[djslik]

We recently purchased a 2009 MDX Certified Pre-Owened with less than 23,000 miles on it. We have owned the car for less than 2 weeks and it is primarily my fiances car. I have only driven the car on a few occasions and have already experienced issues with the power steering and the dealerhip replaced our power steering pump under warranty.

So the next day after getting the car back from the dealership I decide that I now want to take this car through its paces to see if I can shake anything else loose in the car. I mainly drive stick shift and the MDX comes with the sport shift mode so I wanted to see how well the MDX accelerates and when the VTEC kicks in.

I get on an open stretch of road and decide to launch the car from a stop and start accelerating through the gears. Im in second gear approaching 5000 rpm when my check emission and check SH-AWD lights come on. I check the SH-AWD screen and I'm only getting power to the 2 front wheels. The red line in this car is closer to 7000 rpm and in all my other vehicles I have been able to hit redline with no real issues and most modern cars will engine cut as soon as you get to redline to prevent damage. I'm not impressed with the vehicle if it can't stand up to simple spirited driving without throwing codes.

After getting home that night I turned off the car and restarted it which cleared the SH-AWD codes, but kept the Check Emission Light on. And now 2 more weird issues showed up.
1. The radio lights did not turn on and this was very apparent because it was pitch black and I couldn't even find the buttons. My headlights were on and all the other interior lights were working. Magically 30 seconds later the radio lights decided to work. Now I'm worried that the radio lights will fail completely in short time.
2. The auto tilt reverse mirror did return to the correct position after placing the gear shift into drive and moving forward. Again I'm afraid that this unit will fail completely in short time.

The car seems to have too many bugs for me to consider it a reliable car. I have an engineering background and I like to follow the KISS method (Keep It Simple Stupid). I understand that the features and benefits this car offers appeals to their target market, but from a pure reliability and design standpoint this car has too many points of failure. With all the extra features like reverse tilt mirrors, that is just another point of failure either the motor or the electronic board controlling it will eventually fail. I know that this is not unique to Acura and applies to most if not all luxury brands, but I was hoping that Acura would have less of this issues due to its high praise as a reliable entry level luxury SUV compared to the likes of BMW, Audi, Lexus and so forth.

If we continue to experience many more failures within the next six months I will have to say goodbye to the MDX. I really want to like this car, but as of right now I can't say too many good things.

 

[Bill_de]

"2. The auto tilt reverse mirror did return to the correct position after placing the gear shift into drive and moving forward. Again I'm afraid that this unit will fail completely in short time."

Are you saying it worked properly so you figure it will fail?

You have to figure when you buy a late model, low mileage, used car that it might have been dumped because of problems. Since you bought a CPO they will probably get everything fixed.

Then again, my 2011 which was purchased new has been back 5 times for three different warranty issues. Thankfully, nothing too serious.

 

[Troy123]

We recently purchased a 2009 MDX Certified Pre-Owened with less than 23,000 miles on it. We have owned the car for less than 2 weeks and it is primarily my fiances car. I have only driven the car on a few occasions and have already experienced issues with the power steering and the dealerhip replaced our power steering pump under warranty.

So the next day after getting the car back from the dealership I decide that I now want to take this car through its paces to see if I can shake anything else loose in the car. I mainly drive stick shift and the MDX comes with the sport shift mode so I wanted to see how well the MDX accelerates and when the VTEC kicks in.

I get on an open stretch of road and decide to launch the car from a stop and start accelerating through the gears. Im in second gear approaching 5000 rpm when my check emission and check SH-AWD lights come on. I check the SH-AWD screen and I'm only getting power to the 2 front wheels. The red line in this car is closer to 7000 rpm and in all my other vehicles I have been able to hit redline with no real issues and most modern cars will engine cut as soon as you get to redline to prevent damage. I'm not impressed with the vehicle if it can't stand up to simple spirited driving without throwing codes.

After getting home that night I turned off the car and restarted it which cleared the SH-AWD codes, but kept the Check Emission Light on. And now 2 more weird issues showed up.
1. The radio lights did not turn on and this was very apparent because it was pitch black and I couldn't even find the buttons. My headlights were on and all the other interior lights were working. Magically 30 seconds later the radio lights decided to work. Now I'm worried that the radio lights will fail completely in short time.
2. The auto tilt reverse mirror did return to the correct position after placing the gear shift into drive and moving forward. Again I'm afraid that this unit will fail completely in short time.

The car seems to have too many bugs for me to consider it a reliable car. I have an engineering background and I like to follow the KISS method (Keep It Simple Stupid). I understand that the features and benefits this car offers appeals to their target market, but from a pure reliability and design standpoint this car has too many points of failure. With all the extra features like reverse tilt mirrors, that is just another point of failure either the motor or the electronic board controlling it will eventually fail. I know that this is not unique to Acura and applies to most if not all luxury brands, but I was hoping that Acura would have less of this issues due to its high praise as a reliable entry level luxury SUV compared to the likes of BMW, Audi, Lexus and so forth.

If we continue to experience many more failures within the next six months I will have to say goodbye to the MDX. I really want to like this car, but as of right now I can't say too many good things.

Welcome to the true world of the X
one comfort is, since its a CPO, you have one whole year to run after the dealer and fix all the stuff..if you have the patience and the luck the issues may be resolved to your satisfaction ...else say goodbye
I myself bought a CPO and had/have several issues..you will eventually learn to live with them if you decide to keep the vehicle

 

[trimdx]

did you not test drive the car??

every car maker has issues with their cars. the more technology and gizmos we add to cars, the more there is a chance for things to break. has the car left you stranded? no. have some of the creature comforts acted up? sure.

i bought my MDX CPO'd with 25k mi. i'm not new to acura, since i own an 05 TL as well. initial quirks so far with my X, warped brake rotors (noticed within a day or so of buying the car, so i didn't induce the warping), wind noise from my driver's side door (dealer attemtped to fix by replacing weather stripping and realign the door...it has now been dubbed a normal characteristic for THIS car-i have since added my own weather stripping to lessen the noise by 85-90%), a sunroof that won't close from tilt (attempt one, they cleaned and realigned the tracks and glass, as soon as i drove it home...it acted up), a driver's side seat that has a subtle rocking (which will be addressed by replacing the seat tracks when i bring it back in next, along with my sunroof)...these have been the minor annoyances of my MDX. does that tell me the car is not reliable? no it tells me that some of the features have a few issues and need to be fixed.

with my TL...rattles...mirror actuators...other than that not much except wear and tear items. i bought my TL new.

my definition of reliability really revolves around the mechanical aspects of the car to keep it driving. in your case i'm not sure what is up with all the dash lights shooting off, but maybe the X doesn't like to be driven hard in 2nd and its a protective warning. your radio lights...???

maybe you guys bought a bad seed?

 

[concepts99]

I am on my fourth Acura

2008 MDX TECH ENT (bad DVD player)
2009 TL SH AWD (blow speakers)
Now 2011 MDX TECH ENT (bad backup camera)
and 2012 TL SH AWD

I have no problems with my cars. Maybe it is the CPO, or there is a reason why it is CPO (that someone else got rid of their bad apples). All of my cars have been new.

I wouldn't put down the truck and the reliability, especially when the truck did not come new from the factory. You have no idea (even though it is CPO), where the truck was for 22,000 miles. I know for a fact, people will abuse the cars (like do doughnuts, slam on their brakes from 80mph, shift through redline etc), when they are about to trade their cars in and bring it in to sell.

 

[__raj]

I j purchased a 2007 MDX non-CPO on the cheap.

I thought what you did, quirky. I got odd warning, check engine light and loss of memory seats, power windows down on passenger door etc.

The local dealer could not get me in for 1.5 weeks. He suggested going to a local shop to get battery checked as that is what they would do first anyway. New battery for $110 and my car has been flawless since.

 

[djslik]

The car was a lease return and was at the end of lease, but I was starting to think the same thing as you. Previous owner might have just dumped the car.

Yes the reverse tilt mirror was working correctly so this initial quirk has me worried that it might fail soon.

I should go ahead and have the battery checked out at a local auto parts store to see if it's still good. Might just be cheap insurance to get a new battery.

