KnownCarProblems2004 Acura Mdx Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 171 complaints with NHTSA about the 2004 Acura Mdx, most often about the transmission (45% of complaints, typically around 91,000 miles). It is 10th of 25 Mdx model years by number of complaints and has 8 recalls.
Most common 2004 Acura Mdx problems
Transmission
77 complaints · 45%Half of these problems showed up before 91,000 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission, axle assembly, driveline.
The contact owns a 2004 Acura Mdx. While traveling at 15 MPH, there was an abnormal grinding coming from the transmission. In addition, when accelerating at 15-40 MPH, the grinding would stop. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic where he was informed that the transmission would need to be replaced. There were no…
2004 Acura Mdx failed torque converter, grinding at low speed 10mph-20mph. Repairs ongoing car has been at dealer for two weeks. Purchased extended warranty from Acura and is supposed to be covered but warranty company dragging their feet. Current mileage 90k no warning or previous problem. Also rear main seal on…
Engine
26 complaints · 15%Half of these problems showed up before 103,000 miles. Parts named most often: exhaust system, cooling system.
Over a period of time, beginning about the date and vehicle mileage stated above, I experienced a shudder and corresponding noise as the transmission tried to shift gears. Similar to the sensation of driving across closely-spaced rumble strips, the shudder and noise seemed to vary in length of time depending on speed.…
Internal leak in radiator causing a leak of coolant to transmission fluid and vice versa, damaging transmission and rendering car not drivable within moments.
Air bags
26 complaints · 15%Half of these problems showed up before 144,000 miles. Parts named most often: frontal.
The contact owned a 2004 Acura Mdx. After parking the vehicle for approximately ten minutes, the contact was notified that the vehicle was on fire. The air bags deployed due to the fire. The passenger side air bag attempted to inflate after the fire. The fire department extinguished the fire and filed a report. There…
The contact owns a 2004 Acura Mdx. The contact stated that while driving approximately 5 MPH, turning the vehicle when the driver in front suddenly stopped causing the contact to rear end the vehicle in front of them. The vehicle's passenger side air bag deployed out of it's compartment, however, the driver's seat air…
Electrical
21 complaints · 12%Half of these problems showed up before 120,000 miles. Parts named most often: starter assembly, 12v/24v/48v battery.
The contact owns a 2004 Acura Mdx. The contact stated that NHTSA campaign number: 15v320000 (air bags), NHTSA campaign number: 14v700000 (air bags), and NHTSA campaign number: 12v573000 (electrical system) exceeded a reasonable amount of time for repair. The dealer stated that parts were not available on several…
I was driving on wednesday jan 5 2016 and my car stalled while driving on old grassy road at about 20 miles per hour as I just had stopped at stop sign. I noticed the lights were all starting to come on and the car completely stopped. I had it towed to Acura of milford, ct. After 2 days and after installing a new…
Fuel system
19 complaints · 11%Half of these problems showed up before 94,000 miles.
The contact owns a 2004 Acura Mdx. While in park, the vehicle's RPM gauge idled high when started. While driving 10 MPH, the RPM gauge displayed high rpms even when the accelerator pedal was not depressed. The fuel gauge was also not displaying the correct readings. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The…
Through out this year I have attempted to fill my gas tank several times and the hose keeps tripping off after a couple seconds. I can't put more than two or three gallons in my car and it takes forever to do that. Gas runs out of the tank on to the side of the car and the tires. This past summer I had the Acura…
Brakes
11 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 124,000 miles.
Tl contact owns a 2004 Acura Mdx. The contact stated he was involved in a minor crash due to brake failure. There were no injuries. The brakes were depressed but there was hesitation in engagement of the brakes. The vehicle sustained minor damage to the front bumper. The contact confirmed that the brakes in the…
Sudden inadvertent braking, especially without illumination of the brake lights. After the sudden braking, the vsa light will be on. This is the exactly same problem as the recall Acura has made to Acura Mdx 2005/2006 (the name of this recall is: vsa ecu malfunction. This problem happened both in highways and city…
Other or unspecified
11 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 90,000 miles.
