2017 Acura MDX
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Engine is the leading concern among 255 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 2nd highest complaint count among 24 MDX model years with reports.
Of the 2017 reports, 7 involved a crash and 4 involved a fire. 4 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Structure, frame and membersJun 4, 2026
American Honda Motor Company (Honda) is recalling certain 2016-2022 Honda Pilot, 2017-2023 Ridgeline, 2019-2023 Passport, and 2014-2020 Acura MDX vehicles that were sold in Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, or Wisconsin. The rear subframe may corrode at the suspension mounting points, which can result in rear suspension component failure.
Failure of rear suspension components, such as the rear control arm, can cause a loss of vehicle handling and control, increasing the risk of a crash or injury.
Dealers will inspect the rear subframe and install a rear subframe reinforcement kit and, as necessary, repair or replace the rear subframe components, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed July 27, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the final remedy is available, anticipated in the fall of 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are AOU and AOT. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning June 10, 2026.
Campaign 26V365000 on NHTSA.gov
Air bags, sensor, occupant classification, front passengerMay 21, 2026
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 Acura TLX, 2019-2024 RDX, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 MDX, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 Honda Ridgeline, 2017-2022 Pilot, 2019-2021 Passport, 2018-2026 Odyssey, 2019-2022 Insight, 2019-2021 HR-V, 2018-2020 Fit, 2020-2022 CR-V Hybrid, 2017-2022 CR-V, 2017-2018, 2021 Civic Type R, 2017-2021 Civic hatchback, 2016-2020 Civic coupe, 2016-2022 Civic, 2017-2022 Accord Hybrid, and 2016-2022 Accord vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, which can cause the air bags to deploy unintentionally during a crash.
Air bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.
Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 7, 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are BOL, WO9, OOA, WOM, XOH, NOC, POD, BOE, UOF, POB, EOG, AOI, QO8, TOJ, DO7, and SOK. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 24V064. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning May 29, 2026.
Campaign 26V332000 on NHTSA.gov
Exterior lightingApr 17, 2025
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2014-2020 Acura MDX vehicles. Moisture may enter the tailgate lid light assembly and wiring harness, which can cause the interior and exterior lights to fail, including the lid lights, position lights, license plate lights and taillights.
Vehicle lights that fail to illuminate can decrease visibility and increase the risk of a crash.
Dealers will inspect the wiring and install a fuse harness, replace the lid light, and repair the body dust sealer, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 30, 2025. Owners may contact Acura's customer service at 1-800-382-2238. Acura's number for this recall is FLI. Vehicles included in this recall that were previously repaired under NHTSA recall number 19V-256 will need to have the new remedy completed.
Campaign 25V259000 on NHTSA.gov
Fuel system, gasoline, delivery, fuel pumpDec 18, 2023
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2013-2023 Honda Accord, Civic Coupe, Civic Sedan, Civic Hatchback, Civic Type R, CR-V, HR-V, Ridgeline, Odyssey, Acura ILX, MDX, MDX Hybrid, RDX, RLX, TLX, 2019-2022 Honda Insight, Passport, 2020 Honda CR-V Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda Clarity PHEV, Fit, and 2015-2020 Honda Accord Hybrid, Pilot, Acura NSX vehicles. The fuel pump inside the fuel tank may fail.
Fuel pump failure can cause an engine stall while driving, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will replace the fuel pump module, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed September 6, 2024. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are KGC and KGD. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall numbers 21V-215 and 20V-314.
Campaign 23V858000 on NHTSA.gov
Engine and engine cooling, engine, hard parts internal/mechanicalNov 13, 2023
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2015-2020 Acura TLX, 2016-2020 Acura MDX, 2016 and 2018-2019 Pilot, 2017 and 2019 Ridgeline, and 2018-2019 Odyssey vehicles. Due to a manufacturing error, the connecting rod bearing in the engine may wear and seize, damaging the engine.
A damaged engine may run improperly or stall while driving, increasing the risk of a fire, crash, or injury.
Dealers will inspect and repair, or replace the engine as necessary, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed March 28, 2024. 2016-2017 Acura MDX owner letters were mailed November 1, 2024. 2016-2020 Acura MDX owner letters are expected to be mailed in mid-December 2024. Honda began mailing owner notification letters as of March 18, 2024. 2015-2016 Acura owner letters are expected to be mailed mid-December 2024, 2018 Acura TLX owner letters are expected to be mailed the end of March/early April 2024, 2019 Acura TLX owner letters are expected to be mailed mid-May 2024, 2020 Acura TLX owner letters are expected to be mailed mid-June 2024, and 2016-2020 Acura MDX owner letters are expected to be mailed January 27, 2025. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for these recalls are XG1 and GG0.