The check SH-AWD light came on 3 more times yesterday during normal acceleration while getting on the freeway. I don't want to race this car, but I NEED the ability to jump on the throttle to get on the freeway due to the really short freeway on ramp that we use everyday.

 

[djslik]

did you not test drive the car??

every car maker has issues with their cars. the more technology and gizmos we add to cars, the more there is a chance for things to break. has the car left you stranded? no. have some of the creature comforts acted up? sure.

i bought my MDX CPO'd with 25k mi. i'm not new to acura, since i own an 05 TL as well. initial quirks so far with my X, warped brake rotors (noticed within a day or so of buying the car, so i didn't induce the warping), wind noise from my driver's side door (dealer attemtped to fix by replacing weather stripping and realign the door...it has now been dubbed a normal characteristic for THIS car-i have since added my own weather stripping to lessen the noise by 85-90%), a sunroof that won't close from tilt (attempt one, they cleaned and realigned the tracks and glass, as soon as i drove it home...it acted up), a driver's side seat that has a subtle rocking (which will be addressed by replacing the seat tracks when i bring it back in next, along with my sunroof)...these have been the minor annoyances of my MDX. does that tell me the car is not reliable? no it tells me that some of the features have a few issues and need to be fixed.

with my TL...rattles...mirror actuators...other than that not much except wear and tear items. i bought my TL new.

my definition of reliability really revolves around the mechanical aspects of the car to keep it driving. in your case i'm not sure what is up with all the dash lights shooting off, but maybe the X doesn't like to be driven hard in 2nd and its a protective warning. your radio lights...???

maybe you guys bought a bad seed?

Yes test drove the car.
1. During day light can not see radio lights
2. Did not have opportunity to peform tight radius u turns or figure 8's.
3. Did not redline a car I did not own yet in front of salesman.

As far as reliability:
1. Yes having an AWD system disconnect several times and become a front wheel drive car would leave me stranded in the snow. Or it might just cause a dangerous accident. If the car can't handle being driven slightly hard then I frankly don't want it. I do not need to baby my car and if the car could not handle the higher rpm range or faster acceleration then it needs to be made clear to the end user. If you read the manual it even states to put the accelerator to the floor to downshift the car in order to gain more acceleration.

2. Power Steering is a major mechanical component of a vehicle. Failure within 25,000 miles is very suspect.

3. Emission systems issues or failures within 25,000 miles. Very big deal for a car in California with our very strict SMOG requirements.

Now in regards to your car:
1. A bad sunroof is either a bad design inherent to the sunroof or shoddy work by the factory during install.
2. Warped brake rotors is a huge concern since the 2 of the most important safety components in your car are your brakes and tires.
3. The weather stripping is subjective to each person in regards to noise so I agree with you.

Do I need to mention the very well known issues with the transmission failures. I know that this is not exclusive to the MDX but it is worth noting.

If I wanted to pay for a luxury car that broke down all the time I would buy a BMW. I could drive a BMW into redline without it blinking an eye.

 

[upstatedoc]

The car was a lease return and was at the end of lease, but I was starting to think the same thing as you. Previous owner might have just dumped the car.

^^This

As others have said, it's CPO, you have a year to nag the dealer to death but really if they had done their job adequately, you wouldn'y be having these issues.

 

[djslik]

I am on my fourth Acura

2008 MDX TECH ENT (bad DVD player)
2009 TL SH AWD (blow speakers)
Now 2011 MDX TECH ENT (bad backup camera)
and 2012 TL SH AWD

I have no problems with my cars. Maybe it is the CPO, or there is a reason why it is CPO (that someone else got rid of their bad apples). All of my cars have been new.

I wouldn't put down the truck and the reliability, especially when the truck did not come new from the factory. You have no idea (even though it is CPO), where the truck was for 22,000 miles. I know for a fact, people will abuse the cars (like do doughnuts, slam on their brakes from 80mph, shift through redline etc), when they are about to trade their cars in and bring it in to sell.

