Acura MDX Years to Avoid — and the Years to Buy
Every Acura MDX model year from 2001 to 2026, benchmarked against each other with 4,623 federal complaints, 45 recall campaigns, and the odometer readings owners put in their reports.
Avoid: 2016–2017. These years top the MDX's complaint rankings by volume and severity.
Safer bets: 2008–2010, 2013 — the quietest years with at least four years on the road.
The method in one line: every NHTSA complaint for this model is counted, weighted for crashes, fires, injuries, and deaths, and each year is measured against the MDX's own worst year — full methodology.
Under investigation. Federal regulators currently have 4 open defect investigations on the Acura MDX.
Component: ENGINE
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received 414 reports of connecting rod bearing failures in the 3.5L V6 engine used in the following vehicles: Model Years (MY) 2018-2020 Acura TLX, MY2016-2020 Acura MDX, MY2016-2020 Honda Pilot, MY2018-2020 Honda Odyssey, and MY2017-2019 Honda…
Component: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:CRANK/CAMSHAFT POSITION SENSOR
On June 3, 2022, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Preliminary Evaluation PE22005 after the agency received VOQs and several field reports concerning the Auto Idle Stop (AIS) feature on 2016-2019MY Honda Pilot vehicles. The complaints allege that the engine fails to restart on its…
Model years named: 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
Component: AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:DRIVER SIDE:INFLATOR MODULE
From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade,…
Component: AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE14-016 in June 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.All six vehicles were operated in Florida or Puerto Rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their…
An investigation is not a recall; it may close with no action. All open investigations →
The trouble strip
One cell per model year. The whole answer in one glance — click any year for the full report.
The defining problem
Transmission & drivetrain tops the Acura MDX file with 968 complaints, concentrated in the 2001–2005, 2016 model years, most often reported around 79,914 miles. The year pages break down what fails and when.
Every year, ranked
| Year | Verdict | Complaints | Recalls | Top problem | Trouble index |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Few reports | 9 | 1 | — | 1 |
| 2025 | Too early to call | 147 | 3 | Engine | 28 |
| 2024 | Too early to call | 65 | 2 | Electrical | 14 |
| 2023 | Typical | 57 | 2 | — | 12 |
| 2022 | Below average | 209 | 2 | Transmission & drivetrain | 44 |
| 2020 | Below average | 355 | 8 | Engine | 61 |
| 2019 | Below average | 306 | 9 | Engine | 58 |
| 2018 | Below average | 284 | 10 | Driver assistance | 54 |
| 2017 | Avoid | 387 | 8 | Engine | 75 |
| 2016 | Avoid | 522 | 7 | Engine | 100 |
| 2015 | Typical | 98 | 8 | Electrical | 25 |
| 2014 | Below average | 248 | 9 | Electrical | 57 |
| 2013 | Better year | 46 | 1 | Electrical | 10 |
| 2012 | Typical | 101 | 1 | Engine | 22 |
| 2011 | Typical | 87 | 0 | Engine | 22 |
| 2010 | Better year | 63 | 1 | Electrical | 19 |
| 2009 | Better year | 76 | 0 | Electrical | 19 |
| 2008 | Better year | 62 | 1 | — | 12 |
| 2007 | Typical | 126 | 1 | Electrical | 25 |
| 2006 | Typical | 121 | 11 | Transmission & drivetrain | 31 |
| 2005 | Below average | 244 | 13 | Transmission & drivetrain | 62 |
| 2004 | Below average | 243 | 10 | Transmission & drivetrain | 62 |
| 2003 | Below average | 259 | 13 | Transmission & drivetrain | 56 |
| 2002 | Below average | 242 | 4 | Transmission & drivetrain | 51 |
| 2001 | Below average | 266 | 4 | Transmission & drivetrain | 52 |
Technical service bulletins
Beyond complaints and recalls, 3,193 manufacturer communications — service bulletins, service campaigns, warranty extensions — are on file for the Acura MDX. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.
Browse the Acura MDX TSB list by year →
Questions buyers ask
What Acura MDX years should I avoid?
Federal complaint records point to 2016–2017 as the Acura MDX years to avoid — they drew the highest volume of serious complaints relative to the model's other years.
What is the most common Acura MDX problem?
Transmission & drivetrain tops the Acura MDX file with 968 complaints, concentrated in the 2001–2005, 2016 model years, most often reported around 79,914 miles.
What are the best Acura MDX years to buy used?
The quietest Acura MDX years in federal records are 2008–2010, 2013 — each with at least four years on the road and well-below-average complaint volume for this model.
Every number on this page is a count of records in the federal complaint, recall, and investigation files published by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. Counts cover the Acura MDX only, scored against this model's own worst year — not against other models. Check any specific vehicle's open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.