Campaign 23V751000 on NHTSA.gov
Exterior lighting, tail lightsMar 28, 2019
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2014-2019 Acura MDX and 2017-2019 Acura MDX Sport Hybrid vehicles. Moisture may enter the tailgate lid lights, possibly causing a loss of the tailgate lid lights and the taillights.
Loss of the taillights reduces the vehicle's visibility, increasing the risk of crash.
Acura will notify owners, and dealers will modify the tailgate lid lights and install updated gaskets and a wiring sub-harness or will replace both tailgate lid lights. The repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began May 7, 2019. Owners may contact Acura customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Acura's number for this recall is M49.
Campaign 19V256000 on NHTSA.gov
Fuel system, other, delivery, fuel pumpJan 29, 2019
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Acura MDX, 2015-2019 Acura TLX and 2015-2017 Honda Accord vehicles, equipped with a 3.5L V6 engine. Particulates in fuel may adhere to the internal components of the fuel pump, reducing its performance.
Reduced fuel pump performance can result in an engine stall, increasing the risk of crash.
Honda will notify owners, and dealers will update the fuel injection engine control unit (FI-ECU) software and, if necessary, replace the fuel pump, free of charge. The recall began March 25, 2019. Owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Acura's recall number for this recall is P3W. Honda's recall number for this recall is N3X.
Campaign 19V060000 on NHTSA.gov
Service brakes, hydraulic, foundation components, disc, caliperNov 1, 2018
Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Acura MDX, 2017-2018 Acura MDX Sport Hybrid, 2018-2019 Honda HR-V and Honda Odyssey, and 2016 Honda HR-V vehicles. The rear brake caliper pistons may have an insufficient coating, causing gas pockets to form, reducing brake performance. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 135, "Light Vehicle Brake Systems."
A reduction of braking performance increases the risk of a crash.
Owners will be notified, and Honda or Acura dealers will bleed the brakes, free of charge. The recall began December 11, 2018. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are C31 and L30.
Campaign 18V777000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints: service brakes
20 reports, newest first. Show all
Service brakes, Oct 29, 2025
I was stopped, my vehicle brake stopped working after being stopped on a road at a traffic light behind a semi truck. My vehicle crawled slowly forward, it would not stop (like the car wash pace). My brake would not work, I tried putting car in park to stop it moving. It proceeded to ram into the semi in front of me and keep trying to go forward until the light turned green and the semi drove away at that point I was able to drive my car and pull off the road and my brake began to work when I pulled off. It completely stopped working when I was on a busy road and caused the accident. It could have been much worse if I was not stopped already.
Electrical system, Service brakes, Engine, Jun 13, 2025
I was driving on the road and an electronic parking error light came up, along with emissions error. I pulled over to the side and I could not start the vehicle and the gears won’t shift
Electrical system, Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Feb 23, 2025
There are warning lights for all safety modules, The LKAS, Headlight warning system accident prevention system, collision avoidance system etc..
Electrical system, Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Jan 27, 2025
There is an active recall on the brake calipers and fuel pump for Acura Mdx 2017, and Hondas. My Acura Mdx 2017 has the same issues with a code of p07e4, which is the brake calipers. When looking up the recall of my car, there is no recall on it when inserting the VIN. My car is an Acura Mdx 2017; I do not understand why it is not included in the recall when it should.
Electrical system, Service brakes, Fuel/propulsion system, Jan 15, 2024
While driving the car started to loose momentum and began stuttering until finally stopping abruptly and applying the electronic braking system. All warning alarms were illuminated on the dash. I was not even able to pull over completely off the road either putting me and my family in danger from not being off the road. Acura dealership service center informed me it was a bad high pressure fuel pump located on the engine block itself. There are recalls for this exact part neginnibg from 2018 on the acura MDX model. My model is a 2017 making me wonder if the recall should include earlier year models of acura mdx.
Electrical system, Service brakes, Lane departure, Jul 21, 2023
Driving in rain and multiple systems failed at once without any reason. Car indicates brake systems, lane assistance, power steering, collision mitigation, stability control, etc all indicate problems. No reason for it to all go out at once.
Service brakes, Jul 18, 2022
When applying brakes, irrespective of speed at which I am traveling, I experience a distinct vibration/judder in the front brakes when applying the brakes on my 2017 Acura MDX.
Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Feb 24, 2022
This morning I read that you were investigating the automatic braking for certain Honda models. I have had this same thing happen with my 2017 Acura MDX several times over the past few years. I would be driving (not following another car), and my car would suddenly brake and flash "Brake" on the screen, without my doing anything. Both times, I attributed the issue to driving into a bright sun, but I am not sure. It did not cause an accident and it was not a big deal, but the last time (about 3 months ago) I remember braking and being nervous about someone else read ending me...when I tried to accelerate I was unable to do so.
Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Jan 8, 2022
Cruise control set to 37 mph, vehicle accelerates to almost 50 mph on downhill without braking.
Service brakes, Nov 21, 2021
The vehicle put emission system and electronic parking brake warning lights on panel, allowed vehicle to be placed in drive "D", then suddenly switched to a flashing "P," stalled in parking lot, and would not allow the vehicle to be changed to any other gear.
Electrical system, Service brakes, Engine, Oct 14, 2021
While driving suddenly all error warnings came up. It included Check Engine Light, Error messages included: Electronic Braking System error, Emission System error. The light indicative of parking P! kept blinking also the (P) came up on the dashboard. Interestingly after some time this all cleared on its own. Then came back again only this time it stayed on. I don't know if this has compromised the safety features of the vehicle including emergency braking (crash avoidance/vehicle proximity)
Electrical system, Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Apr 2, 2021
WHILE DRIVING ON NORMAL ROAD WITH NO OTHER CARS AROUND, THE EMERGENCY BRAKING SYSTEM/FORWARD COLLISION ACTIVATED AND IMMEDIATELY STOPPED MY CAR WITH NO DANGER PRESENT. THIS RESULTED IN THE CAR BEHIND ME SWERVE TO AVOID HITTING ME IN THE REAR. NO WARNING LIGHTS WERE ON THE DASH OR NO AUDIBLE WARNING EITHER. THIS SEEMS TO BE A MALFUNCTION IN THE SYSTEM.
Electrical system, Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Mar 18, 2021
INCIDENT #2 DRIVING DOWN CITY STREET APPROACHING AN INTERSECTION. NO CAR IN FRONT AND NO CAR BEHIND. IN THE MIDDLE OF THE INTERSECTION THE CAR AUTO BRAKES TO A COMPLETE STOP BEFORE RELEASING BACK TO NORMAL. IF A CAR WERE BEHIND ME I WOULD HAVE MOST SURELY BEEN REAR ENDED.
Electrical system, Vehicle speed control, Service brakes, Sep 26, 2019
SINCE OWNERS AND ON 4 SPECIFIC OCCASIONS. WHILE DRIVING AT HIGH SPEED UPON ACCELERATION AT 70 MPH AUTO WENT DEAD. LOST ALL POWER. AFTER EIGHT MINUTES AUTO RESTARTED. 9 MONTHS AGO, WHILE PLACED INTO REVERES TO AUTO SELF ACCELERATED T HIGH SPEED. AFTER BRAKES APPLIED AND VEHICLE PLACED INTO DRIVE VEHICLE ACCELERATED AT A HGH RATE OF SPEED. LOCK BRAKES PUT VEHICLE INTO NEUTRAL RESTARTED. ONE MONTH AGO WHILE TURNING LEFT INTO TRAFFIC AT A MAJOR INTERSECTION, CAR BRAKES APPLIED AWAITING LEFT TURN AGAINST TRAFFIC. WENT TO ACCELERATE, CAR DASH LIGHTS WENT WILD ALL BEGIN BLING RAPIDLY, DASH WENT BLACK, ABS BRAKES AND BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO FLOOR CAR WENT BY ITSELF INTO NEUTRAL. TOOK OVER 8 MINUTES TO RESTART. ON 9/24.19 TUESDAY AT 1:41 PM WHILE TRAVELING WEST BOUND ON INTERSTATE 90, AT 74 MPH WHILE PASSING A SEMI TRUCK AS I PASSED THE TRUCK, WITH A CLEAR DISTANCE AND PROCEEDED TO TURN INTO THE RIGHT DRIVING LANE IN FRONT OF THE TRUCK AS I PULLED RIGHT THE VEHICLE DASH WENT BLACK, THE ABS AND BRAKE PEDDLE WENT TO THE FLOOR AND THE CAR DECELERATED RAPIDLY FROM 74 TO 50 MPH WITHIN A SECOND. THE SEMI LOCKED THE BRAKES TO AVOID A SERIOUS REAR END COLLISION. AS I REACHED 50 MPH THE DASH RE LITE AND ALL INSTRUMENTATION APPEAR TO FUNCTION AND AS I PUSHED DOWN ON THE ACCELERATOR THE VEHICLE REGAINED SPEED. I CAN REPORT PERHAPS 15 TO 20 OTHER MAJOR ITEMS WITH COLLISION AVOIDANCE AND ELECTRONIC DASH ABNORMALITIES. THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN IN THE ACURA SHOP MINIMALLY 15 TO 20 TIMES OVER 24 MONTHS TO NO AVAIL. ACURA REPORTS SOFTWARE UPDATES OR BAD BATTERY CAUSING LOW VOLTAGE SIGNALS. THIS VEHICLE IS DANGEROUS AND IF NOT ADDRESSED WILL CAUSE DEATH.
