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2014 Acura MDX AWD Long-Term Road Test

Edmunds.comEdmunds.com Member, Administrator, Moderator Posts: 10,316
edited September 2014 in Acura

image2014 Acura MDX AWD Long-Term Road Test

The instrument panel just lit up to tell us our 2014 Acura MDX is approaching its first oil change and tire rotation.

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  • fordson1fordson1 Unconfirmed Posts: 1,512
    "I soon discovered the bulky binder that lives in the glovebox of our MDX has nothing like a maintenance schedule on the pages of the owner's manual or its many supplements." And this is a bad thing. According to you, the car has now warned me say 500 miles in advance that I need an oil change/tire rotation. I want more notice than that if for example I am going on a road trip - I don't want it popping up when I'm 75 miles down the road on a 1000-mile trip telling me I need to get this done in 500 miles. I don't want the car deciding when it will tell me this kind of thing - I want to decide when to check on upcoming service needs myself. Now, if I can query a system like this car's at will and have it tell me, based upon my current driving style, when such and such will need to be done, great. If not, give me a printed list, based upon normal and severe conditions, telling me when I need this stuff done.
  • dave210dave210 Member Posts: 242
    If you toggle the display-settings in between the cluster, the maintenance minder will relay to you what percentage left you have until you are scheduled for service, not just when you reach the 15% alert.
  • fordson1fordson1 Unconfirmed Posts: 1,512
    Thanks. So now armed with the alphanumeric code, I can go look it up on page 393 of the manual...so I still have to consult the printed manual, or go online. And since the remaining interval is given in percentage, I have to interpolate what that translates to in miles remaining. Now that I know it wants oil changes and tire rotations approximately every 6k miles, I can make that conversion...but for all the other alphanumeric codes, I don't know what any percentage indicated for those means in actual miles, unless I remember the mileage the last time that code was done, and do the math. Like so many other we-do-it-because-we-can-not-because-we-should advances, if I do a lot of reading, research, and math...this system will make my life simpler and easier. Check.
  • allthingshondaallthingshonda Member Posts: 878
    If your phone is connected to the MDX there should be an envelope icon on the nav screen. Go to messages in the menu and the MDX will read to you detailed information concerning what needs to be done. If the check engine light comes on it will give you the trouble code and a brief description of the problem. No manual needed.
  • fordson1fordson1 Unconfirmed Posts: 1,512
    If this envelope is always there and I can find out how many miles before X needs to be done any time I want, great. If it's only going to tell me once I'm within the last 15% of the interval between services and I've already seen a dashboard warning, that won't do. But thank you for the info in any case.
  • actualsizeactualsize Member Posts: 451
    Why all the hate? The oil life percentage is a prominent and always-available display that you can see any time you want. In fact, you can't help but stumble across it when on a near-daily basis as you page between trip A, trip B, MPG, the digital speedo and other top-level meter functions. The second picture shows that very screen, in fact. This Mileage Minder system blinks into action as a reminder when you've hit 15% oil life, but you'd be easily able to anticipate the need for an oil change before a long road-trip by simply looking up the oil-life percentage as part of any other trip preparations that are no doubt part of your usual pre-flight routine such as checking tire pressures, verifying oil level, topping up the washer fluid, etc.

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  • fordson1fordson1 Unconfirmed Posts: 1,512
    What hate? You got the 15% warning at around 5300 miles. You looked up the alphanumeric code. Then, you divided 5300 by 85 and then multiplied times 95, and you got 5923. Now, you get another code at 12,500 miles, you look up the code - cabin air filter - then you do the same dividing by 85, times 95...that's BS. In 10% more miles than you have driven since last time it was done, which you may or may not know, you have to schedule service. So what day of what week of what month do you schedule service?
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