Acura MDX (pre-2007)

tidester

It's fine to mention the name of a dealership but let's avoid posting names of individual salespeople.

Thanks.

tidester, host

sbcooke

I took my MDX out in the snow yesterday before the plows came around. It was probably 6+ inches. The MDX does great. It goes very well, I could stop on a hill and start easily. The ABS worked well. It doesn't do as well as my 1999 Trooper in the snow (which is disappointing because I was expecting "the best"), but that is a snowcat and I doubt many trucks would beat that in the snow.

Overall the MDX is great in the snow. No problem getting through, stopping and handling.

hopeitsfriday

I found that to be the case with MDX as well, its good in the snow but not great. I think thats the case with most AWD system. It has to actually start to sense slippage before it shift torque, the computer is pretty fast but some slippage will occur. In the snow, I take the 4WD system any day with the manual lever or button to engage it and lock in all 4 wheels.

sbcooke

I think it is better than good. There was no point that I felt like I would get stuck or that I couldn't go through much deeper snow.

On a side note, some snow got stuck in the passenger side right rim, when I got up on the highway I had a really bad vibration. I had to stop and knock the snow out with my ice scraper to get rid of it.

lenij

i have the chance to drive my '03 mdx in the snow, since it has been snowing here in the eastern seabord for almost every week now. one of those times it was snowing heavily, but my mdx handled pretty well in the highway. in the local state routes, however, the slush that accumulated on the sides of the concrete divider can be dangerous and will make the tires to spin causing the vehicle to sway to the sides, specially at higher speeds. this is not unusual since the tires touching and slipping the hardened and slippery spots are only on one side. the wheels are prone to spin even with the automatic all-wheel drive kicking in (the same problem i've encountered with my 4runner before, even in 4-wheel drive mode). the best thing to do to avoid such incident is to drive at or below 50 mph, and to avoid slushy spots. another area of concern i have with my mdx is the wiper washer. the nozzle opening keeps accumulating ice/getting frozen and hardly any washer fluid came out even after a few tries of prying out the ice (this happened twice already). you really need to de-ice the spot and stick a needle or a sharp pobject into the nozzle before it'll start working again, or drive the vehicle for a few minutes until the hood heated up to melt the ice. what i did to alleviate this problem is to cover the nozzles with tape while parking, and peel them out when driving. inside, you may need to apply a spray-on defroster/defogger to clear up the windshield fog during the first 10 minutes of driving. while my FM tuner is doing fine, my AM radio just doesn't work at all. and there's no way to adjust the clock on the radio. my dvd navigation also won't let me use the calculator (or is it there?) hmmm ... other than these, the mdx is an excellent driving machine.

dave210

On mine, you can get to the calculator via the AC/Info button. I believe there is the Set Up button, then the Trip Computer button, then the Calculator button, and then the Calendar button. It should be there.

balithai

I am considering purchasing a 2003 MDX Navi. There is no dealer in my area, and when I visited the closest dealer, he told me that the navigation system has some limitations in "non-major metropolitan areas."

When I asked for clarification he said he wasn't sure but didn't think it would have detailed street info for medium sized cities in N.California/S.Oregon where I live. He also thought it would only have major highways in rural areas.

Does anyone have any experience with this? I have used a Lexus' navi system extensively and have not found this limitation

fndlyfmrflyr

I have a 2002 with NAV and have experienced the out of major metro area situation when I am East of my local area. I found the system seems to have virtually all of the roads even though the manual says only major streets, roads, and highways, but could not take me to a particular address. Instead it took me to an intersection near the center of town. In addition, there is no yellow page type of data base for the out of metro areas.

The NAV system owner's manual has a list of cities that have extensive coverage and the system for the 2003 models is supposed to have a lot more data. Suggest you ask the dealer to fax you the several pages that show the major metro areas covered by the 2003 system.

balithai

Thanks for the info!

I will check with the dealer. I am wondering why he didn't offer to let me see that information when I was there. We talked about my concerns quite a bit. And if what you say is true, it sounds like the Acura NAV is not going to work for me. I know the Lexus covers my area and all the rural areas I usually travel in, so that may be the better option.

crikey

Please drive carefully if you own an SUV.

wmquan

JBaumgart

Looks like the passenger compartment is still relatively intact - wonder how badly the occupants were hurt.

