Complaint volume
210 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2020 Acura MDX Complaints
210 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2020 Acura MDX, grouped by component category.
210 Total complaints
3 Crash reports
0 Fire reports
1 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are engine, unknown or other, engine and engine cooling. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 3 crash reports, 0 fire reports, 1 injury report, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 34 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 40,247 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to engine, unknown or other, engine and engine cooling?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2020 Acura MDX?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2020 Acura MDX
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2020 Acura MDX complaints?
3 Crash
0 Fire
1 Injury
0 Fatality
7 Towed
0 Medical attention
What are the most common 2020 Acura MDX complaint categories?
ENGINE 41
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 17
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 11
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE,LANE DEPARTURE 11
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 10
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE 9
POWER TRAIN 7
UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE 6
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 5
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 5
210 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 2024 | ENGINE | The auto idle engine stop malfuctions routinely shutting the engine off completely and requiring the driver to engage PARK, hit STOP, and RESTART engine before engaging DRIVE to proceed. We have experienced several near miss accidents or potentially caused accidents because drivers behind you have no idea what is going on. This issue is not just at stop lights but also interstate driving where traffic comes to a complete stop. I requested my Acura dealer permanantly disable this feature- they declined - I believe because it is an "Emission" feature that has gone wrong. I have seen "hack" options on line to disable this feature but fear for my safety - either way. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Aug 2024 | FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE | The contact owns a 2020 Acura MDX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) contact however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle stalled with no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to restart; however, the failure recurred. The dealer was contacted, and the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 136,000. Parts distribution disconnect. | Crash: No Fire: No | 136,000 |
| Jul 2024 | ENGINE | My MDX will randomly shut itself off while at a red light. It takes MULTIPLE attempts to get it restarted. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. My safety and the safety of others was put at risk and continues to be at risk! This has happened at a highway red light multiple times. I am impeding the flow of traffic at an intersection with EIGHT lanes and FOUR lanes cross traffic. People move through this intersection extremely fast. This puts me at risk of causing an accident, injury the occupants of my vehicle and the occupants of the other involved vehicles. There is no warning as to when this will occur and there are no warnings at the time of the actual event either. I called the dealership and the service department acknowledged there have been others with the same issue. Acura is aware of the issue yet there is NO RECALL?? There is a Service Bulletin issued January 2023 by Acura admitting to the issue and it shows how Acura will resolve the issue for affected vehicles. If Acura is aware of the issue and the dangers of it, why have they not issued a recall to rectify the situation? The vehicle has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others. I have a service appointment with the local dealership. There are no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms prior to the failure. The first occurrence was about four months ago. The second occurred three months ago. It occurred again today. THIS IS AN ACCIDENT AND LAWSUIT WAITING TO HAPPEN. SOMEONE COULD BE SERIOUSLY INJURED OR KILLED DUE TO ACURA’S NEGLIGENCE!!! | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE | WHEN I WAS STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT IN TRAFFIC (MY VEHICLE WAS IN IDLE STOP MODE), MY CAR SIMPLY DIED AND WOULD NOT RESTART WHEN THE TRAFFIC LIGHT TURNED GREEN AND I STEPPED ON THE GAS PEDAL TO MOVE FORWARD WITH TRAFFIC. IT TOOK NUMEROUS ATTEMPTS TO RE START THE VEHICLE WHILE STUCK IN VERY HEAVY TRAFFIC BEFORE IT GAINED POWER AND WAS ABLE TO DRIVE FORWARD. MY SAFETY WAS COMPROMISED I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF MULTIPLE LANES OF MOVING TRAFFIC, IT WAS SCARY. NO WARNING LAMPS OR MESSAGES OCCURED PRIOR TO THE INCIDENT. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | POWER TRAIN,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE | I was in traffic and we slowed down to a stop. Suddenly my car went to neutral and it didn’t want to go to Drive. I put emergency lights, as many cars were behind in the highway. I turned the car off and turned it back on. Then I was able to drive again! This has happened twice in the last 3 months. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | Sunroof Explosion. On [XXX], I was driving southbound on [XXX] north of the [XXX] exit (about 15 miles north of Chicago, Illinois). It was mid to late morning, sunny, 75 degrees. I drove over some pavement that was under repair but was not marked as being under repair. Within 60 seconds I heard a loud bang or explosion. My sunroof cover was closed and heard glass falling onto the cover. I exited the highway and saw that the glass was broken in the center of the sunroof. There were no rocks or objects in the sunroof and no evidence that anything had impacted the sunroof. The vehicle is available for inspection however, I am in the process of clearing the glass so that I can operate the vehicle during the month that it will take for a replacement glass to arrive. The problem has not been confirmed by a dealer, the component has not been inspected by anyone other than myself. There were no warnings prior to the incident. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | This vehicle engine has shut down in traffic on 6 separate occasions over the course of a year. Each time, the car locked up and would not restart until 1-3 minutes passed. This happened in stop and go traffic on the interstate. The other instances were at stoplights. I believe this is an issue with the auto idle stop feature. The dealership is unable to recreate the issue, thus no resolution was offering during the warranty period. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE | No warning lights or other indications occurred. This is the 2nd time while sitting at a stop light that the car has gone into neutral gear and it was unknown until the traffic signal turned green and I could not go. I could not shift into drive. The remedy required that I shut the car off and restarted (very little time between) before putting it in gear. Both occurrences were with idle stop function on. There is an entire discussion forum on this exact issue on [XXX] . Being first in line at a stop with 4 other passengers and a line of drivers expecting me to go on green is a sure way to result in an accident. The car goes in for regular service next week and I will bring it to the dealer’s attention. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6) | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE | The car's Auto Start/Stop (AST) function is malfunctioning. It frequently fails to restart the engine after stopping, causing the engine to completely shut down at traffic signals. When this occurs, the car must be shifted to park and the engine manually restarted. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | SEAT BELTS | On May 30, 2024, the vehicle associated with the VIN associated with the report was involved in an accident. The vehicle is inoperable due to the seatbelt no longer working since the accident. The vehicle is at the collision center of my choice, and all repairs except for the seatbelt have been made. The collision center and I have reached out to American Honda Motor Company, Inc. and Acura several times. As of date, there has been no resolution and no estimated date of when a seatbelt will be issued by American Honda Motor Company, Inc. and/or Acura. I was told by an employee at American Honda Motor Company, Inc. that the seatbelt will become inoperable whenever the vehicle is in an accident or collision. I feel American Honda Motor Company, Inc. has and continues to produce unsafe vehicles and vehicles where repairs cannot be made promptly. Seatbelts are important, and I honestly believe seatbelts save lives. But, for a company to have a shortage of seatbelts with no estimated time of when one will be issued is unacceptable. And for the company to produce vehicles with seatbelts destined to not function after an accident is a problem. As a consumer, I would like this company to be held accountable for producing vehicles with problems and additional problems if the vehicles are in an accident. I've tried resolving this matter by contacting American Honda Motor Company, Inc., Better Business Bureau, and now NHTSA. I feel this is way beyond what a consumer should have to do. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Towed | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | The contact owns a 2020 Acura MDX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | ENGINE | Engine shuts off at red light as auto idle stop got activated. Then at green light when I press the accelerator my car was in”neutral”mode and it didn’t allow me to move. I had to put my car into parking then switch it off and restart it. People behind me were agitated and honking. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | The contact owns a 2020 Acura MDX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was not contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jul 2024 | ENGINE | the vehicle shut down while at a red light and went the transmission went into neutral and should not start until i place the vehicle into park and then i had to press the start button two or three times to get the vehicle to start again. this is the second time this same problem has occurred in a two week span | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2024 | ENGINE | Persistent Idle Start issue not being addressed by the Acura dealership despite multiple trips to the dealership with the same issue. My SUV intermittently shuts down in the middle of busy intersections leaving me at great risk for a crash and bodily harm. There is a Service Bulletin issued in January 2023 by Acura admitting to the issue and it shows how Acura will resolve the issue for affected vehicles. Unfortunately Acura is not following their own Service Bulletin, and a recall of these vehicles needs to be issued to address the affected vehicles. I am requesting the NHTSA to take immediate action and issue a recall for this known idle start issue that is putting many Acura drivers at increased risk for bodily harm. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2024 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM | upon turning right, the car lost power, degraded acceleration as if someone is holding and pulling the car to move forward. The traffic behind me expected me to cathup with the speed on the road but due to loss of power and engine hesitation i got honked and was luck to avoid a crash from behind on a busy road. Acura dealership in Dallas dont have parts since a very long time. They have pleant of new cars to sell but not repair. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2024 | VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER | I stopped at a stop sign and the car went into N without me changing anything. The car wouldnt go back to D or P mode even when I pressed the buttons. I had to turn off the car and turn it on again to make it function properlty. This happened twice within 5 mins. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2024 | AIR BAGS | The contact owns a 2020 Acura MDX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V064000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2024 | ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING,FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE | The contact owns a 2020 Acura MDX. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 23V858000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) and 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the parts to do the recall repairs were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The dealer was contacted. The manufacturer was made aware of the issues. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Jun 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | The Auto-Idle on this car has disabled the car at a light or stop sign and you need to turn the car off and restart it. It may take 10-20 seconds for the car to restart. The car has been brought in to the dealer and the first time they updated software. the second and third time said the battery needed to charged. Being disabled at a light or stop sign in a heavy traffic area is very dangerous in high traffic area which I reside in. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I purchased this car in September of 2023 with 23,000 miles on it then I received a recall in December 2023. I purchased tires for my car at the dealership and they scheduled my car to have this recall to be fixed on Monday May 13, 2024. I brought the car in on Monday and received a call on Saturday May 18, 2024 to pick my car up from the dealership that it was fixed. I took my car to get gas and two lights on my dash board came up one about my emergency brakes and the other code stated that there is a engine problem and immediately bring the car to the dealership less than one hour of picking it up from a so called recall repair that I was told was going to take two weeks to fix ended up less than 5 days and the car is back at the dealership less than a hour of picking the car up today. I am pissed off and the car is a $40,000 car I paid for with these types of problems when Iam paying a $680 a month on the car note and can’t drive it . BTWay the car smelled of burnt oil while driving it back to the dealership when the lights came on. I want my money back on this recall I need to let you know that is why I bought a new car so I wouldn’t have to deal with this big ass migraine. The dealership needs to replace my car period in my eyes this can’t be fixed it already has to many problems and issues with this vehicle. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| May 2024 | ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | The contact owns a 2020 Acura MDX. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 36,000. Parts distribution disconnect. | Crash: No Fire: No | 36,000 |
| Apr 2024 | ENGINE | The contact's wife owns a 2020 Acura MDX. The contact stated that when his wife started the vehicle, he observed a clanking noise emanating from the engine compartment. A mobile mechanic was dispatched to the residence where a handheld diagnostic machine failed to retrieve any error codes. The mechanic advised the contact to contact a dealer immediately for assistance. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 55,000 |
| Apr 2024 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | This vehicle is being sold by Corwin Honda in Fargo, North Dakota. As I understand it, this car should not have been taken in on a trade and should not be sold until repairs are made. I do understand that parts have been hard to get and it is a huge inconvenience for the car owner. We looked at this car and were quite prepared to purchase it, but I fear for our safety and anyone else on the road. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2024 | ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | The contact owns a 2020 Acura MDX. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V751000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |