New or Used Acura MDX?

jaysgolf

I need some advice.

We have two options.

Option 1.

Buy a Used Acura MDX Fully Loaded (Navi and DVD) with ~18,000 Miles for $31K - In Good Condition
- Buying from a Dealership

Option 2.

Buy a new 2006 Acura MDX Base Model for $30,168

- Buying from a Dealership

They both do not include TT&L.

This would be me and my wife's first owned car - (we inhereted a '96 Civic) which we need cause of our new addition to our family.

Please share your thoughts.

needmdx2006

That's a tough one. It depends on what you need. If you don't really need NAVI, I would go new. You'll have 4 yrs or 50,000 miles warranty, piece of mind and the new car smell. If NAVI is a must then used is the way to go. It's a very good NAVI system and as you probably know comes with a backup camera.

scottm123

Also adds the Bluetooth functionality... which I personally love!
I haven't needed my headset since getting the 06 MDX.
The sound quality is excellent and people I talk to don't even know I'm in the car.

You'll also get memory seats and mirrors, roof rack, 6-disc in-dash CD Changer... and some other things I don't currently remember.

Tough call. Like 'needmdx2006' said, it depends on your wants & needs.

As for the warranty, if you choose the 05, make sure they "Certify" it as a Certified Used Acura.
That'll at least improve your warranty.

24liza

Tonight we're looking at a 2005 MDX Touring Model with 17,000 miles on it. (No DVD, Navigation) The asking price is 32,000. (NADA lists average trade-in on this as $30,925)The father is selling it for his son who is out of the country. The lease is up in June. They are currently paying $429 a mo. to Honda Financial. They would lose too much if sold back, so are selling privately. My questions are - Is it difficult buying a leased vehicle from a private party? I assume we would need to ck. out VIN, get signature affdidavit from Son, and pay off Honda Financial first. Any other situations we should know about? We will also pay a dealer to have it thoroughly checked out before sale.
Our budget is really $30,000 so we're hoping they will go with that, if everything cks. out. Thanks for any advice!

stever

Try Acura MDX: Lease Questions for more on leasing issues.

stevecar

I am a long time Honda and Acura owner and would like to look into buying a 3+ year old Acura MDX. What have people's experiences been with that age car and what suggestions could you make.
Thank you.

varmint

The first place I'd start is by going to the Hondanews.com website and look up the details on the various years. There were a few substantial improvements made for the 2004 model year, but they might not be to things which are important to you. By going through the archives, you can learn more about the changes they made from year to year.

I bought a 2004 model last year and have been very happy with it. Solid, stable, and useful are the first three things that come to mind. I could nit-pick about all the little paint chips on the nose, but there's not much else to complain about.

jsgb

Just traded in my 2002 MDX with 60k miles today. It was hard to trade it in since it has been trouble free and does not even feel broken in yet. I believe there were two minor recalls....the only times I visited the dealer which is located 120 miles from home. I would highly recommend the 2002 model. You should be able to get a good price. I was able to get $2000 above book value from the dealer in my trade. Purchased a 07 MDX today at MSRP.

stevecar

Thanks to you and the next message. 2004 was the year I was looking at because of the side curtain air bags. That was the one important thing I did want. I'll also check out Hondanews.com. After driving the new crv I just felt that a three year old MDX could be a workable solution to spending that kind of money considering we do under 10k miles a year on this second car.

stevecar

Best of luck with the new MDX. Saw it at the dealer this weekend . Looks terrific.

sandyir

I just got my first Acura today (previous Saab owner)and It feels great, it has lots of extras! Is there anything I need to look out for as far as things beginning to go at this age. I was glad to see the message on the 2002 trade in owner with no problems.
Also, just in case, is there any specific extended warranty that may be better than other? Thanks alot for any info!Sandy

wmquan

Sorry to have to post this after a 2002 acquisition (congratulations, anyway).

But I would avoid a used 2001 or 2002. Those years had an older transmission design that, based on posts in various forums, has been problematic. Many owners have had their transmissions replaced by a remanufactured transmission (that can go south as well).

Honda has not extended the transmission warranties on those models like they have on other HOnda products. Acura had been replacing out-of-warranty transmissions without any cost and much effort on the part of the customer, but this seems to have been changing as the 2001's and 2002's age.

Even Consumer Reports, while rating the 2001's and 2002's above average for reliability, give the transmission the dreaded "black dot" (which, in the category ratings, means a higher percentage of problems reported).

The 2003's added stability control (which doesn't seem as effective on the MDX, though it still helps. The 2004's had larger changes including side curtain airbags and more power and NVH improvements.

Good luck.

gotribe

I've got a 2003 MDX I'm in the process of selling--bought a new Odyssey. Its been a great vehicle--63000 miles, no major problems at all. I've asked the service dept at my Acura dealer how the MDX's have aged--and they claim very little problems--some with over 200k.

mformdx

Bought a certified 2003 Touring last month with 45K mileage,nav & dvd, backup camera, 6 cd,bose etc. Looks new inside & outside. Paid $22K. Like someone said earlier I would stay away from 2001/2002 because of transmission issues. I would suggest buying acura certified. Mine came with 1 year bumper to bumper and engine/powertrain till 2010.

stevecar

Thanks for the info. It just seems that since I put on less tha 10k miles a year, why not spend the same dollars on a few year old MDX than a new crv. Your posting bears me out.

mdxowner1

do have 2002 mdx bought when @55k,
@75k transmission failure $3600
engine mounts replaced $600
p1457 EVA system problem $300
rear struts replaced $450
timimg bel $900

i spent more than $5000 on this. mdx has lots of problems. i don't know why acura doesn't cover these. i wonder why honda/acura gets high marks for quality?

had toyota 190000 miles for past 13 years. no major problems other than normal wear and tear. never had to replace any thing big.
i wonder where the consumer reports gets their rating from? no wonder .