Owner-reported complaints naming the powertrain system, filed with NHTSA
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Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2014 Acura MDX submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 26 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
The 25 most recent of 26, in the owner's own words
The power train experiences jutters. Known issue and many torque converters have been replaced while under warranty. Our vehicle had minimal miles when warranty expired and now this problem has occurred. Have followed all of the recommended technical bulletins from Honda and the issue is not resolved. They now say to replace the torque converter at own expense.
The car is un safe to drive, the RPM fluctuations, gos up and down at low speed, doesn’t potential problems with the torque converter clutch, is juddering and unstable RPMs, noticeable during acceleration or deceleration
My vehicle has a hesitation and kick when it is at 35-40 mph about 1.8 to 2 on the tachometer. I took it in to the dealer and it needs transmission repair. I researched on the internet and it seems like thousands of others are having or have had the same problem. I purchased a lifetime powertrain warranty from Scott Clark Honda when i purchased the vehicle to cover these problems and the warranty company and Scott Clark Honda are trying to get out of repair. There are no lights or warning lamps on the vehicle. It just kicks and studders when you get to 35-40 mph which is the speed in the city limits. It is easy to get hit or run over when the vehicle does not go when you press the gas peddle. I would like to file a national case against Acura and Scott Clark Honda
The contact owns a 2014 Acura MDX. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle was jerking upon acceleration and deceleration. An unknown warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the transmission control module (TCM) software was updated, and the transmission fluid was flushed; however, the failure reoccurred while driving. The vehicle was taken to a local Pep Boys where it was diagnosed that the transmission control valve solenoid had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer who provided the same diagnostic information. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was approximately 175,000.
There is a known issue of Certain Acura MDX models having a "judder" (i.e. bouncing rev counter) at certain speeds. This causes the torque converter to not lockup and continue to find the right gear, per se. This is a known issue and Acura has a TSB (16-062) for this: https://www.tsbsearch.com/Acura/16-062 The issue is, even though, unaddressed in a timely manner and continual use of the vehicle may deteriorate the transmission, Acura doesn't fix this free of charge for vehicles not under warranty. Dealer quotes $800+ for a total 1.6 hours of work (based on the TSB bulletin). This is outrageous and monopolistic behavior in a free market. Moreover, typical mechanics doesn't have access to the special computers needed to perform the software update, required by this TSB. I am reaching out to request Acura (Car manufacturer) to cover this under recall and not charge the customer this ridiculous ~$400/hr labor rate just because I can't update the software from a local mechanic.
Transmission surges when shifting between 1st gear to 2nd, feels like rear ended, the whole car jumps. Acura of America seems to not have a fix for this issue that a lots of 3rd generation ACURA MDX owners suffer from . Acura dealership only suggestion is transmission fluid flush, which is not a real fix for the transmission jump that can cause a serious accident while operating the vehicle in traffic. Acura Of America is aware of this issue but !!! No safety recall been addressed.
I HAD THIS 2014 ACURA MDX FOR 4YR SINCE 2016 AS CPO AT LOCAL ACURA DEALER. SINCE 2YRS AGO, MY RPM DO NOT CLIMB STEADY AND IT IS JUMPING UP AND DOWN ,ESPECIALLY AT THE SPEED BETWEEN 40 TO 60. I THOUGHT IT IS JUST TRANSMISSION FLUID ISSUE. ONCE I REPLACED TRANSMISSION FLUID REPLACED, LEVEL OF FLUCTUATION BECAME LESS THAN PREVIOUS. BUT AFTER COUPLE MONTH LATER, IT IS STILL SAME. I AM WONDERING THIS ISSUE IS KNOWN FOR ANY ACURA MDX OWNER MANUFACTURED IN SAME PERIOD. I THINK THIS COULD BE SOFTWARE ISSUE RATHER THAN MECHANICAL ISSUE AND SHOULD BE RECALLED TO BE REPAIRED OR UPDATED. PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANY CLAIM SAME AS WHAT I AM EXPERIENCING. THANKS FOR YOUR TIME AND SINCERE SUPPORT.
