KnownCarProblems2005 Acura Mdx Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 180 complaints with NHTSA about the 2005 Acura Mdx, most often about the transmission (48% of complaints, typically around 80,000 miles). It is 8th of 25 Mdx model years by number of complaints and has 11 recalls.
Most common 2005 Acura Mdx problems
Transmission
87 complaints · 48%Half of these problems showed up before 80,000 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission.
2005 Acura Mdx has had issues on multiple occasions where the transmission vibrates or shudders at about 1200-1400 RPM and under a light to moderate engine load. The torque converter has been replaced twice and the issue is starting again. Mileage on vehicle is about 80k.
The contact owns a 2005 Acura Mdx. The contact stated that while driving she heard an abnormal grinding noise. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic who performed a diagnostic that located the failure at the transmission torque converter. The contact stated she had previously received a letter from the…
Air bags
39 complaints · 22%Half of these problems showed up before 151,000 miles. Parts named most often: frontal, sensor.
Srs/seat belt warning light came on at instrument panel then intemittingly over the next week. Took car in to dealer on october 13, 2014. Dealer advised that I needed to repair and not covered under any type of warranty. Called Acura corp for financial assistance, advised I would have to pay entirely for the repair…
Upon entering intersection after being at a complete stop, the vehicles driver side airbag randomly deployed. Vehicle was towed to Acura of ocean in nj at which point Acura regional service manager claimed I hit a stationary object (which was not the case). I would welcome an opportunity to speak with someone who…
Electrical
18 complaints · 10%Half of these problems showed up before 100,000 miles. Parts named most often: 12v/24v/48v battery, ignition.
I brought my car in for recall for the shift interlock 7250a2. A repair or replacement was done by pohanka Acura service. After the recall fix, I could still pull the key from the ignition while the care is in drive. I called the dealership and they are trying to fix it again today. I am complaining that the initial…
Driver side power window control unit connector fails after years in service. The control unit is mounted on door with bracket and two screw which puts undue pressure on the connector by pushing it against the body. Over the time plastic connector (due to creep effect) will give away and become loose preventing proper…
Engine
16 complaints · 9%Half of these problems showed up before 82,000 miles. Parts named most often: engine.
While driving the SUV in a busy street 30-45mph felt the vibration, grinding, the triangle distress sign came on and felt the vehicle is going to stall. Managed to get the SUV to the parking lot on the right side. The SUV completely stalled there and we got it towed to the Acura dealer. They looked at it and the…
Engine mounts on the Acura Mdx from 2003-2006 seem to fail regularly resulting in excessive torque on the transmission and potential steering input shimming. Honda/Acura is well aware of the early failure of these mounts per referencing tsb 06-014. Further evidenced by numerous inputs of multiple mount failure within…
Brakes
13 complaints · 7%Half of these problems showed up before 108,000 miles.
The issue at hand regarding the vsa (vehicle stability) for which a recall had already been issued. My vehicle was taken in and received the recall. This however did not resolve the issue which is a serious issue many others I have spoken with face. The "yaw rate sensor" malfunctions causing similar but more dangerous…
The driver side front brake randomly applies even if you don't touch the brakes. It pulls into oncoming traffic. The vsa! Light comes on every time signaling an issue with the traffic control. There was recall that was supposed to fix the issue however it did not. It can occur at 70 MPH or 5 MPH, there is no rhyme to…
Stability control
11 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 123,500 miles.
I just purchased this vehicle from a used car dealership at the time had no light appearing. The vsa light has come on and I see it had a recall for this previously. I called the dealership to see if all recalls had been serviced and they indicated they had. I have a huge concern knowing this is still a problem and…
My 2005 Acura Mdx has been driving great since we purchased it over a year ago. Recently the vsa light came on while driving around town and the vehicle stopped very abruptly when lightly applying the brakes. The light goes away and appears to reset when you turn off the vehicle. Now every time that the vehicle is…
Speed control
9 complaints · 5%Half of these problems showed up before 70,500 miles.
Driving on city street 1 block from entering freeway I felt a strange grabbing and vibration type sensation from my 2005 Mdx. A few feet further the car felt like I had stepped on brakes and gas at the same time and literally stopped in the middle of the street. The car behind swerved and barely missed me. I managed…
The contact owns a 2005 Acura Mdx. While driving approximately 10 MPH and coming to a stop, the vehicle independently accelerated. The vehicle was taken to island Acura (3350 sunrise hwy, wantagh, ny 11793, ([phone]) to be diagnosed, but the mechanic was unable to retrieve a fault code or duplicate the failure. The…
Steering
9 complaints · 5%Half of these problems showed up before 108,000 miles. Parts named most often: linkages.