Regardless, I'll make the point that if I'm going to be in a roll over accident, I'd much rather be in a modern SUV (choice however would be a Volvo XC90) than any ragtop/convertible.

wmquan

Looks like the passenger compartment is still relatively intact - wonder how badly the occupants were hurt.

No word on injuries. Not sure if I agree about the passenger compartment. The roof around the third row is collapsed down to the headrests. The roof above the front passenger is collapsed to about the top of one's head.

grich13919

I just ordered a 2003 MDX Touring for early March delivery. I understand the owners manual indiciates it requires premium fuel. However, a buddy of mine with a Mercedes E series and a Jag sedan, both of which recommend premium, uses regular in both with no problem. With gas prices already $2 for premium, does anybody have any experience with regular in the MDX, positive or negative.

Thanks.

uga91

Like it says in the owner's manual. If you can not afford to buy gas for your vehicle, I would suggest you try out a Pilot or Explorer. The Pilot is built on the same platform, also has 3 rows of seating, and will save you enough money to be able to afford to buy gas. If gas prices are really getting you down, check out a Prius. When your MDX arrives next month when we are bombing Iraq, see what you pay for gas then!

uga91

I realize my last post was not constructive. Before I get flamed I will go ahead and admit I do not drive an MDX and I could not afford one if I wanted to drive one. Of course, I would not buy an MDX if I had 45 grand to spend on a vehicle, but that is a topic for another board. I just found it funny that someone who can buy a $45,000 vehicle would whine over gas prices. I don't know how big the fuel tank on an MDX is, but let's say it's 25 gallons. So, if you buy 25 gallons of regular to save 20 cents a gallon, you will save a whopping $5 on a whole tank of gas. I just think that if you can't justify buying premium then you should look at a different vehicle.

sbcooke

To add on to what you said...the tank is 19.6 I believe (I have a MDX). I think regular might impact performance to much, but let's look at the costs of all side by side. 12K miles per year@17 MPG is roughly 36 tanks of gas a year for arguments sake.

Premium per year = full price
Mid grade per year ($0.1 less/gallon) = $71 in savings
Regular grade per year ($0.2 less/gallon) = $142 in savings

Over 10 years if you own the car that long is possibly up to $1400. Not all that much to have the engine perform better (perhaps only slightly), to avoid any possible damage from misfiring due to wrong octane, etc.

This has been discussed before at length...If you are getting into purchasing a MDX (also a $40K vehicle)...you need to be prepared to spend $100-$150 more per year on gas. To me it doesn't seem like that much money to preserve the vehicle and maintain optimum performance. It is good for people to be aware of this residual cost when purchasing a vehicle...however I suggest get your running boards and other accessories from hondacuraworld and save yourself $500-1000 on the purchase price, that should cover the costs. Funny how people will pay $500 too much for running boards/sidesteps/etc. but quible over this cost.

feliz

I always have a chuckle over this as well. People buy gas guzzling $40,000 SUVs and them quibble over whether to use regular or premium!! This has to be the most worn-out topic after the synthetic/petroleum oil debate.

grich13919

I apologize if the regular vs premium issue been addressed before. I did a little searching after I posted (yes I know I should have done it before) a found a few constructive responses. Not the snippy posts that I got. I guess the rising gas prices have gotten you all in a huff, even you Prius drivers. I bought the MDX fully expecting to pay more for gas. However, if I can get away with regular, why not. See ya.

feliz

Sorry if I sounded snippy Gritch. This is a good question but one that is always making the rounds and never seems to come to a definitive conclusion. There have been some excellent discussions on some of the other MDX forums that we're not allowed to mention here. Good luck with the MDX, I'm hoping to join you as an owner soon.

sbcooke

Perhaps we were quick to jump on you. However, in my opinion, if you break the costs out it doesn't seem that expensive.

I also maintain that if you are that serious about saving money, don't waste it on dealer installed accessories. The only (MDX) accessory I would consider getting at a dealer would be the DVD player. Check out Hondacuraworld. I added running boards myself, took about 3 hours. I plan on doing the towing package this year too. The instructions seem fairly straight forward.

Another avenue to save money is to have a honda dealership perform your regular maintenance. Over the life of the car, that can add up.

I just wouldn't sacrifice performance and risk possible problems running on regular for the overall costs. Fouling a plug could cost you the same as the cost of premium.

