Acura RDX Complaints (2021)

118 consumer complaints on file.

#11532587July 16, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES
Since buying this car I’ve had a few occasions where the car has not slowed down and feels like the transmission is pushing the car more than it should under hard breaking.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11526012June 8, 2023
SEAT BELTS
The rear driver side seat belt has frayed repeatedly over the last 2 years. This puts my young child at risk of the seat belt failing in an accident. The seat belt has been replaced by the local Acura dealership 3 times, but the cause of the fray has not been identified. Fray #1 was first seen with a Nuna Rava child car seat installed in the forward facing configuration. The fray was in the upper section of the OE seat belt between the car pillar and where it exits the child car seat. It was replaced in March 2022. This was replaced on goodwill from Bob Lindsay Acura dealership. Fray #2 was noticed in the same location in the new (March 2022) seat belt and replaced in December 2022. This was replaced on goodwill from Bob Lindsay Acura dealership. Fray #3 was again noticed in the same place in the December 2022 seat belt and replaced in January 2023. This was replaced on goodwill from American Honda Motor Co., Inc. The original thought was the tension from the car seat was causing the fray in the seat belt; however, the dealership and Honda provided no reason or explaination for why the belt was fraying or possible remedy solution beyond directly replacing the seat belt. The child has since outgrown the Nuna Rava child seat in January 2023 and is now a Diono Monterey high-back booster seat. This Diono booster was installed at the same time as the January 2023 seat belt replacement. Fray #4 was seen in the January 2023 seat belt at the same general location as the previous frays on 8 June 2023.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11520817May 7, 2023
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
On 10/2/2022 the rear glass shattered on my RDX for no reason. It was parked in the driveway. Safelight replaced the glass but was unable to get the glass out of the tailgate and shards were being randomly released. I then had the entire tailgate/glass replaced with original Acura tailgate/glass. On 5/7 /2023 the glass shattered again for no reason. Parked in the garage with door closed. I attached pics of both incidents. The last two pictures are from the 10/2 incident.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11516100April 8, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES, ENGINE
While sitting in a long row of stopped vehicles at a traffic light for an extended amount of time due to an accident I had the Automatic Brake Hold feature activated { I did not have to have my foot on the brake while sitting still) as well as the Auto Idle Stop OFF button meaning {the engine shuts down when you come to a stop.} Apparently, the Brake Hold feature timed out with no warning whatsoever and because the vehicle moved forward the Auto Start Stop feature activated at the same time and the vehicle lurched forward rear ending a new expensive SUV in front of me. The impact was hard due to the quick lurch of my vehicle. I have damage to the front of my vehicle and all of the electronic features started flashing including the emission control. The driver advised she was very shaken up and if a pedestrian or bicyclist had been in front of us it could have been very tragic.The vehicle is being towed to A local Acura dealer for evaluation and I have a Case number assigned by Honda with no case manager assigned yet. There were no warning lights/lamps at all prior to the vehicle Brake Hold timing out and further searching through the manual only says it times out after 10 minutes but does not advise what happens when that happens or what warning will be used.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11511627March 13, 2023
SEATS, AIR BAGS
My wife, 78 years old, is petite. She weighs 75 lbs, height 4'10." The front passenger seat sensors don't register her as sitting in the seat with the result that the passenger air bag is not engaged (the dashboard light indicates the air bag is OFF). My vehicle, 2021 Acura RDX, passenger seat has 2 seat sensors while the MDX model has 4 seat sensors that would register her weight and the air bag system would be engaged. We have not had an accident. The MDX seat is not compatible with the RDX. Acura says that nothing can be done to rectify the problem. I consider this problem a safety defect.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11510123March 4, 2023
SERVICE BRAKES
Rear brakes: Rear brakes and rotors make odd noise or extraordinarily high pitched screeching sounds coming from outside the car when your brakes are applied. When using brakes in reverse the noise is very load. This happens when all the time wither the vehicle is cold or warm. Driver must use additional force to stop vehicle while in reverse. I have made numerous complaints to the dealership, they are aware of the ingoing problem with the 2021, but they currently do not have fix for the problem. I have concerns that the brakes will fail while reversing out of parking spaces and leaving my home daily.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11499336December 29, 2022
ENGINE, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