I understand that people might run their cars hard. But doughnuts, hard stopping, and driving into redline should not destroy a car. I have a lot of friends and family that race. I have bought several used motorcycles that were previous track bikes. My cousin is a constant track racer with his Honda Civic. I redline every single one of my vehicles on a regular basis. When I change brake pads and rotors on my vehicles the manufacturer recommended bedding method is to get to speed and perform emergency braking maneuvers i.e locking your wheels and skidding to a stop several times. All my vehicles have high miles with constant abuse and they don't have the issues I'm having with a fairly new MDX. I know that I probably drive this car more aggressively than most people, but it's a great way to see what a car can put up with. So far the MDX can't put up with much.

 

[djslik]

Actually I got lucky and I have 2 years to nag the dealer haha.

And I will perform a full mechanical inspection on this car next week. I'm dumping every fluid in the car to see what condition they are in and will begin my hyper vigilant maintenance schedule. I am very interested in seeing how bad the transmission and differential fluid look after 24,000 miles. After the dealer fixes the current issues I will be putting in a new battery like a previous poster suggested. If can I get the major issues fixed now I hope and pray that I can maintain the car at an acceptable level.

 

[Fabvsix]

go to Sears and get a top of line Interstate battery and be done with all those issues of a failing battery.....:headshake

 

[djslik]

go to Sears and get a top of line Interstate battery and be done with all those issues of a failing battery.....:headshake

Do you think the SH-AWD warning lights are related to battery issues? It would be great if the battery was the root cause of failure.

 

[__raj]

I think you have a thought process not quite right one thing.

You post the MDX cannot put up with hard driving and its causing the problems with Check Engine and SH-AWD etc.

However the reality is your MDX has an underlying issue that only exhibits itself during hard driving.

I feel for you. You probably paid a lot of money for a CPO 2009 and getting issues is not good.

 

[__raj]

Do you think the SH-AWD warning lights are related to battery issues? It would be great if the battery was the root cause of failure.

Every time your vehicle throws a check engine light related error automatically you get SH-AWD turned off. When you restart it allows the SH-AWD to work again that is until you throw a code.

My check engine light was likely coming on due to low battery. As it usually coincided with low power to airbags so shut off and other items. It happened right after I really drained my battery.

I would simply visit your Acura dealer and let them deal with it.

 

[wasjr]

Re the battery, Acura will replace the original battery under warranty anytime during the first four years of service regardless of mileage. I had this done on my 2005.

I agree with the others that you should take up your issues with the dealer. Since you have a CPO, ask to see the inspection checklist that was completed on the vehicle.

 

[djslik]

Just got it back from the dealership and it looks like it was a problem still associated with the bad power steering pump. Now they have it working again and I was able to romp on the gas pedal with no ill effects. I'm glad that for now I can rely on having that extra oomph if/when I need it.

If this is the worst of my issues I think I can deal with it. I'll report back when I have more miles on the car.

Also thanks for the heads up on the battery being covered under warranty.

 

[Guardian Angels]

We recently purchased a 2009 MDX Certified Pre-Owened with less than 23,000 miles on it. We have owned the car for less than 2 weeks and it is primarily my fiances car. I have only driven the car on a few occasions and have already experienced issues with the power steering and the dealerhip replaced our power steering pump under warranty.

So the next day after getting the car back from the dealership I decide that I now want to take this car through its paces to see if I can shake anything else loose in the car. I mainly drive stick shift and the MDX comes with the sport shift mode so I wanted to see how well the MDX accelerates and when the VTEC kicks in.

I get on an open stretch of road and decide to launch the car from a stop and start accelerating through the gears. Im in second gear approaching 5000 rpm when my check emission and check SH-AWD lights come on. I check the SH-AWD screen and I'm only getting power to the 2 front wheels. The red line in this car is closer to 7000 rpm and in all my other vehicles I have been able to hit redline with no real issues and most modern cars will engine cut as soon as you get to redline to prevent damage. I'm not impressed with the vehicle if it can't stand up to simple spirited driving without throwing codes.