My Acura Mdx 2004 has had the window regulators replaced three times and now both windows are broken again. When the window slams down into the door frame it makes a terrifying noise which has caused me to nearly wreck twice. The worst incident was when a regulator failed and I caught a piece of plastic road debris in…
The airbag light warning continues to come on and stay on. Sometimes is goes off, but comes back on later. This was reported to the dealer in charge of airbag recall and the only solution offered was paying a hefty fee to diagnose the issue without guarantee. This was reported in 2014 and has been an ongoing problem…
Body and structure
8 complaints · 5%Half of these problems showed up before 90,000 miles. Parts named most often: body.
My Acura Mdx 2004 has had the window regulators replaced three times and now both windows are broken again. When the window slams down into the door frame it makes a terrifying noise which has caused me to nearly wreck twice. The worst incident was when a regulator failed and I caught a piece of plastic road debris in…
The headlights fog over to the point of significantly diminishing effectiveness. The problem has been reported to the Acura dealer who only offers to charge excessive amounts for a non-guaranteed solution and claims this is not something they see in this car. However, it is clear from regular daily driving that…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2004 Acura Mdx recalls
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began august 12, 2019. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are q5a and y58.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2003 acura 3.2cl, 2002-2003 3.2tl, 2003-2006 mdx, 2001-2007 honda accord, 2001-2005 civic, 2003-2005 civic hybrid, 2001-2005 civic gx ngv, 2002-2006 cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2008 pilot and 2006 ridgeline vehicles. These vehicles are equipped with driver frontal air bag inflators assembled as a recall remedy part or replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal airbag inflator, free of charge. The recall began august 12, 2019. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are e5d and x5c.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2003-2006 acura mdx, 2005-2012 rl, 2003-2007 honda accord, 2001-2005 civic, 2003-2005 civic hybrid, 2001-2005 civic gx ngv, 2002-2006 cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2007-2008 fit, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2008 pilot, and 2006-2014 ridgeline vehicles. The vehicles are equipped with passenger frontal air bag inflators assembled as a recall remedy part or replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An explosion of an inflator within the driver frontal air bag module may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver, front seat passenger or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's air bag inflator with an alternate inflator, free of charge. The recall began april 10, 2019. Honda owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's number for this recall is o41. Acura owners may contact customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Acura's number for this recall is u40.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling specific 2003 acura 3.2cl, 2013-2016 ilx, 2013-2014 ilx hybrid, 2003-2006 mdx, 2007-2016 rdx, 2002-2003 3.2tl, 2004-2006, and 2009-2014 tl, 2010-2013 zdx and 2001-2007 and 2009 honda accord, 2001-2005 civic, 2003-2005 civic hybrid, 2001-2005 civic gx ngv, 2002-2007 and 2010-2011 cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2007 fit, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2008 pilot, and 2006-2014 ridgeline vehicles. The affected vehicles received a replacement driver air bag inflator as part of a previous takata inflator recall remedy or a replacement driver air bag module containing the same inflator type as a service part. Due to a manufacturing error, in the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver frontal air bag, these inflators may explode.
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began june 27, 2016. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are ka0, ka1, ka2, and ka3.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain model year 2003-2006 acura mdx, 2005-2011 acura rl, 2005-2006 honda cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2007-2008 fit, 2003-2008 pilot, 2002-2004 odyssey, and 2006-2011 ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or that have ever been registered, in alabama, california, florida, georgia, hawaii, louisiana, mississippi, south carolina, texas, puerto rico, american samoa, guam, the northern mariana islands (saipan), and the u.s. Virgin islands, or "zone a." additionally, unless included in "zone a" above, honda is recalling certain model year 2003-2006 acura mdx, 2005-2008 acura rl, 2005-2006 honda cr-v, 2003-2008 element, 2007-2008 fit, 2003-2008 pilot, 2002-2004 odyssey, and 2006-2008 ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or that have ever been registered, in arizona, arkansas, delaware, district of columbia, illinois, indiana, kansas, kentucky, maryland
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began on july 1, 2015. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Owners may contact acura customer service at 1-800-382-2238, select option 4. Note: vehicles that have had their driver frontal air bag replaced previously as part of a recall remedy prior to september 12, 2014 need to have their air bag replaced under this recall as well. Vehicles that, on or after september 12, 2014, received a remedy for a prior driver frontal air bag inflator recall already rec
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain model year 2001-2007 accord, 2001-2005 civic, 2001-2004 honda civic gx, 2003-2005 honda civic hybrid, 2002-2006 cr-v, 2003-2011 element, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2008 pilot, 2006 ridgeline, 2003 acura 3.2cl, 2003-2006 acura mdx, and 2002-2003 acura 3.2tl vehicles. The affected vehicles are equipped with a dual-stage driver frontal air bag that may be susceptible to moisture intrusion and other factors, including manufacturing variability that, over time, could cause the inflator to rupture.
