Acura RDX
Reliability, NHTSA Complaints & Recall History
10 model years analyzed (2017β2026). All data sourced directly from the NHTSA public complaints and recall database β the same data used by federal regulators.
Checking a specific Acura RDX? Run a VIN check for its exact history.
β NHTSA NCAP Crash Test Ratings
New Car Assessment ProgramNCAP crash tests measure how well a vehicle protects occupants in controlled frontal crash, side crash, and rollover scenarios. Stars are awarded per category (5 = safest). These laboratory results are independent of owner complaints and are performed by NHTSA engineers on new production vehicles.
AI Interpretation
High ConfidenceAverageNHTSA data for the 2017β2026 Acura RDX shows 1,080 complaints, with the highest volume in 2019 and 2020. The most frequently cited component category is 'Unknown or Other,' followed by visibility/wiper and engine issues. Crash-related complaints are relatively low at 26.
- The 'Unknown or Other' component category accounts for the largest share of complaints (290).
- Visibility/wiper issues are the second most reported component (202 complaints).
- Engine complaints total 179, making it the third most common concern.
- Complaints peak in 2019 (421) and 2020 (331), then drop sharply in later years.
- Unknown or Other component issues
- Visibility/wiper system problems
- Engine-related complaints
Model years 2019 and 2020 have the highest complaint counts (421 and 331), driven largely by Unknown or Other, visibility/wiper, and engine issues.
Model years 2023, 2024, and 2026 show very few complaints (16, 10, and 0 respectively), which may indicate improved reliability or lower sales volumes.
- Inspect or inquire about Unknown or Other component issues reported in NHTSA complaints
- Verify all open recalls at nhtsa.gov/recalls
- Request service records for visibility/wiper, engine, and electrical system repairs
- Have a mechanic inspect the vehicle before purchase
π NHTSA Safety Recalls
16 recalls foundSafety recalls are mandatory repair campaigns ordered by NHTSA when a vehicle defect poses an unreasonable risk to safety. Manufacturers are required to fix recalled vehicles free of charge. Always verify open recalls before buying a used car.
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Source: NHTSA Recalls Database. Data covers model years 2017β2026. Always run a VIN-specific check below for the most up-to-date open recall status.
π§ Most-Reported Problem Areas
Based on component keywords extracted from all 1,080 NHTSA complaints.
π NHTSA Complaint Reports
1,080 totalThese are consumer-submitted safety complaints filed directly with NHTSA. Each complaint describes a real owner's experience. Complaints flagged as crash-related or fire-related are highlighted.
As I was driving down the highway, I heard a loud noise that sounded like an explosion of some sort I was going about 65 miles an hour on the expressway [XXX] and [XXX], when I realized that my sunroof had to have shattered. I pulled off the highway and confirmed this. Luckily, my headliner was closed and all the glass that shattered was inside of that. The weather was sunny, I was not under an overpass or something fell on the glass nor did anything fly up and hit the glass. It just shattered for no reason. I immediately contacted the Acura dealership in Jacksonville, which was my destination and was informed in a couple days that not only was that not a warranty item but also the sunroof was on backorder with no ETA of its delivery The car is drivable obviously, but not if it rain as it would rain in my car and destroy my headliner. I went back to my home in Hendersonville, NC was able to find a sunroof repair company that had my sunroof model in stock and it was replaced. However, when I contacted the dealership in Hendersonville, they told me the same thing that they had no idea when the sunroof would be in so it was left to me to resolve the situation. I had filed a report with Acura asking them to replace and pay for a new sunroof. I have made a complaint and I have a claim number. Iβm waiting for resolution. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
See attached document for complaint.
This incident happened on July 5th 2025. My 2024 leased Acura RDX front passenger seat caught on fire. The car was parked and not driven for two days before this happened. My educated untrained guess and the police officer on the scene guess was that this was an electrical fire. My Acura dealer refuses to repair this and deny that is the issue. Acura told me this never happened before to a 2024 RDX but I told them this problem happened to years past Acura RDX. There was no issues with this car. I had this car serviced at Acura in April 2025 for regular maintenance service. As of today Acura refuses to repair or replace the car or admit fault with the electrical issue. I was told by Acura this was a thermal event and nothing else. I have pictures of this and the car is at Acura service department for any inspection since it is untouched by them. Also as of todayβs date Acura has not sent me any correspondence of anything to do with my leased Acura RDX. This is affecting my life and it is very stressing on my family.