The issue at hand regarding the vsa (vehicle stability) for which a recall had already been issued. My vehicle was taken in and received the recall. This however did not resolve the issue which is a serious issue many others I have spoken with face. The "yaw rate sensor" malfunctions causing similar but more dangerous…
The driver side front brake randomly applies even if you don't touch the brakes. It pulls into oncoming traffic. The vsa! Light comes on every time signaling an issue with the traffic control. There was recall that was supposed to fix the issue however it did not. It can occur at 70 MPH or 5 MPH, there is no rhyme to…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2005 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 front passenger air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall bagan march 2017. Owners may contact honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are kd9 and ke0.
Full defect summary
Honda (american honda motor co.) is recalling certain 2005-2006 acura mdx and honda cr-v vehicles, 2005-2011 honda element vehicles, 2005-2012 acura rl vehicles, 2006-2012 honda ridgeline vehicles, 2007-2008 honda fit vehicles and 2005-2008 honda pilot vehicles originally sold, or ever 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, if not included in "zone a" above, honda is recalling certain 2005-2006 acura mdx and honda cr-v vehicles, 2005-2009 acura rl and honda element vehicles, 2007-2008 honda fit vehicles, 2005-2008 honda pilot vehicles and 2006-2009 honda ridgeline vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in arizona, arkansas, delaware, district of columbia, illinois, indiana, kansas, ke
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.
Traction Control System
Risk: Sudden inadvertent braking, especially without illumination of the brake lights, may increase the risk of a vehicle crash.
Fix: Owners will be notified and instructed to take their vehicles to a dealer of their respective brand. The dealer will install a partial wiring harness containing a capacitor for the vsa modulator, free of charge. The affected model year 2005 pilots will have their ground connection tightened. The recall began on april 22, 2013. Honda owners may contact honda automobile customer service at 1-800-999-1009, and select option 4 or go to www.recalls.honda.com; acura owners may contact 1-800-382-2238, and select option 4, or go to www.recalls.acura.com.
Full defect summary
Honda is recalling certain model year 2005 pilot vehicles manufactured july 29, 2004, through august 29, 2005; model year 2005-2006 acura mdx vehicles manufactured september 16, 2004, through september 22, 2005; and model year 2005 acura rl vehicles manufactured march 1, 2004, through june 29, 2005. An electrical capacitor may have been damaged during the manufacturing of the vehicle stability assist (vsa) control module causing intermittent, automatic, minor brake application. However, if the driver applies the brakes while the vsa is malfunctioning, the vehicle may come to an abrupt stop. Additionally, due to a loose ground connection, certain model year 2005 pilots have a vsa system that may apply partial brake force, without the illumination of the brake lights, whether or not the driver is using the brakes.
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.
Fuel system: tank assembly
Risk: In a crash, the fuel tank could be damaged and leak fuel. Fuel leakage, in the presence of an ignition source, could result in a fire.
Fix: Dealers replaced the fuel tank. All owners were notified by telephone on november 10, 2004.
Full defect summary
On certain sport utility vehicles, some fuel tanks were improperly manufactured.
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
Vehicle stability assist malfunction
Summary
On march 14, 2013, american honda motor co., inc. (honda) submitted a defect information report to NHTSA identifying a defect in the vehicle stability assist (vsa) system in approximately 183,576 model year (my) 2005 honda pilot, acura rl and my 2005-2006 acura mdx vehicles (NHTSA recall no 13v-092).the population and failure counts provided pertain only to the my 2005 honda pilots that were the subject of this investigation.honda's recall addresses two conditions in the vsa system that could result in inappropriate brake activation.the first condition is related to a manufacturing concern with a capacitor in the vsa electronic control unit (ecu) circuit board.according to honda, vsa systems
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 2005 Acura Mdx
- What are the most common problems with the 2005 Acura Mdx?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: transmission (87 complaints, typically around 80,000 miles); air bags (39 complaints, typically around 151,000 miles); electrical (18 complaints, typically around 100,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2005 Acura Mdx have?
- 11 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 2005 a bad year for the Acura Mdx?
- It is 8th of 25 Mdx model years by number of complaints, with 180 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.