So...good luck with your MDX, don't take it as "snippy". I simply disagree with you.

wmquan

At 48% resale after five years (projected), the MDX is at the top of the SUV heap in Money magazine's current issue (not online yet).

Of course, these numbers are based on percentage of MSRP rather than percentage of selling price. So a vehicle with a heavily-discounted MSRP and a lower resale percentage may actually be a better deal in terms of resale.

feliz

I totally agree with you about taking an Acura to a Honda dealer for service. My wife and I both drive Acuras and have been taking them to a Honda dealer for years....and paying about half.

sbcooke

I took the MDX out in 10+ inches last night. The truck did great. I would feel confident taking it just about anywhere in snow. A week ago or so I tested in 3-4 inches and it slipped a little, however when you get up in depth it really does well.

Rather than spin like crazy going through snow drifts and where the plows came through, I used the VTM Lock. I found that by keeping the gas even and not flooring it, the system pulled slowly and confidently. Flooring it didn't add much value and as wheel spin increased the system gives less power to the rear and made it harder to get through.

wmquan

Yes, VTM-4 lock is really good for "extrication." Unfortunately it progressively sends less power to the rear until 18mph, where it cuts off entirely. The idea is that most folks won't be going any faster in such conditions, and the VTM-4 will still route power to the rear if front-slippage is detected.

Still, it'd be nice if the next-gen MDX goes to a permanent AWD split set-up, where the rears always get some level of power (e.g. around 50%). That would provide even better snow performance.

The Michelin Cross-Terrain SUV tires also help a lot here.

sbcooke

I used the VTM lock feature more for fun than because I needed to. All in all though keeping it under 10 MPH it would chug along with a decent amount of pull. The auto-disengage is good for most uses of the MDX. If you are in a drift and getting onto a roadway, it works well, and then you don't have to switch anything off for regular driving. Another note...The notched shifter more gets in the way than helping.

wmquan

I've engaged the VTM-4 "Lock Mode" in slippery stuff because I've needed to. Mostly on my steep hill with some slippery (wet) snow. I've found that if I don't do that, the vehicle does a momentary slip before power seems to go to the rear, and then you get a "kick." That's the reactive nature of the VTM-4 normal AWD. The Lock mode is a very good idea if you have to have reactive AWD.

Yeah, I doubt if Acura will do anything about the clunky gated shifter until the next-gen, or maybe if they come out with an S-Type.

agekotiga

I test drove both the MDX and the Volvo XC90 and found the shifter in the Vovlo to be head and shoulders above the MDX's. The simple, clean design of the straight XC90 shifter looks more refined than the mess that is the Acura notched shifter. What is the purpose of these notched nightmares? I've seen them in other cars. Is there an advantage? It seems that these notched shifters only make the drivers job more difficult and confusing.

hopeitsfriday

I think Acura should come out with a VTM system that will lock in all city driving speed. I mean 18 miles an hour and it unlocks, come on. I too feel the wheels slipping before the VTM kicks in, its the nature of the beast I guess. With the VTM lock engaged, I do not feel that slip. Acura should let us decide when to engage or disengage the VTM lock. I find that in the real heavy snow, the VTM lock would come in very handy. Another thing is that notch shifter, still haven't gotten use to use. I think its more of a pain than anything else.

wmquan

Unfortunately, the "Lock Mode" of VTM-4 is not designed for prolonged engagement. It locks the rear wheels together, which would make turning difficult and lead to damage if engaged too long.

If the rears got power all the time during city driving, I think Acura would have to basically redesign the AWD system. The current propellor shaft + rear electronic clutch packs (not a true differential) are not "beefy" enough to handle continuous power delivery.

sbcooke

However, if you keep it in 1 or 2 while driving above 18 MPH, it will re-engage when you slow back down.

crikey

Can all-wheel-drive engage other than in 'Lock Mode'? Above 18 mph? Or is the MDX always in 2WD mode above 18 mph?

hopeitsfriday

The MDX above 18 mph engages the VTM system when accelerating and when it sense slippage. The MDX is not in 2WD mode above 18 mph, its in all wheel drive mode.
WE just had a big snow storm here in new England, I engaged my VTM lock system for the frist time today, it works great, wish I can use it all the time. Got out of my un-plow driveway with over 2 ft of snow with very little effort and went thru some un-plow streets with 1.5 ft to 2.5 ft of snow. Although when it was in AWD mode, the MDX always slips before the VTM system engages. Another problem I notice was when snow and ice get trap in the alloy wheels of the MDX, it makes a lot of noise. Did not have that problem with my other 2 four by fours.

crikey

The MDX is not in 2WD mode above 18 mph, its in all wheel drive mode.