TRANSMISSON FEELS LIKE IT SLIPS,SHIMMYS, TACHOMETER JUMPS UP AND DOWN 600 OR MORE RPS UNDER LIGHT ACCELERATING AND STEADY THROTTLE IN2,3,AND SOMETIMES 4TH GEAR. DEALER PRIME ACURA WESTWOOD MASSACHUSETTS CLAIMS CAR REQUIRES EXTRA MAINTENANCE TO BE CONSIDERED UNDER WARRANTY AND VOIDED ISSUE TELLING HONDA NOT TO FIX TROUBLE AS BRAKE FLUSH, REAR AXLE GEAR LUBE CHANGES NOT DONE AND PAID TO DEALER.THIS IS S A NON WARRANTY SERVICE DEALER CLAIMS IS NEEDED TO MAINTAIN WARRANTY SERVICE ,THUS TELLING HONDA TO VOID THE WARRANTY. I PROVIDED MULTIPLE TSB'S TO DEALER BUT THEY REFUSE SERVICE AS I REPEATEDLY REFUSED TO PAY FOR NON WARRANTY, NOT REQUIRED SERVICES TO DEALER. PLEASE NOTE HONDA HAS PUBLISHED TSB'S THAT I HAD PROVIDED TO PRIME ACURA AT THE TIME SERVICE WAS REQUESTED, I WAS INFORMED I MUST PAY FOR SERVICES BEFORE THIS ISSUE WOULD BE CONSIDERED UNDER THE ACURA/HONDA 6 YEAR DRIVETRAIN WARRANTY REQUEST.
ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS MY CAR SHUTTERS AND WILL NOT ACCELL OR WILL LUNGE WITHOUT PRESSURE BEING APPLIED TO THE FAR PEDAL. I'VE TAKEN THE CAR BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP NUMEROUS TIMES AND THEY REPLACE TRANSMISSION FLUID, ETC. NOTHING HELPS. A SERVICE PERSON WORKING AT THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THAT THEY ARE TRYING TO WAIT FOR MY WARRANTY TO EXPIRE.
VEHICLE TRANSMISSION PULSUATING REV NEVER DRIVES SMOOTH .TRANSMISSION REQUIRES FLUSH EVERY TWO TO THREE MONTHS
AFTER DRIVING ON HIGHWAY FOR 20MINS, WHEN DIVING ON CITY STREET OR AT LOW SPEED, TRANSMISSION FAILED TO SHIFT GEARS, LOST MANUAL SHIFT CONTROL ALSO, VEHICLE KICKED BACK AND FORTH STRONGLY WITH VERY LOUD SOUND WHEN DRIVING AND SHIFTING AUTOMATICALLY. ENGINE LIGHT IS ON, SAYS EMISSIONS SYSTEM FAILED, LANE DEPARTURE WARNING SYSTEM FAILED, TRANSMISSION FAILED. AFTER RESTARTED(MULTIPLE TIMES), TRANSMISSION STILL NOT WORKING PROPERLY, VERY ROUGH SHIFT, WHOLE CAR KICKED AND SHAKED WHEN GEAR UP. IF PRESS GAS HARDER, GEAR WILL NOT GO UP ON TIME, RPM WILL GO VERY HIGH, SPEED REMAINS SLOW. IF PRESS BRAKE, GEAR SHIFTS DOWN TOO EARLY AND ENGINE WILL SLOW THE CAR IN SUDDEN. CANNOT DRIVE SAFELY OR ON HIGHWAY AT ALL. SAME ISSUE HAPPENED IN JANUARY 2019, DEALER CHANGED SOLENOID CONTROL ASSEMBLY UNDER WARRANTY, BUT SAME THING HAPPENED AGAIN IN JUNE AND JULY 2020 AND GOT WORSE AT THIS TIME. SIX SPEED AT TRANSMISSION IN 2014 ACURA MDX. READ A LOT OF REPORTS OF THE SAME ISSUE ABOUT THIS TRANSMISSION FROM OTHER OWNERS.
RPMS ARE FLUCTUATING. TACHOMETER BOUNCES UP AND DOWN WHEN SLOWLY ACCELERATING
TRANSMISSION AND TORQUE CONVERTER PROBLEM. EXPERIENCING SHUTTER WHEN SHIFTING FROM 2ND GEAR INTO 3RD GEAR. STARTING AT 40,000K MILES. LOW IDLING RPM HOVERING AROUND 500RPM AND TRIES TO REGAIN THE APPROPRIATE IDLING RPM TO AROUND 600-700RPM. HARD DOWNSHIFTS OCCASIONALLY FROM 2ND TO 1ST GEAR, ESPECIALLY IN STOP AND GO TRAFFIC
SIMILAR TO OTHER COMPLAINTS, MY TRANSMISSION IS "STUTTERING" WHEN SLOWLY ACCELERATING BETWEEN (I THINK) 3RD AND 4TH GEAR AND WHEN IT IS BETWEEN 1500-2000 RPM. IT'S BEEN A CONSTANT ISSUE SINCE AROUND 10000 MILES OR SO. TOOK TO THE DEALER AND THEY INDICATED THAT THERE WAS A RECALL; HOWEVER, WHEN I SEARCH MY VIN, NO RECALL COMES UP. THERE ARE A LOT OF COMPLAINTS I'VE FOUND WITH THIS SAME ISSUE.
