sundevil_CL

It's been a few years since I've visited the site (since selling my CL) but I may be coming back. My wife's Lexus RX lease is up in a couple months and she has been looking at several SUV options to buy used (she doesn't want another lease).

One of her top choices is an MDX due to the Honda/Acura reliability, 3rd row seats, good looks and respectable power. Of course, there are other models she's got her on on too - GMC Acadia, Infinifi JX/QX60 round out her top 3.

We are looking to spend $30-35k and hope to buy something 1-3 years old with under 25k miles.

I'd like to poll the audience and see what MDX owners think of their car, and if anyone owns/owned/considered any of the other models listed above?

Cheers!

Kostyan

my wife has been driving a 2nd gen RX for years and we are pondering the potential replacement. She does not like the 2nd gen MDX for busy ride and less luxurious interior compared to her RX - talking about the supple rich leather and wood, so would see herself driving an RX again, even newer.

mrgold35

There will still be a steady stream of 12/13 MDXs coming off lease for the next 18-24 months within your price/mileage range. I purchased my MDX used as a corp lease return in Jan/14 with under 30,000 miles and I'm getting close to 48,000 miles very soon. The MDX is my wife's daily driver and she has some pros/cons about the MDX (coming from a TSX and RDX as her daily driver):

Pros:
- Drives and handles like a smaller vehicle because of the Adv package and sh-awd. The MDX drive differently from other Acura's with sh-awd because it can send more power to the rear and the sh-awd is tuned very aggressively. Torque vectoring on one wheel will kick in on a right hand turn at a stop sign.
- A lot of tech features for the $$ (Navi, ELS with bluethooh audio/USB/hard-drive/XM, XM Weather/traffic option, BSI, ADS, CMBS, ACC, cooled seats, etc...)
- Everyone are impressed when they sit inside
- Very good hwy mpgs around +21 mpg at 80 mph
- A lot of room for people and gear/stuff
- Dual power front power seats are comfortable. Heated seats really work well, cooled seats depends on what your are wearing and how hot it is (but still a good feature)
- plenty of power and quiet on the hwy
- Routine Maint seems to be about the same as my TSX/RDX, with the exception of oil changes are around 7500 miles instead of 5000 miles for my other vehicles.
- Power lift gate is big plus for her (4'11")

Cons:
- very wide vehicle, she hit the curb twice on a right hand turn because she could not judge the MDX length.
- She has to pick her parking spots to avoid door dings from others. She is still haven't gotten use to its size.
- Visible not as great out the back because of the head rest or passenger side compared to our TSX/RDX. BSI helps with that.
- City mpgs can be as low as 14-15 mpgs, we average about 17-18 mpg with 60% hwy
- It is a little hard for the wife to put down the second row or put up the third row
- Third row is for small kids or people you hate
- Had to replace the front magnetic shocks already under warranty. Went ahead and purchased an 120,000 miles extended warranty just in-case.

If I had a chance to pick something else after 11 months and 18,000 miles of ownership, the answer would be HELL YES! I like the Adv features; but, I don't get much use except on the hwy or in out of town cities when I'm not familiar with the driving habits.

sundevil_CL

Thank you this is great insight. With regard to the magnetic shocks, correct me if I'm wrong, but these are only an issue on models with the Adv feature?

mrgold35

Only the 07-09 Sport model or +10 Adv models have the magnetic shocks. You also get with the Adv models:

ACC - Adaptive Cruise Control (can set low/mid/long hwy follow range, automatically slows/brakes when vehicles are within follow range, resumes to cruise control speed when clear)

ADS - Active Damper System (magnetic shocks to auto adjusts to road conditions, assist in braking to keep the MDX level, sport and comfort modes)

BSI - Blind Spot Information (alerts driver if a vehicle is with the left/right blind spot with a light near both side view mirrors inside cabin)

CMBS - Collision Mitigation Braking System (auto braking system to lessen collisions by alerting driver first, slowing vehicle down second, applying hard braking and pulling the seat belts to prepare for possible impact third, can skip to third step if needed)

Cooled seats with three levels of heat. Heated seats with three levels of heat. Perforated premium leather.