When you mean that it's in all-wheel-drive mode, do you mean that all 4 wheels are driving the vehicle? This is what I perceive AWD drive to be, like in a Subaru.

From what I gather, the 2 front wheels drive the MDX but when the VTM-4 senses slip, then the rear wheels activate. Now, if the speed is above 18mph and the VTM-4 senses slip, do the rear wheels activate and stay in AWD mode?

wmquan

Unfortunately, there is no standard for the term "AWD". The AWD / 4WD discussion here helps somewhat but I get confused too.

I've seen the generic "AWD" usage applied to even vehicles that don't normally power the rears. I've even seen the term "permanent" or "full-time" applied when the rears are not actually driving. The idea is that even if the rears aren't getting powered, the vehicle is still ready to engage the rears at any time (as opposed to "part-time AWD" where one has to manually engage a mode).

VTM-4 has three modes:

1) Under normal cruising only the fronts are powered, with nothing going to the rear. When slippage is detected, some power is routed to the rear, and each rear wheel can get varying amounts of power (no locking between the two rears).

2) When accelerating "under certain conditions," VTM-4 will "proactively" send some level of power to the rears. Acura is pretty vague on exactly how much is sent.

3) When the "Lock" mode is engaged at speeds up to 18mph, in Reverse, First, and Second gear, power is sent to the rears and those wheels are locked together. This of course only for slippery surfaces. Acura says up to 50% goes to the rear, but the percentage decreases as the vehicle goes up to 18mph.

VTM-4's ability to "lock" and to engage on acceleration makes it more versatile than, say, the Honda Realtime AWD on the CR-V. However, some AWD vehicles send at least 20% to the rears all the time (e.g. some Subarus), and some send 50-55% all the time (e.g. Audi quattro). The latter, coupled with traction control to eliminate wheelspin, eliminates the need for the "lock" mode.

sbcooke

Also, the zero power delivered to the rears while driving under normal conditions saves on gas mileage.

crikey

that explanation clears it up for me.

mhenderson1

On President's Day, I decided to drive my 2003 Base MDX in the snow. I believe we got around 20 inches or more of snow. I hate to sat this, but I got stuck i few feet from my driveway. Yes I did have the VTSM system on, but once the tires hit that deep snow, they could not get any traction to keep going. I had to get the help of two of my neighbors to push the truck back in the driveway. I was disappointed and through for the day.

I also had another problem and I hope I am not the only one. When driving through the snow storm (before the roads got too bad), I had my front defroster running to melt the snow on the front windshield. I noticed that as the snow melted from the windshield, it refroze on my windshield wipers, to the point where the wipers were not effective in cleaning the windshield. I had to stop numerous times and scrape the wipers to ge the ice off of the wipers. Its funny because i know this does not happen when i am driving my Camry. Did anyone else have this problem? Is this normal and can it be corrected?

sbcooke

This storm was bad. To address your issues. If the snow is deep enough to get under the frame lift the tires off the ground even slightly, you won't get traction to go. Digging out under the frame is the best way to get unstuck. Depending on the type of snow, you can either plow through it or you surf on the top of it. If it packs and you surf, it is difficult to get through anything above your ground clearance.

The windshield issue is normal also, both my trucks had the same problem. I found the best way to handle it was to have the truck and inside completely warmed up...however not using the defroster, using the dash and floor vents. This way stuff hitting the windshield won't melt and then re-freeze. It was below 20 degrees at my house, so I had the same problem. I found the best way was to not use the wipers, sounds strange but it works. When I did have to use the wipers I had to also use the washer because of the same problem you were having.

mrsmoe

I just bought a used MDX and it is outfitted for an integrated phone, the only thing missing is - the PHONE!