MY CAR HESITATES (FEELS LIKE IT WILL STALL) FREQUENTLY ON ACCELERATION AFTER SLOWING DOWN OR COMING TO A STOP. THIS IS A SAFETY HAZARD ESPECIALLY WHEN MAKING LEFT TURNS, ETC. THE DEALERSHIP CAN NOT FIND A PROBLEM WITH IT, BUT THE PROBLEM DOES EXIST. THIS PROBLEM STARTED AT ABOUT 5000 MILES AND CONTINUES.
TORQUE CONVERTER RATTLING TYPE NOISE WHEN ACCELERATING AT OR NEAR 40 MPH, AND ALSO 60 MPH. DEALER ATTEMPTED FLUID FLUSH AND SOFTWARE UPDATE TO NO AVAIL. RETURNING VEHICLE BACK TO DEALER FOR FURTHER DIAGNOSES AND REPAIRS.
VEHICLE HAS HESITATION/STUTTER WHEN ACCELERATING FROM 0 TO AROUND 20MPH. THIS IS A CONSTANT PROBLEM, NOT A ONE TIME OCCURRENCE.
I RECENTLY PURCHASED A 2014 ACURA WHILE IT WAS STILL IN ITS WARRANTY PERIOD. AFTER FINALIZING THE PURCHASE OF A $40, 000.00, THE VEHICLE BEGAN EXHIBITING MECHANIC ISSUES WITH THE TRANSMISSION. SO NATURALLY, I CONTACTED THE MY LOCAL ACURA DEALERSHIP IN CHAPEL HILL, NC. I HAVE TAKEN MY VEHICLE TO THE SAME DEALERSHIP A TOTAL OF FOUR TIMES FOR THE SAME ISSUE TO ONLY BE TOLD THAT THERE WAS NOT PROBLEM WITH VEHICLE, WHEN IT EXHIBITS OTHERWISE. WITH THE SAME MECHANIC ISSUE WITH TRANSMISSION STILL EXHIBITING ITSELF, I DECIDED TO TAKE MY CAR TO THE ACURA DEALERSHIP IN FAYETTEVILLE, NC, WHICH IS MORE THAN 78 MILES FROM MY HOME. THE NICE FOLKS THERE DIAGNOSED THE VEHICLE AND DETERMINED THAT IT WAS THE TORT CONVERTER, WHICH CARRIES A PRICE TAG OF OVER $2,600.00 TO REPAIR. THE CONCERN I HAVE IS THAT SINCE MY CAR IS CURRENTLY OUT OF HIS 50K WARRANTY PERIOD, IN WHICH THE PROBLEM WAS REPORTED BUT NEVER PROPERLY DIAGNOSED APPROPRIATELY DURING THE TIME IT WAS UNDER WARRANTY, WILL ACURA HONOR ITS COMMITMENT TO IT CONSUMER AND STAND BEHIND ITS PRODUCT, AS THIS IS A COMMON ISSUES MISDIAGNOSED ISSUE (CLICK HERE ) TO BE DIRECTED TO THE ONLINE FORM.