Electrical system, Vehicle speed control, Service brakes, Sep 9, 2019
SPEED CONTROL WOULD NOT ENGAGE. THIS HAS HAPPENED BEFORE. AUTO BRAKES ENGAGED WHILE DRIVING DOWN CITY STREET AT 40 MPH IN OUTSIDE LANE OF 4 LANE ROAD. NO CARS IN FRONT OR IMMEDIATELY TO MY LEFT. FORTUNITLY THERE WERE NO CARS/TRUCKS BEHIND ME. CAR CAME TO SUDDENED STOP ENGAGING THE SEAT BELTS. AFTER STOPPING I PUT PUT ON GAS AGAIN AND DROVE 2 MORE BLOCKS BEFORE I PARKED CAR FOR 2+ HOURS. CALLED DEALERSHIP & DROVE TO SERVICE DEPARTMENT FOR REPAIR. DEALER KEPT CAR OVERNIGHT AND SAID THERE WERE NO ISSUES THEY COULD FIND BY DRIVING OR CHECKING DIAGNOSTIC COMPUTER RECORDS. SO THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO. THESE ELECTRICAL ISSUES HAVE APPEARED AND COULD NOT BE DUPLICATED IN THE PAST 20 MONTHS......1 - SUDDENDED EMERGENCY BRAKING - 1X, SPEED CONTROL NOT ENGAGING - 3 TIMES, PASSENGER SIDE MIRROR NOT CLOSING - 10+ TIMES, CAR LOCKING OR NOT UNLOCKING DOORS WITH KEY INSIDE CAR - 3 TIMES. ONCE WILL AT AIRPORT AND WITH CAR RUNNING.
Service brakes, Engine, May 2, 2019
I HAVE BEEN COMPLAINING FOR TWO YEARS THAT MY CAR INTERMITTENTLY HESITATES WHEN ACCELERATING. I HAVE PULLED OUT INTO TRAFFIC AND MY CAR HAS HESITATED LONG ENOUGH THAT I'VE ALMOST GOT SLAMMED IN THE BACK BY ANOTHER CAR. THE CAR FEELS LIKE IT IS ABOUT TO STALL. I WILL PRESS THE GAS PEDAL DOWN TO THE FLOOR AND FINALLY THE CAR STARTS MOVING AGAIN. BROUGHT THE CAR IN ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS TO ACURA AND SINCE THEY COULD NOT REPRODUCE THE HESITATION, THEY DECIDED THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE CAR. ANOTHER ISSUE I'VE HAD IS WITH MY BRAKES. AT 13,000 MILES BOTH OF MY FRONT BRAKES WERE WORN DOWN TO THE METAL. WHEN I BROUGHT THE CAR IN, IT WAS NOTED THAT BOTH CALIPERS SEIZED. THE BRAKES AND CALIPERS WERE REPLACED. ABOUT 14,000 MILES LATER, MY RIGHT FRONT BRAKE WAS DOWN TO THE METAL. MY LEFT FRONT BRAKE WAS FINE. AFTER KEEPING MY CAR FOR A WEEK AND CONSULTING WITH THE ENGINEERS IN CALIFORNIA, ACURA DECIDED THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE BRAKES AND THAT IT WAS MY DRIVING. I ASKED HOW I ONLY PUT THE RIGHT FRONT BRAKE ON AND NOT THE LEFT. THEY DID NOT HAVE AN ANSWER. BUT BECAUSE THEY COULDN'T FIND ANYTHING WRONG, I HAD TO REPLACE BOTH BRAKES AGAIN.