Anyone know what type I need and where to get one?

eharrison2

I just received a call from my Acura Dealer, John Holtz in Rochester, New York. My Sage Brush MDX was supposed to come in at the end of March and I was informed that they had one ready if I wanted to pick it up. The guy who ordered it wanted to wait another month. I jumped at the chance. I paid MSRP and received a set of snow mats (It's something). They hooked me up with a local bank at we locked into a loan at 4.39%. Its not as good as the 3.49%. I can't wait.

brigg1

Just bought a base MDX, sage brush, at Springfield, (NJ) Acura. I traded a Volvo S80. Initially I liked the S80, but to many reliability problems, terrible depreciation and expensive to maintain. To add insult to injury, Volvo dealership (Smythe in Summit, NJ) offered me a $1,000.00 LESS than Acura did for trade in. I paid MSRP for my MDX with no dealer add ons and only waited 10 days for delivery. I am very satisfied with Springfield Acura, except for the cost of their way over priced accessories.
       I ordered roof rack, winter mats, cargo mat, running boards and burlwood shifter from hondacuraworld.com. No shipping cost, no tax, had delivery in two days and saved approximately
$1,000.00. Installation is fairly easy for roof rack and running boards.
      I have been researching the MDX since it came out. It is a much better product than any Volvo! A comparabley equipped Volvo XC70 (wagon) is $40,400 compared to my base MDX at $36,200.00 and it is much smaller, less reliable and much less powerful.
      A comparabley equipped Volvo XC90 (sport ute 268 hp engine with third row seat) is approximately $43,000.00 and it is also smaller and you have to wait. Reliability and maintenance cost with Ford, I mean Volvo, will always be a problem.

greenmdx1

I am looking for a Dark Green 2001 MDX. A dealer informed me they do not exist? I'd swear I've seen them on the road. Does anyone out there have a 2001 Dark "emerald" Green MDX. I'm looking in the Chicago Metro area?

miks

Congrats on your new MDX happy camper! Sounds like things worked out well for you. Keep us posted on how things are going!

My MDX started being built earlier then scheduled (by 5 days!). I don't know how long it takes to build an MDX from start to finish and how long it takes to get shipped to the south. They started building it on 17 February so hopefully the wait will soon come to an end. Thanks for all the pep talks I will let you know when it arrives! Miks

fndlyfmrflyr

Good luck finding one. Have seen only one and it belongs to a former SoCal neighbor. It is a very dark green, almost black.

sbcooke

I think that color was only available in the 2001 model year.

dave210

Yes, they did make a dark green called Dark Emerald Green.

It was only available for 2001 and I've only seen two in my area, which ironically is the Chicago area like yourself.

Unfortunately, these two people still own their MDX's and are not for sale.

Granite Green, Silver, and Black are much more common.

greyskr

Have you considered RainX? I use it in winter because of the problems you discuss. RainX allows you to NOT run your wipers and the snow and/or rain just coalesces into bubbles and flows off the windshield at speeds above about 30 MPH. Really great product.

Regards, Jim

"The windshield issue is normal also, both my trucks had the same problem. I found the best way to handle it was to have the truck and inside completely warmed up...however not using the defroster, using the dash and floor vents. This way stuff hitting the windshield won't melt and then re-freeze. It was below 20 degrees at my house, so I had the same problem. I found the best way was to not use the wipers, sounds strange but it works. When I did have to use the wipers I had to also use the washer"

greenmdx1

Has anyone experienced any troubles with their MDX (i.e. Engine, Transmission, other major components)? Most other SUV's, (Sequoia, Highlander, etc.) have some repetitive complaints, but I really haven't found any meaningful comments that would make me think twice. Maybe that's why I'm looking for one. Anyone with any trouble?

anilpunjabi

I was lookign at the mdx, and was the vehicle of choice beofre the xc90 came out, i just couldnt stand that hard plastic dash, and the interior of the vovlo is luxury, the acura however has graet ergonomics. I also like the added safety features of vovlo, along with boron steel roof - did u gusy see pic of mdx rooll over enitre roof caved in. Also money was not a problem out volvo came to about 50.5 k with taxes and all, yes it is alot, but its has alot that mdx does not have, dont have to take out any headrests, anti-rollover, better stereo, betetr quality materials, 18 inch rims, the greatets new car smell ever, and finally just teh saftey aspect inside and out. The acura is a well made car but if they want to compete they need to step it up a notch. The honda workmansihp can be seen, which is good an bad, bad on the luxury equation where my mom could not stand it b/c it remeinded her too much of a honda versus teh vovlo which competes with the x5's cabin, but everyone happy traling.