UNINTENTIONAL ACCELERATION AND FAILURE OF COLLISION MITIGATION SYSTEM 2014 ACURA MDX ADVANCED. ACCIDENT OCCURRED AT A STRIP MALL PARKING LOT LOCATED 1 MILE FROM MY RESIDENCE WHERE I WAS GROCERY SHOPPING. WEATHER 65 F SUNNY. HEAVY PEDESTRIAN AND VEHICULAR TRAFFIC. I WAS PARKED HEAD IN DIAGONALLY. I PLACED MY RIGHT FOOT ON THE BRAKE PEDAL,PLACED THE SUV IN REVERSE,LIFTED MY RIGHT FOOT FROM THE BRAKE PEDAL, DEPRESSED THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL AND SLOWLY BACKED OUT OF THE PARKING SPACE,STRAIGHTENING THE WHEELS IN THE PROCESS.I PLACED MY RIGHT FOOT ON THE BRAKE, SHIFTED TO DRIVE, AND PLACED MY RIGHT FOOT ON THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL AND WITHOUT ACTUALLY DEPRESSING THE PEDAL THE ENGIN REVED UNCONTROLLABLY AND THE SUV SURGED FORWARD 100 FT AT INCREASING SPEED BEFORE COLLIDING IN A DOMINO FASHION WITH A ROW OF 6 VEHICLES PUSHING ONE OF THE VEHICLES OVER ONE OF THE ADJACENT VEHICLES BEFORE VEERING OFF TO THE SIDE AND TRAVELING AN ADDITIONAL 200 FEET BEFORE COMING TO A STOP.THE DRIVERS SIDE CHEST AND KNEE BAGS DEPLOYED WHEN I IMPACTED WITH THE FIRST VEHICLE.I DO NOT REMEMBER IF I ATTEMPTED TO BRAKE.THERE WERE NO INJURIES.THE DAMAGES TO MY SUV WERE EXTENSIVE. MY INSURER DECLARED IT A TOTAL LOSS.I HAVE PHOTOS TAKEN AT THE SCENE OF THE ACCIDENT SHOWING SKID MARKS AND THE DAMAGES TO THE VEHICLES BEFORE THEY WERE MOVED. MY INSURER HAD MY VEHICLE EXAMINED BY AN AUTOMOTIVE TECHNICIAN.HE CONCLUDED THAT I SIMULTANEOUSLY STEPPED ON THE BRAKE AND ACCELERATOR BECAUSE OF THE PEDAL WARE PATTERN. ALSO THE DIAGNOSTIC PORT DID NOT SHOW AN ERROR CODE.HE DID NOT EXAMINE THE EVENT DATA RECORDER (BLACK BOX). I DO NOT AGREE WITH HIS CONCLUSIONS. I BELIEVE I DID NOT STEP ON THE PEDALS SIMULTANEOUSLY. IN RETROSPECT I BELIEVE THAT I ACCIDENTALLY ENGAGED ONE OF THE CRUISE CONTROL BUTTONS LOCATED ON THE STEERING WHEEL WHEN I WAS BACKING UP AND STRAIGHTENING THE WHEELS.
I GOT INTO A PARKING SPACE, AND PUSHED THE BRAKE BUT THE CAR JUMPED ONTO THE SIDEWALK. I REMOVED MY FOOT FROM THE BRAKE AND THEN THE CAR STARTED SPEEDING UP. THE CAR CRASHED THROUGH THE WINDOW OF AN EMPTY STORE. I TRIED TO PUSH THE BRAKE EVEN HARDER BUT IT DID NOT WORK. THE CAR FINALLY STOPPED WHEN IT HIT THE WALL INSIDE THE STORE. I WAS IN A SHOCK. LUCKILY, NOBODY WAS INJURED. I FOUND SEVERAL SIMILAR COMPLAINTS ON THE INTERNET BUT COULD NOT FIND A RECALL FOR A SIMILAR ISSUE. ONE OF THE PREVIOUS CLAIMS STATES: "ACURA IS CLAIMING THAT NO PROBLEM CAN BE FOUND WITH OUR VEHICLE." THIS IS AN EXTREMELY SERIOUS SAFETY CONCERN AND COULD RESULT IN FATALITIES. IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE I NEED TO DO IN ORDER THIS ISSUE TO BE INVESTIGATED SERIOUSLY?