Auto leveling HIDs

Larger front and rear stabilizer bars for improved handling

Larger 19 inch tires with Advance alloy wheels rims

With the Entertainment package you get a DVD player for rear passengers that can use wireless and/or wired headphones, 115 volt power outlet in front center console, and heated seats in the outboard positions for the second row. Entertainment can be on Adv or Tech models.

I was in Phoenix and Houston last summer and the cooled seats really do help in that kind of heat+humidity.

TSX_831

mrgold35 provided a great summary of the 2nd gen MDX. I pretty much agree with everything stated.

From my personal experience, the size of the MDX doesn't bother me as much after spending 2-years behind the wheel. Putting the 2nd row down can be annoying at times, but no issues with the 3rd row. I wish the 2nd gen had the push button for the 2nd row like the 3rd gen has.

PS: I have the Tech, so the Advance model will have more goodies.

nats007

OP,

I actually just went through the same decision this past weekend in getting a new vehicle (2011-2013)for my wife. We were between the JX35, MDX, and the Pilot. My personal preference was the MDX, but my wife really wanted the JX35.

What she liked:
JX35 - Slightly bigger than the MDX with a better 3 row space/access
JX35 - Fit and finish
JX35 - Had the navi, entertainment, backup cam, etc.

MDX - Fit and Finish
MDX - Power and handling
MDX - Had the navi, adding entertainment, backup cam, etc.
MDX - color combo
MDX - Reliability and CPO

Pilot - Largest of all vehicle
Pilot - Had the navi, entertainment, backup cam, etc.
Pilot - Reliability and CPO

Overall, she really wanted the JX, but the price was much higher and it wasn't CPO. Also, it felt under powered. The only ding she had on the MDX was the space of the 3rd row. Overall, based on price, amenities, warranty, and reliability, she chose the MDX.

Heracles

We bought our 07 MDX sport/ent in 2008 with 15K miles, CPO, for 38K. We still have it today, with 115K miles

Only painful experinece- The magnetic shocks blew. The ride quality became unbearable. The ceritifcation expired- dealer quoted me $800 EACH. Since i go to Acura of lehigh valley often, the service manager was AWESOME. As i scheduled appt to install just the fronts- he said he talked to his boss and got me a good will discout for $200 Each. I said..200 off ?? Or 200 EACH? He smiled and said.. $200...EACH. I hugged him, needless to say.

Other than that, my wife still LOVES to drive it. I brought up trading it in for a new MDX.. she says, why? It still drives/feels great.

The only thing i dont like it the interior noise- not as isolated as i expected for a high end car. I think the lexus RX probably is alot quieter.

Speaking of the lexus RX- I saw a new one the other day, they stepped up their game because it looked GOOD. I would definitely consider one in the future.

sundevil_CL

What is the typical lifespan of the magnetic shocks? Do the replacements wear out just as fast as the OEM originals, or have the flaws been corrected to last longer? My wife doesn't drive a whole lot (~7500 miles per year), but I don't want to set myself up for a big repair bill down the road once the warranty is up.

sundevil_CL

nats007,

Great perspective, thank you. My wife actually likes the MDX better than the JX, so it should hopefully be an easier sell to get her into one once her RX lease is up.

mrgold35

There doesn't seem to be a set pattern for the magnetic shocks/struts to fail. You just start to get a knocking noise and you know it is your time. It seems to be completely random and you would think other factors might contribute to the problem such as:

Front -vs- rear failure
road conditions
weather/location in North America
driving habits
average load/towing
hwy -vs- city
driving style

There are folks that convert the magnetic shocks to regular with no problems other than adding a resistor from Radio Shack to turn off the sensor. I haven't found a cheap aftermarket magnetic shock/strut replacement compared to paying the +$800 OEM price. I would make sure if you do purchase an Sport/Adv model, make sure the shocks/struts are good to go. The added tech on the +10 Adv model makes it worth the risk in my book (2 shocks are around 4 new tires in price to put things in perspective $$ wise).

nats007

No worries and sounds good! We are heading over to the dealer to pick up her X tomorrow. We had a 2014 RDX Tech as a loaner since they were addressing a TCS and VSA warning that popped up during the test drive. Can't wait to take the X home!

flnycus

i went through the same process but buying new. It was a no brainer to go with the mdx. The rx was boring, no 3rd row, the infinity, well its a nissan not in the same league imo as lexus and acura. Thought about mercedes but i already have an audi coupe so didn't need another german car to look after. So X it was, paddles, fun to drive for me, practical for the wife and kids, 3rd row, nicely equipped. Sold.

sundevil_CL

Wanted to circle back to my thread as we are about 45 days away from the lease end on our RX. Wife has made up her mind - she wants an MDX. We are in a unique situation with our RX in that the residual of $34k is much lower than what 2013 fully-loaded RX's are selling for today. I'm hopeful that I can 'trade' the RX in on a used MDX and take advantage of some of the equity (hoping for $1,000). And an added bonus - in AZ you only pay sales tax on the difference in price from the car being purchased from the car being traded in. In our case, it's very likely we will be buying a car less than the $34k residual (hopeful $35k trade-in value) which means no sales tax.

Here are some MDX options for sale locally. Was hoping for some advice on which look like solid deals, versus those that I might want to shy away from.

-2011 w/Tech & Entertainment; 58k miles; list price $28.9k ("no haggle" price)

-2012 Base; Certified Pre-Owned; 44k miles; list price $30.2k

-2013 Base; 29k miles; list price $33.9k

I'm thinking the 2011 is the best buy due to the most features, but I know the wife will be scared off by the 58K miles. Perhaps the rear DVD system will win her over since we have two little kids that I'm sure will take full advantage.

Between the two base models, I'm not sure if the 2013 is worth the extra $3,700 list.

Last question, and I know it is very debatable, but what would be a reasonable offer price for the 2011? I don't buy into the "no haggle price" BS but it has been many years since I've purchased a used car from a deal and don't really know how much margin they typically build in.

TIA!

Flipster23

iTrader: (15)

CarMax has that no haggle BS.

My wife was thinking about an MDX too, but then we went to see one and we decided against it. We didn't like how small it was. The thing that scared her away was the MPG and mileage on all the ones we found. She kept comparing them to her Accord. Since we bought it brand new, (all of her cars have been brand new) she couldn't see herself buying one with over 45k.

mrgold35

CarMax has no haggle pricing, they can purchase your old vehicle, and ship a vehicle if find something better in another state. I spent more than the CarMax shipping cost when I drove to Colorado from New Mexico and spent the night to pick up my MDX from a Honda Dealership.

I did a quick search on CarMax and they had 28 2011-2013 tech/Adv MDXs under 50,000 miles priced from $28,998 to $34,998. Color combo and tech level was higher on my list compared to just price. I was willing to pay a little more if I get exactly what I wanted since I'm the one looking at the MDX for +5 years. There is nothing wrong with the base MDX, the tech model is the real sweet spot for the MDX. I just went with the Adv model because we travel so much. If the MDX is just a commuter vehicle, the tech is all you will need 90%-95% of the time.

Flipster23

iTrader: (15)

I was going to buy a car from CarMax, but it was overpriced.

fxcarden

CMBS - Collision Mitigation Braking System (auto braking system to lessen collisions by alerting driver first, slowing vehicle down second, applying hard braking and pulling the seat belts to prepare for possible impact third, can skip to third step if needed)

This system isn't very good IMO. It often gets fooled on the highway by overpass shadows, if you are on a winding road, it often goes off thinking the guardrail is an object you are about to hit. If I am not mistaken it also uses the same sensor for ACC, and if you are driving in snow it often disables itself when the grille gets dirty. The first time it happened to me I literally jumped out of seat thinking it was some serious breakdown.

Also the NAV is garbage.

Other than that, the MDX is a great car but be wary of those things. I'd be curious to know how other cars with ACC, CMBS, and other NAV systems compare.


Finally, as to what to offer for the '11 with Tech, I'd go with $25K.

mrgold35

If the MDX Tech had the option for cooled seats, that would of been my first choice. That is the Adv feature I get the most use from living in the southwest. I even checked into retro-fitting a tech MDX with OEM or aftermarket seat coolers and it was just cheaper to purchase the Adv model. I've had all the same problems you had with the ACC/CMBS also. The Adv features works best on long, straight, level, no overhead obstructions like bridges, low/med traffic, and fair weather hwy situations between city limits. This is pretty much 99% of my driving conditions once I leave my city limits; which, is perfect for the Adv model. Everything else increases activation and/or errors of the system, especially as roads get twisty and/or hwy get crowded. I like to option to turn on/off any or all Adv features; but, never had a need to do so.