On 12/22/22, I was driving in a 2021 RDX SH-AWD with my pregnant wife and 2 year old son from Media PA to Pittsburgh PA . It was rainy and 35-40 degrees F the whole drive. Approximately 4 hours into the drive we stopped at a rest stop on the PA turnpike to get gas. While attempting to merge back onto the turnpike from the service road to the right of the turnpike, a truck was coming up behind me in the right hand lane of the turnpike. I was traveling approximately 40mph on the service road, so I went to accelerate to safely complete the merge in front of the truck. Near the end of my acceleration sequence (I estimate I had gotten to approx 65mph) my car went into “limp mode”. I felt an unexpected and immediate loss of power and my check engine light/“MIL” began flashing yellow. I was luckily able to barely avoid a collision with the truck that was approaching. After the light started flashing I was unable to turn the knob to switch drive modes (it was in snow mode at the time this all happened). I was unable to do anything but attempt to drive to safety with severe power loss. I was able to coast my car with minimal accelerator response to the next exit off the turnpike and into a motel parking lot. I shut down the car and then turned it back on. When I turned it back on, the MIL light was no longer flashing and I had normal power restored to the vehicle, but interestingly the auto stop/start feature no longer worked. I was able to drive the remainder of the way to Pittsburgh without any further loss in power, though I was anxious the entire drive considering the major malfunction I had just experienced while attempting a merge at highway speeds. The vehicle only had approx 10,500 miles on it at the time of the incident. The vehicle is currently at the dealership being diagnosed. A case has also been opened directly with Acura/Honda.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11495022November 27, 2022
POWER TRAIN, ENGINE, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
I have a 2021 RDX. Was on the interstate moving at about 70 MPH coming back from Missouri. Raining. Lots of semis creating huge following misty, hard to see rain. Decided to accelerate to pass a couple. Car nearly stalled and acted like it had lost a cylinder's worth of power. Turned on hazards, slowed, pulled over and lifted the hood hearing all kinds of unusual noises. Shut the car off and restarted. All was well. Turned all lane-keeping, etc. off including cruise. Drove the last 100 miles or so without incident. Called dealer and was told likely didn't pull a code. Don't worry and keep driving. Said to make sure front of car was clean. Duh!! I keep my ride spotless (unless driving in the rain). Called CA's Acura line. Absolutely no help. 2 different females had no idea what limp mode was. Read quite a bit since then finding out it could be the result of many things including problems that could damage the motor and/or tranny. WOW!!! Had never heard of "limp mode" before. Nice that no info on this possible problem was anywhere in any user manual. Car has performed flawlessly ever since. So far, I guess the rain had interfered with the "radar" system and confused the computer. I'm thinking about buying a 40 year old car that doesn't have any of the modern computers etc. Later found info regarding TSB 20-053 which explains the problem and proposed solution. 06-26-2022 06:52 PM
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11488883October 12, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES
2021 Acura Rdx Sh-awd purchased brand new. Rear brakes squeak very bad. Have taken car back to the dealer and contacted Acura several times, but still have yet to receive any resolve/resolution. Brakes started squeaking very loud when car was moving @ low speeds. & when vehicle was coming to a stop. Brakes started squeaking when the car was only a few weeks old and continue to presently squeak. Afraid this is compromising wear of the brakes. I, as a consumer don't want to be financially responsible for a manufacturer's error that they won't resolve.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11484165September 13, 2022
POWER TRAIN, ENGINE
I was accelerating up a hill on a WV highway in a steady rain, the engine cut power, the check engine light flashed on and off, further throttle input did nothing, the car slowed on its own. I had to pull over from the left lane dangerously cutting in front of vehicles in the right lane as I could no longer maintain highway speed. Shut the car down and waited to rekey. Vehicle has operated fine ever since. The dealer has not been able to duplicated the issue (two weeks afterwards)
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11481593August 28, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: WARNINGS, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING
What component or system failed or malfunctioned? Car automatically applied brakes on several occasions, despite no obstacles in front of the car. Incident 1: While driving through an 3-way intersection, the car slammed on the brakes automatically. There was a van in the opposite lane waiting to turn left. There was 2-3 feet of space so there was no risk of collision, but the car slammed on the brakes causing me to come to a sudden stop in the middle of the intersection. Incident 2: I was changing lanes to go past a stopped car in the left lane (It was waiting to make a left turn) The car automatically applied brakes, even though I would not have hit the car. Cars behind me had to slam on their brakes to avoid rear-ending my stopped car. Incident 3: While driving on a freeway at 65 mph with light traffic and no cars in front for at least 1000 ft the car flashed the automatic brake warning. It did not actually apply the brakes, but could have caused an accident considering the speed. Incident 4: While driving on a 2-lane road with cars parked on the sides of the road, the car displayed an automatic brake warning despite no collision being imminent. Incident 5: While driving down a suburban street with no trees or obstacles in sight, the automatic brake warning flashed. How was safety put at risk? Sudden stopping in a road, highway, or intersection could cause an accident. I am concerned for my safety, because if the car stops unexpectedly in the middle of the road, other cars may hit me. This is the same system used in some Hondas, so a recall of Honda vehicles may need to be extended to Acura vehicles. Has the problem been confirmed by dealer? Yes. The service advisor told me that his car has the same problem, but that it is normal and there is nothing they can do about it. Were there any warnings? Usually happens when there is a radar reflective object above or off to the side of the path of travel. The BRAKE warning appears when automatic braking is applied.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11478200August 8, 2022