This week, my panoramic sunroof shattered. This is the second time this has happened to me. The first incident was last year my on 2021 RDX. I became suspicious and started doing some research and it appears this has happened to many RDX users. I filed a formal complaint with Honda corporate as well as my local dealer, Leith Acura inNorth Carolina. What I have seen in social media on numerous Acura Facebook pages is that this issue may be related to a bolt problem , but tried to verify this information as it appears Honda is sweeping it under the rug. Also, further investigation showed that this issue has been happening on models from 2019 through 2024. The issue is when the glass shatters, it can fall directly on the driver or worse, fly off and hit the car behind you. Clearly, this is a an issue that needs to be addressed by this organization and Honda corporate due to due to compelling safety issues. Thank you for the opportunity to submit this complaint. [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6
The contact leased a 2024 Acura RDX. The contact stated while driving at various speeds and depressing the brake pedal, the brake pedal traveled to the floorboard and the vehicle failed to respond. The contact pumped the brake pedal, and the brake pedal responded as needed. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring intermittently. The contact stated while pulling out of a parking lot and depressing the brake pedal, the failure recurred. The contact pumped the brake pedal several times; however, the failure persisted, nearly causing a crash. The contact stated that upon engaging the electric parking brake, the vehicle stopped as needed. The contact was able to continue driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times; however, the dealer informed the contact that the failure could not be duplicated. The dealer advised the contact to pump the brake pedal and to engage the electric parking brake during the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was unknown.
The contact owns a 2024 Acura RDX. The contact stated that while the child was seated in the rear driver's seat, the seatbelt buckle locking mechanism had malfunctioned. The contact was unable to unlatch the seat belt buckle and eventually scissors were used to cut the the seat belt strap in order to free the child. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 5,000.
This issue involves the decorative aluminum trim on the steering wheel. The aluminum trim is highly reflective and installed at an angle on the steering wheel spokes. In bright sunlight and at certain angles of the sun there is a very strong light reflection into the drivers eyes. This has caused temporary blindness until the position of the car changes or you put a hand over that part of the trim. The lower spoke (at about the 6 o'clock position) is the worst. Since it is a design flaw, I have not reported it to the dealer.
Interstate 10 near Live Oak, Florida. Conditions were light fog and roads were dry. The previous day we drove about six hours, two or three times in very heavy rain. We were driving eastbound (two eastbound lanes) in the right lane. We were approaching a Semi-trailer followed by a medium-sized box truck and switched to the left lane to pass both vehicles. Another vehicle was approaching from behind in the left lane and I "floored" the accelerator pedal to quickly pass the two trucks. The RDX downshifted as expected and the engine revs increased briefly, but suddenly the Check Engine light started blinking and the car lost power and went into Limp Mode. Pressing the accelerator to the floor made little difference. Instead of quickly passing I was only able to get past the two trucks at a slow rate with a line of vehicles growing behind me. Eventually I was able to get past the trucks, switch lanes and quickly move over to the breakdown lane. If there had been heavier traffic, this could have easily resulted in a serious accident. I restarted the vehicle and resumed our trip without further incident. This is a known issue supposedly addressed by Acura via TSB 20-053 for some model years and reported on Acura enthusiast web sites. I had the same experience with my previous 2020 RDX after having the TSB completed, I filed an report for that incident under NHTSA ID Number: 11522688. There are hundreds of reports for this issue for all 3rd Generation RDX model years, 2019-2024, on the NHTSA site I brought the vehicle to a dealer on July 5, 2024. Unable to duplicate. No codes stored (as has been stated on other reported incidents). No water intrusion to coil packs or plugs and no fouling or damage to plugs. I cannot trust a vehicle if I have to be concerned about whether or not I should pass another vehicle and how hard I can press the accelerator. This is an ongoing issue with the RDX that should be investigated.
Driver side mirror is vibrating while driving- more noticeable at speeds above 35 mph. Took into the dealer for replacement. After ride with tech, tech confirmed issue. Dealer replaced driver side mirror but still shakes/vibrates while driving. Vibration causes distortion of vehicles and other surrounding items in driver side mirror. Also, vibration causes distraction to driver.