Tech version is the way to go, unless you like tech toys.

CivEX

[QUOTE=mrgold35;15262022
- Had to replace the front magnetic shocks already under warranty. Went ahead and purchased an 120,000 miles extended warranty just in-case.[/QUOTE]

Will the regular warranty cover the ADS? or is this in the extended warranty only? I have a CPO.

mrgold35

I'm not 100% sure of CPO warranties compared to Acura Care extended warranties. They should cover exactly the same items with different mileage/time restrictions. Any non-Acura warranties may or may-not cover the magnetic shocks. I'm a little disappointed the Acura extended warranty doesn't cover the HIDs. I just got lucky my magnetic shock went out while I was still under my basic warranty. Planning to keep my MDX +4 yrs and there was a chance they might go out again (only replaced the fronts).

InWI

We have an '11 Advance MDX. Wife and I both still love the car. Out of warranty with 56k, RR shock leaked, Acura replaced the unit for a $100 charge. So while not happy with the failure, Acura stepped up and covered it.

db22

Nobody has mentioned the fact that the Adv shocks are a great feature: sport is fun in the twisties and comfort is great on the highway. I would certainly pay for the replacements if mine go out and I could not live without the Advance features. If you are moving up to an Acura then why not make it the best it could be? I hate buyers remorse.

sundevil_CL

The magnetic shock failure rate seems more the norm than the exception. Why hasn't Acura issued s TSB or recall to address the issue?

Seems just like my last Acura (3.2CL) and the high failure rate of the auto transmissions. Mine was on its third tranny when I sold it with 80k on the clock.

sundevil_CL

I think we've narrowed the list down to two cars. One is newer with more bells and whistles and of course a higher price. The other is the preferred color combo that the wife likes.

Option #1:
2012 MDX w/Tech
White on Beige
24k miles
Asking price $33k
Not sure of original in-service date, but assuming 3/2011, that means the original warranty is about to expire (4 years)

Option #2:
2013 MDX w/Advance
Gray on Black
20.5k miles
Asking price $38k
Assuming in-service date of 3/2012, warranty balance would be ~12 months

But not for the issue with the magnetic shocks, I would opt for the '13 w/Advance at the $5,000 higher price due to the additional features and balance of factory warranty. However, the shock failure rate seems alarmingly high and is leaving me wondering if I should save the money and get the '12 with less options?

Decisions, decisions...

mrgold35

My vote would be the Adv MDX! You will still have the basic 4/50,000 warranty to take care of the magnetic shocks. You can purchase an extended warranty any time as long as you are under 3yr/364 days from original purchase date and under 49,999.9 miles. I purchased my extended warranty about 30 days before I ran out of time. You might even get the sales person to toss in an extended warranty at that price.

You are going to love the 3 level cooled seats in Scottsdale. I was just in Phoenix at the end of Jan/15 and used them a few times. I actually needed the seat heaters when I was in Flagstaff/Sedona overnight and switched to the cooled seats once I got to Phoenix. The Adv seat heaters have 3 settings and HI can really toast your buns compared to just the 2 settings on my RDX and TSX. I use the seat coolers all the time from April to Sept in N.M.

nats007

My view point. Are any of these CPO? That way, you don't have to haggle with the extended warranty...

I agree that the ADV would be awesome, but I'll be honest, the TECH is very nice and I (personally) would shy away from the ADV due to the magnetic shocks. Think of it as the K.I.S.S method. The more techy/advance like features, the more costly the repairs will be.

I'd get the TECH for 5K less, add the dual RES for $1600 and call it a day! That's that we did and enjoying it everyday!

The only thing I wish we had were the running boards, but other than that the advanced wheels would have been a nice to have, but not essential.

db22

If you don't get the Advance then the car you get will have less features than a Hyundai Sonata. The Advance is the only MDX that, at least, keeps you in the game because there are numerous cars that exceed the features of the lesser MDX, even a Honda Pilot.