STEERING, FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: AUTOMATIC EMERGENCY BRAKING, SERVICE BRAKES
All software systems failed, disabling the vehicle. Error messages included failure in braking, steering, and other vital systems. Acura roadside assistance determined that the car had to be towed to the nearest dealer. The dealer confirmed the issue was a "DTC P061B PCM internal malfunction" and performed a "PGM-FI software update to correct the issue." The vehicle was completely disabled, and we were 4 1/2 hours from the nearest dealership. There were no warnings or communications prior to the incident.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11477191August 2, 2022
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
My experience is in the attached file. My concern is Honda (Acura, same company) issued a service bulletin with VIN ranges (which my vehicle falls in) and yet there is no diagnostic error code to show it happened to the car, repair persons/dealerships can and have denied fixing anything because they can’t diagnose it and it’s in the owner’s manual directing the owner to take it to the dealer for repair. That’s a big disconnect. Luckily, I was able to dig to find the bulletin and provided it to my dealer with the description of what happened and they’re going to fix it. But that doesn’t help anyone else. You really should put pressure on American Honda Motor to issue a recall and do it right.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11471260June 27, 2022
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM, ENGINE
One week ago 6-20-22, my car started to ‘chug’ and slow down as I was accelerating up a hill on a highway. It was almost as if my car was losing power. When this happened about 10 warnings signs came up on my dash. I drove it directly to the dealership. They replaced my oil saying the pressure was low. All was well for the day after 6-21 when driving it home from dealership. On 6-22 I went to merge onto a local highway from a stop sign with traffic coming at 55-65 mph. My car would not accelerate over 25 and I was unable to pull of. Thankfully I pulled off onto the next exit. I could have easily been rear ended and hurt. This issue since will go away if I shut off my car and turn it back on, but not every time. It is still chugging and losing power when I drive and all the errors on the dashboard are coming up randomly. I drive A LOT everyday for work and this problem is really scaring me knowing I or others could get hurt.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11470070June 20, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES
Brakes are squeaking very bad
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11459776April 5, 2022
ENGINE
during acceleration on highway to pass a vehicle the Acura RDX lost power and decelerated. Check engine light came on....engine lost power to accelerate/maintain highway speed almost causing an accident.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11459605April 4, 2022
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL, VISIBILITY/WIPER
Purchased my 2021 in November of 2020. Two weeks after, i was driving with adaptive cruise on at 65 mph on a freeway. 100 yds ahead i could see a diesel going slower than i, so i looked and saw no one coming at all, so i moved over to the passing lane. I got 5 feet into the lane and the car slammed on its brakes, on its own!!! Thank god no one was behind me or i might have died!! I reported this to Acura within 1 week, and then reported it to DOT the next week. I own one of the first 2021 s made, so i didn’t see a lot of feedback. Now after a year and a half i get on the DOT website and see many complaints like mine. This has happens to me maybe once every 3 weeks. Why has the DOT done nothing about this??!!! Also the DOT says there are no recalls on my car but if you go to the Acura website it says my car is under recall for a driveshaft problem, of which i never received a notice. Why does the DOT exist??
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11452034February 15, 2022
VISIBILITY:WINDSHIELD
The contact's wife owns a 2021 Acura RDX. The contact stated that there was a crack on the rear windshield. There was no impact to the rear windshield that could have caused the crack. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and diagnosed that the rear windshield needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 75,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11449268January 28, 2022
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
My Telemetrics Control Unit failed on Acura update. This is part of the system that calls for Emergency help when involved with a crash. I t was identified at an Acura dealership and the part was ordered. It is on back order now for over a month with no known delivery date
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11444658December 22, 2021
VISIBILITY:WINDSHIELD
The contact owns a 2021 Acura RDX. The contact stated while the vehicle was stationary in the driveway, he noticed that the rear windshield had shattered. Upon inspection, the contact stated he did not see any near objects that would have caused the windshield to shatter. The contact read online of other vehicle owners experiencing the same failure due to the cold weather. The contact called the local dealer and made them aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired but was pending repairs. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 5,539.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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