After getting home that night I turned off the car and restarted it which cleared the SH-AWD codes, but kept the Check Emission Light on. And now 2 more weird issues showed up.
1. The radio lights did not turn on and this was very apparent because it was pitch black and I couldn't even find the buttons. My headlights were on and all the other interior lights were working. Magically 30 seconds later the radio lights decided to work. Now I'm worried that the radio lights will fail completely in short time.
2. The auto tilt reverse mirror did return to the correct position after placing the gear shift into drive and moving forward. Again I'm afraid that this unit will fail completely in short time.

The car seems to have too many bugs for me to consider it a reliable car. I have an engineering background and I like to follow the KISS method (Keep It Simple Stupid). I understand that the features and benefits this car offers appeals to their target market, but from a pure reliability and design standpoint this car has too many points of failure. With all the extra features like reverse tilt mirrors, that is just another point of failure either the motor or the electronic board controlling it will eventually fail. I know that this is not unique to Acura and applies to most if not all luxury brands, but I was hoping that Acura would have less of this issues due to its high praise as a reliable entry level luxury SUV compared to the likes of BMW, Audi, Lexus and so forth.

If we continue to experience many more failures within the next six months I will have to say goodbye to the MDX. I really want to like this car, but as of right now I can't say too many good things.

We just bought a 2009 MDX with 135,000 for 10,500 and we don't need to discuss that!
The car's interior is excellent and outside a little more updated that others, and the only reason we purchased this vehicle was the year to the mileage and the price to the working order, cleanliness and etc.
The car is stiff on the pedal with the steering and handling as well, plus terrible on gas. The engines performs shity with 300 hp. And a 5 speed quick shift. We know your real problem and that seems to relate a little to ours, you see we have a 2019 Altman with only 180s hp and it has basically no trans from what we have heard, but with a transmission simulated program for the engine and its a rocket from hell, with that gear you want to kick in at any speed up to 130 - 140, hee hee he😍🙂🙃 and thats because its only a 2 wheel drive and not All wheel drive. Basically because of this with additional past racing experience and I practiced hours everyday for years and years, we smoke the crap out of most people in 20 + miles of slalom and straight aways, but most people get up to 110 to maybe 120 mph and think its 150 mph + for a few seconds AND THAT'S OK!, but don't buy that year ( 2019 Altman) because its a piece of Sh it... Get something better, though the engine and simulated trans software is something of Awesomeness!! ( only ) . You can alway try racing NASCAR or smaller indy cars or just try a couple of laps or because of your work background just sep in a flying triangle - TR3 and feel a hyper jump! ( but only if you can get an Arrow package delivered )!!
Thank you for your article,
GOD BLESS YOU

 

[Artbuc1]

Thank-you Professor Corey for your cogent response to a 9 yo post.

We just bought a 2009 MDX with 135,000 for 10,500 and we don't need to discuss that!
The car's interior is excellent and outside a little more updated that others, and the only reason we purchased this vehicle was the year to the mileage and the price to the working order, cleanliness and etc.
The car is stiff on the pedal with the steering and handling as well, plus terrible on gas. The engines performs shity with 300 hp. And a 5 speed quick shift. We know your real problem and that seems to relate a little to ours, you see we have a 2019 Altman with only 180s hp and it has basically no trans from what we have heard, but with a transmission simulated program for the engine and its a rocket from hell, with that gear you want to kick in at any speed up to 130 - 140, hee hee he😍🙂🙃 and thats because its only a 2 wheel drive and not All wheel drive. Basically because of this with additional past racing experience and I practiced hours everyday for years and years, we smoke the crap out of most people in 20 + miles of slalom and straight aways, but most people get up to 110 to maybe 120 mph and think its 150 mph + for a few seconds AND THAT'S OK!, but don't buy that year ( 2019 Altman) because its a piece of Sh it... Get something better, though the engine and simulated trans software is something of Awesomeness!! ( only ) . You can alway try racing NASCAR or smaller indy cars or just try a couple of laps or because of your work background just sep in a flying triangle - TR3 and feel a hyper jump! ( but only if you can get an Arrow package delivered )!!
Thank you for your article,
GOD BLESS YOU

 

[noodle.googlles]

Awesome, I understand and we as humans need more creative discussions in all of our daily lives! No matter how far back the Post and Replies were entered..