Air bags
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passengerâs frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger side air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began january 26, 2015. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-800-999-1009.
Full defect summary
American honda motor co. (honda) is recalling certain model year 2001-2005 honda civic, 2003-2004 civic cng and element, 2002-2005 cr-v, 2002-2004 odyssey, 2003-2005 accord, pilot, civic hybrid, and acura mdx, 2005 acura rl and 2006 honda ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in geographic locations associated with high absolute humidity. Specifically, vehicles sold, or ever registered, in alabama, florida, georgia, hawaii, louisiana, mississippi, south carolina, texas, puerto rico, u.s. Virgin islands, saipan, guam, and american samoa are addressed by this recall. Upon deployment of the passenger side frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture.
Air bags
Risk: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passengerâs frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Honda will notify owners, and dealers will replace the inflators in all affected vehicles, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin during august 2014. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-800-999-1009.
Full defect summary
American honda motor company, inc.'s (honda) is conducting a limited regional recall for certain model year 2003-2005 accord, civic, cr-v, pilot and acura mdx, model year 2003-2004 odyssey and element, and model year 2005 acura rl, and 2006 honda ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or ever registered in california, and equipped with takata-brand air bag inflators. Upon deployment of the passenger side frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to rupture.
Electrical: switch
Risk: Removal of the ignition key when the gear selector of a vehicle with an automatic transmission has not been shifted to the park position can allow the vehicle to roll away, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Honda will notify owners and instruct them to take their vehicle to a honda or acura dealer. The dealer will install an updated shift interlock lever and, if necessary, replace any necessary part of the ignition switch, free of charge. The recall began on february 22, 2013. Owners may contact honda at 1-800-999-1009.
Full defect summary
Honda is recalling certain model year 2003 and 2004 pilot and odyssey and 2003 through 2006 acura mdx passenger vehicles manufactured from november 26, 2001, through august 30, 2006. The interlock lever of the ignition switch may deform, which can allow the interlock function of a vehicle with an automatic transmission to be defeated.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Desiccated air bag inflator rupture
Summary
From 2000 through 2017, takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("psan") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004l. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 blomquist report at www.NHTSA.gov/sites/NHTSA.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substa
Air bag inflator rupture
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe14-016 in june 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.all six vehicles were operated in florida or puerto rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag systems.during the course of pe14-016, odi determined that five additional vehicle manufacturers used inflators of a similar design and vintage also supplied by takata. No evidence of field failures was found in vehicles produced by these five additional manufacturers.nonetheless, at odi's in
Air bag inflator rupture
Summary
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe14-016 in june 2014 based on six inflator rupture incidents involving consumer owned vehicles produced by five vehicle manufacturers.all six vehicles were operated in florida or puerto rico at the time of the rupture and for the majority of their service life, and were equipped with inflators produced by takata, a tier-one supplier of automotive air bag systems.during the course of pe14-016, odi determined that five additional vehicle manufacturers used inflators of a similar design and vintage also supplied by takata. No evidence of field failures was found in vehicles produced by these five additional manufacturers.nonetheless, at odi's in
Ignition interlock failure - rollaway
Summary
On december 10, 2012, honda motor company submitted a defect information report to NHTSA regarding ignition interlocks in approximately 576,117 model year my) 2003 through 2004 honda pilot and odyssey vehicles that are the subject of this investigation and 231,044 my 2003 through 2006 acura mdx vehicles (recall no. 12v-573).honda's report states that a design change to the ignition switch used in the recalled vehicles reduced the range of rotation for the ignition switch from 160 degrees in earlier designs to 125 degrees without a corresponding change to the ignition interlock blocking mechanism.the result was that excessive rotational force could damage a lever that would allow the driver t
Questions about the 2004 Acura Mdx
- What are the most common problems with the 2004 Acura Mdx?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: transmission (77 complaints, typically around 91,000 miles); engine (26 complaints, typically around 103,000 miles); air bags (26 complaints, typically around 144,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2004 Acura Mdx have?
- 8 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from June 27, 2019 (air bags). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2004 a bad year for the Acura Mdx?
- It is 10th of 25 Mdx model years by number of complaints, with 171 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.