the proper sequence of brake, button, and transmission to put it in this mode, and Im still not sure how practical this mode is anyway. Suspension is... bumpy if not jarring. Too much hard plastic. Acura dealer mentioned crazy expensive parts when trying to upsell on warranty. Do headlights really cost $1,100!? Notes on AcuraWatch Plus: AcuraWatch plus is a suite of features like adaptive cruise control and lane keep assist. Unfortunately, it does not include blind spot monitoring. I had great hopes for both adaptive cruise and lane keep assist, but neither seem quite ready for prime time. Adaptive cruise is a little too slow to react, especially when speeding back up either when the car in front accelerates or when you change lanes to go around a slower car. Lane keep assist is at times too aggressive while at other times too oblivious of the cars drifting across lanes. It also seems to continually "test" if the driver is actively steering by subtly turning the wheel slightly back and forth. After a couple of hours of driving, my arms and shoulders were sore from subconsciously fighting these small, constant tugs on the steering wheel. On the other hand, I have had at least one successful driving experience where I let the car do most of the steering while I barely assisted. That was kind of fun, but I dont foresee those opportunities arising often, due to typical traffic and road conditions. Overall: Great car, terrible tech.

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  Extended warranty - 2005 Acura MDX
  By MDX man - September 21 - 9:17 am

  I have this truck for over 4years, I took to dealer at least 5 times for various problem.... Nice design, need to improve quality... Starter, Valve, Transmission, shock-- etc some of the few problems that have with this truck....

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  Great all round SUV - 2003 Acura MDX
  By acuraman12 - September 20 - 2:00 am

  Everything was great about this Vehicle. It rides and drives like an Honda/Acura car product. It has great power with the 260hp engine. Theres no problem accelerating with four people inside. Note that the last 2 seats are good for short trips and are for kids at best. Just one nag. The interior driver door handle came with a defective molding setting but an Acura dealer took car of it without no hassle. I only give "build Quality" a "9" and all others 10. I used to have a 96 Honda Accord EX and it had no problems up to 134,600 miles (sold it afterwards) so I expect this SUV to last.

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  Documented transmission problems - 2003 Acura MDX
  By tom - September 17 - 10:41 pm

  With problem after problem for my 03 MDX I thought I heard it all when local acura dealer informed me that one out of four 01-03 mdxs will need the transmission replaced! This from a so called luxury car? Check the web and youll see its true. Dont buy this year range, cause youll have a 25% chance of failure.

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  what to expect from Honda - 2003 Acura MDX
  By ks - September 15 - 2:00 am

  I have loved this car from day one I owned 2 other Hondas in the past and was extreemely happy with them I am conviced that this MDX will not be any different Still the best looking SUV out there