Vehicle speed control, Service brakes, Sep 7, 2018, crash
ON AUGUST 21, 2018 I PULLED INTO A PARKING STALL, AND REALIZED I WAS NOT ALIGNED PROPERLY. I CLICKED ON REVERSE SO THAT I COULD REALIGN WITHIN MY DESIGNATED SPACE, AND THE CAR LUNGED FORWARD JUMPING THE CURB AND HITTING THE BUILDING APPROXIMATELY 4-5 FEET IN FRONT OF ME. BOTH DRIVER SIDE AIRBAGS DEPLOYED. $13,000 WORTH OF DAMAGE TO MY CAR. WITHIN THE FIRST WEEK OF GETTING THIS CAR IS 2017, I'VE HAD MANY ISSUES SUCH AS FAILURE TO START AND BRAKE WARNING LIGHT COMING ON RANDOMLY WHILE DRIVING. HAD TO HAVE THE VEHICLE TOWED AT LEAST 3X TO THE DEALER, FOR WHICH THEY COULD NOT REPLICATE THE ISSUES.
Electrical system, Service brakes, Jun 5, 2018
SUDDEN UNEXPECTED BREAKING OF VEHICLE. THE VEHICLES COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEM KICKED IN AND BREAKED FROM 30 MPH TO A COMPLETE STOP FOR NO REASON. THERE WAS NO VEHICLE OR OBJECT IN FRONT OF MY VEHICLE. CLEAR DRY DAY. TRAVELING ON A 4 LANE LOCAL ROADWAY. THE CONSUMER STATED THE DEALERSHIP ADVISED THE E-Z PASS TOLL TRANSPONDER, WHICH IS PLACED AT THE TOP OF THE WINDSHIELD, CAUSED AN INTERFERENCE WITH THE COLLISION AVOIDANCE SYSTEM. THE CONSUMER FOUND THAT DIFFICULT TO BELIEVE. *JS
Service brakes, Dec 1, 2017, crash
WE WERE TRAVELING ON A THREE-LANE ROAD (CENTER TURN LANE) IN OUR 2017 ACURA MDX GOING APPROXIMATELY 35 MPH AND FOLLOWING THE VEHICLE IN FRONT OF US AT THE NORMAL 4-CAR LENGTH DISTANCE. THE CAR IN FRONT OF US SIGNALED FOR A RIGHT TURN OFF THE MAIN ROAD AND BEGAN TO SLOW. I APPLIED OUR BRAKES TO SLOW AS WELL. WE WERE STILL AT LEAST 3 CAR LENGTHS BEHIND WHEN THE CAR IN FRONT OF US TURNED OFF THE MAIN ROAD. I MOVED MY FOOT OFF THE BRAKE TO ACCELERATE BACK TO THE NORMAL SPEED. THE COLLISION MITIGATION BRAKING SYSTEM ACTIVATED, BRINGING OUR VEHICLE TO A SUDDEN STOP IN TRAFFIC. THE VEHICLE THAT HAD MADE THE RIGHT TURN WAS COMPLETELY OFF THE MAIN ROAD WHEN OUR BRAKE SYSTEM ACTIVATED. WE WERE REAR-ENDED BY A JEEP WRANGLER TRAVELING AT OR NEAR THE SPEED LIMIT. OUR VEHICLE WAS TOTALED. I WANT TO NOTE THAT THIS WAS NOT A CASE OF US FOLLOWING TOO CLOSELY OR APPROACHING TOO FAST! OUR MDX HAD 9,256 MILES ON IT, AND THERE HAD BEEN NO PRIOR PROBLEMS OR WARNINGS. WE HAD NO IDEA THAT THE ELECTRONIC BRAKE SYSTEM COULD ACTIVATE WITHOUT CAUSE AND BRING THE VEHICLE TO A COMPLETE STOP!
Service brakes, Feb 17, 2017, crash
GOING ABOUT 20 MILES AN HOUR IN TRAFFIC A VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME AT A DISTANCE OF ABOUT 2 CAR LENGTHS STARTED TO TURN RIGHT INTO A GAS STATION LOT UNEXPECTEDLY. THE AUTOMATIC BRAKING SYSTEM DETECTED A POTENTIAL FOR COLLISION AND WARNED ME. I PRESSED THE BRAKE PEDAL AND SLOWLY ATTEMPTED TO APPLY THE BRAKES AS THE SITUATION WAS NOT CRITICAL. THE CRITICAL BRAKE INDICATOR DID NOT GO AWAY, AND THE CAR IMMEDIATELY FELT AS THOUGH IT DEPRESSED THE BREAK FULLY AS IF A COLLISION WAS IMMINENT. THE DRIVER BEHIND ME WAS FOLLOWING VERY CLOSE AND COLLIDED WITH ME. THOUGH THE ACCIDENT WAS PROBABLY UNAVOIDABLE, I FEEL THE ACURA OVERESTIMATED THE URGENCY TO STOP GIVEN THE DISTANCE OF THE VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME AND THE SPEED AT WHICH WE WERE MOVING.