I *think* this may be an Acuralink issue, but here is what happened. While working in my front yard, my car's headlamps suddenly flashed 3 times, and then the cars engine started. My car does not have remote start, my key and my phone were inside the house. Nobody else has access to the keys. On an new car, you get a trial subscription to Acuralink. One of it's features is "Remote Start" via a phone App. I bought the car on 12/22/23. On 12/26/23, I tried the Acuralink App and tried to remote start my car....it did not work, so I deleted the App from my phone. Today, 1/5/24, 11 days later, my car starts on its own out of the blue even though I deleted the App from my phone on 12/26/23. It's just hunch, that this issue is related to the Acuralink service, but I cannot think of any other way this car could just suddenly start on its own. This is very un-nerving and very-very concerning! Very Best, [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Transfer case is defective and Acura is refusing to fix it under warranty. Says itβsβnormalβ for the AWD system to leak causing destruction.
Back windshield exploded.
On October 31, 2024, I was nearing the end of a three hour trip. I was traveling on a rural two-lane highway with a 55 mph speed limit. I had just pulled away from a 4-way stop intersection and was following a single vehicle traveling 40 mph. Once I could see there was a safe distance from oncoming traffic, I decided to pass the slower vehicle. As I moved into the opposite lane and accelerated, the engine lost power and barely made it around the car I was passing. If oncoming traffic had been closer there could have been a head-on collision. The engine light started flashing and I had to keep the accelerator pressed half way to the floor to maintain 50 mph. There was no shoulder on the road and no place to pull over, so I continued for 15 minutes with engine light blinking and struggling to maintain 50 mph. No other warning lights came on and the engine was not overheating. When I reached my destination I turned the engine off and then restarted it. The flashing engine light was gone and the car drove fine. The nearest Acura dealer was an hour away so I took the car to my dealer when I returned from my trip. They test drove the vehicle and called the Acura Tech Line. They could not duplicate the problem. They said they did not find any diagnostic codes so there was nothing they could do. They said if it happens again to bring it back. If it happens again I might not live to tell the story!
The infotainment system on this vehicle keeps failing when using Apple Carplay. The problem consistently happens when driving. The problem consists of the apple carplay going black screen and disconnecting entirely and then taking long to reconnect. This is a safety issue if youβre using the gps navigation from iOS while driving. The problem has been reported to the Acura Service dealer multiple times and they were able to reproduce it as well. They have said there is an interruption caused by satellite communications interfering with carplay while driving. They said currently no fix for this issue.
Highlight: The car was able to be started with a button press and driven away without any key inside the car. (Also, some side information that the car had it's annual check-up on the Saturday before this incident). Normally my wife keeps her purse in the house on the counter (along with the spare key in a drawer under that counter). Previously, if she forgot her purse (and car keys inside the purse), she would head out to the garage and attempt to start the car (she keeps it unlocked in the garage). In a normal situation, the car would beep at her that she didn't have the key and she would go into the house to grab her purse. On 7/31, after a frazzling day, she got a call from her doctor to come to their office for a checkup (40 minutes away). She forgot her purse again; however, this time, the car started without any warning. She took the complete drive to the doctor's office shut off the car and then realized she didn't have her purse. She even tried to turn the car back on to see if the key was in the car, it did not start. She called me, I checked her purse and spare key were both in the same location they were always in. I did remotely try to start the car to see if she could drive it back with me starting it, however, it wouldn't let her take it out of park. She continued with her doctor's appointment. Inconveniently, I grabbed her purse and took my car 40 minutes to drop off her keys and back. Luckily, she was at a doctor's office and in a safe space, however, this has the potential to be very inconvenient and unsafe for others.
I am leasing the ACURA RDX 2023 . Currently mileage in 11444. This car start has oxidized on right side of headlight 4 months ago. I came to service in NIELLO ACURA. They called Acura factory service . It is not under warranty. They canβt do anything for my car. I only had this car 1 years . This is total defective .
The contact owns a 2023 Acura RDX. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 35 MPH, the Forward Collision Avoidance: Emergency Automatic Braking inadvertently activated, and the vehicle stopped. The contact was able to regain control of the vehicle, veer to the shoulder, and contacted the dealer to have the feature deactivated. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 7,888.
The infotainment screen went blank 4 times. It works intermittently and reset itself. The dealer performed service bulletin S/B 24-004 on May 21, 2024. Since then it has gone out twice. I taking the vehicle in again. I seen there are issues with that system draining the battery and the car not starting. That had to me this morning.
On entering the highway and accelerating quickly, engine lost power and car entered limp mode, refusing to exceed 60 MPH. Also, check engine light began flashing. Very dangerous situation in heavy traffic all going over 70 MPH. Exited at next exit, shut down car, then restarted with no further issues.
Infotainment system fails while using Android auto after receiving or making a phone call, which results in navigation via Google Maps unable to provide directions. The only manner in which I found temporarily resolves the issue, is restarting the infotainment system, which requires the vehicle to be stopped turned off and the driverβs door opened. This poses a grave safety risk while operating the vehicle, especially in heavy traffic conditions especially in inclement weather conditions, which I have unfortunately experienced on multiple occasions. on my second visit to the dealership i was advised by the service advisor at the dealership, that Honda is βaware of an uptick in reports with Android Auto and new phone models, and there is no fix identified, and any fix will most likely be with a software update.β I as also advised that as an alternate method of restoring the connection between the phone and the car is to turn off the wi-fi and Bluetooth connections on the phone, then turn it back on, and once its turned back on, use the infotainment system to reconnect the phone. This advice is reckless at best as it requires me to move my attention from operating the vehicle to resolve this issue.
Showing 20 of 1,080 total NHTSA complaints. Source: NHTSA Complaints Database
Check a Specific Acura RDX
This page shows fleet averages across all 10 model years. Enter a VIN to see the exact accident history, odometer records, title brands, and open recall status for a specific car.
π Understanding This Data
What is an NHTSA Complaint?
An NHTSA safety complaint is a report filed directly by a vehicle owner or driver describing a safety-related issue. Anyone can submit a complaint at NHTSA.gov. The number of complaints is a signal of how common a problem is β but complaints per model-year matter more than raw totals, since popular vehicles naturally receive more reports. The Acura RDX has 1,080 complaints on record across 10 model years.
What is a Safety Recall?
A safety recall is a mandatory campaign issued by NHTSA when a vehicle component poses an unreasonable risk to safety or does not comply with federal motor vehicle safety standards. Unlike complaints (which are owner-reported), recalls are formally investigated and confirmed by regulators. Manufacturers must fix recalled vehicles free of charge. The Acura RDX has 16 recall campaigns in the NHTSA database.
What Are Crash Complaints?
Crash complaints are NHTSA filings where the owner indicates a crash occurred as part of the incident. 26 of the Acura RDX's 1,080 complaints involved a crash. This metric is particularly important because it indicates how often defects resulted in actual collisions β a key safety signal beyond general reliability.
How Is the AI Rating Calculated?
The AI reliability rating (Average) is generated by analyzing the vehicle's total complaints, recall history, crash complaint ratio, fire complaint ratio, and top component failures relative to class averages. The rating provides a plain-English summary for buyers who want a quick verdict without parsing raw numbers. It is one input in your buying decision β always verify with a VIN-specific report.
Why Do Newer Years Have Fewer Complaints?
Newer model years appear to have fewer complaints because there has been less time for owners to file them. Complaints accumulate over years of ownership. A 2020 model year vehicle will typically show fewer complaints than a 2015 model year even if it is less reliable β simply because fewer owners have had time to report issues. Focus on complaints per year of market presence when comparing across model years.
Fleet Data vs. Individual VIN
Everything on this page reflects aggregated data across all Acura RDX vehicles on the road β not any specific car. Two Acura RDX vehicles of the same year can have very different histories: one may have been in three accidents and have an open recall; another may be clean. A VIN check gives you the individual car's history: accidents, title brands, odometer records, service history, and real-time recall status.
What Are NHTSA Investigations?
When NHTSA receives a pattern of related safety complaints, it opens a formal investigation. A Preliminary Evaluation (PE) is the first stage β NHTSA determines if a safety defect may exist. If evidence is strong, it escalates to an Engineering Analysis (EA), which can result in a mandatory recall. The Acura RDX has 0 investigations on record (0 active). Investigations listed above may have already led to the recalls shown on this page.