ALL DASH LIGHTS CAME ON AND POWER STEERING WENT. DEALERSHIP SAYS IT IS OKAY AND A MISFIRE. 2/2/15 SAME THING HAPPENED, AWD, POWER STEERING, AND BRAKES WENT. THEN THE CAR STOPPED RUNNING AND WOULDN'T START. AN HOUR LATER IT STARTED AGAIN AND ALARMS WERE OFF. THE DEALERSHIP ALSO HAD TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION AT 4K MILES. CAR DOESN'T SENSE KEY SOMETIMES AND WON'T START. LOCKS ON ITS OWN. HEATED SEATS WON'T TURN ON/OFF. CAR MAKES WEIRD NOISE WHEN MAKING SHARP TURNS AND WHEELS PULL STRAIGHT. *TR
ON JULY 14 2014, WAS DRIVING MY NEW 2014 MDX. SUDDENLY HEARD A NOISE LIKE A FLAT TIRE. I PULLED OVER TO THE SHOULDER AND CHECKED THE TIRES. DIDN'T SEE ANY FLAT. CHECKED THE TIRE GAUGE AND ALL READING GOOD. CONTINUED GOING WHERE I HAD TO GO AND THE NOISE CAME BACK. IT SOUNDED LIKE DUMP,DUMP,DUMP. THE NOISES COME AND GO AT VARIOUS SPEEDS. GOT BACK HOME AND REMOVED THE SPIRE TIRE, MIGHT BE LOOSE. DROVE AROUND THE BLOCK AND STILL HEARD THE NOISE AGAIN. IT?S GETTING DARK AND THE FOLLOWING DAY WAS RAINING. FINALLY GOT GOOD WEATHER. DECIDED TO MOVE THE CAR INTO THE DRIVEWAY AND LOOK UNDER THE CAR. AS I WAS LOOKING I COULD SEE THE LEFT REAR AXLE BOOT WAS TWISTED AND GREASE BLEEDING OUT. I DECIDED TO CRAWL UNDER THE CAR AND SAW THE WHOLE DIFFERENTIAL WAS LOOSE. I COULD SHAKE THE UNIT. AS I LOOK CLOSER, I COULD SEE 3 BOLTS MISSING AND 1 BARELY HOLDING THE DIFFERENTIAL ON THE CHASSE. I CALLED ACURA SERVICE AND TOLD THEM ABOUT MY PROBLEM AND WAS TOLD TO BRING IT IN. CALLED ROADSIDE SERVICE AND HAD THEM PUT IT ON A FLATBED. THE DEALER IS REPLACING THE LEFT AXLE AND BOLTS. I HOPE NOTHING ELSE WILL COME LOOSE AND THIS DIDN'T DAMAGE ANYTHING ELSE. *TR
THIS IS THE FOURTH INCIDENT OF UNINTENDED ENGINE REVVING WITH THIS VEHICLE. THIS FOURTH INCIDENT OCCURRED AT 7121 MILES. WAS IN "REVERSE," POSITIONING THE VEHICLE TO PULL INTO A PARKING SPACE. THE ENGINE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED WHILE I WAS IN "REVERSE" AND MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE PEDAL. HAD TO FIRMLY PRESS ON THE BRAKE PEDAL TO HOLD THE CAR FROM RUNNING INTO PEOPLE AND OTHER VEHICLES BEHIND OUR VEHICLE. SHIFTED INTO "NEUTRAL". THE ENGINE SOUNDED LIKE ONE THIRD OF FULL THROTTLE. I PRESSED ON THE GAS PEDAL AND THE ENGINE RETURNED TO IDLE. MY WIFE WAS WITH ME DURING THIS INCIDENT. SHE WAS WITH ME IN THE VEHICLE DURING THREE OF THESE FOUR SIMILAR INCIDENTS. *TR
THIS IS THE SECOND INCIDENT OF UNINTENDED ENGINE REVVING WITH THIS VEHICLE. THIS SECOND INCIDENT OCCURRED AT APPROXIMATELY 4500 MILES. WAS PULLING OUT OF A PARKING SPACE IN "REVERSE" AND CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP WITH MY FOOT FIRMLY ON THE BRAKE PEDAL WHEN, IN AN INSTANT, THE VEHICLE UNEXPECTEDLY REVVED UP WHILE I WAS STILL HOLDING THE BRAKE PEDAL FIRMLY AND THE VEHICLE WAS STILL IN "REVERSE". ALARMED, I IMMEDIATELY PUT THE CAR INTO "PARK". THE TRANSITION INTO "PARK" WAS NOT SMOOTH AND THE ENGINE RPM WENT EVEN HIGHER. IT SOUNDED LIKE ONE THIRD OF FULL THROTTLE. MY WIFE WAS IN THE VEHICLE WITH ME. ONCE IN "PARK", WE PUT DOWN THE WINDOWS TO HEAR HOW LOUD THE ENGINE WAS REVVING. STILL IN "PARK", I ASKED MY WIFE TO WATCH ME STEP ON AND OFF THE BRAKE PEDAL AT LEAST THREE TIMES, BUT THE ENGINE DID NOT RETURN TO IDLE. I THEN KICKED THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL AND THE ENGINE RETURNED TO NORMAL IDLE. ACURA CLIENT RELATIONS HAD A "FIELD REPRESENTATIVE" CHECK MY VEHICLE. FOR THE SECOND TIME, ACURA IS CLAIMING THAT NO PROBLEM CAN BE FOUND WITH OUR VEHICLE. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 ACURA MDX. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE PARKED, ANOTHER VEHICLE SLIGHTLY BUMPED THE CONTACT'S VEHICLE AND CAUSED IT TO ROLL AWAY IN REVERSE AND DOWN A HILL. THE CONTACT'S VEHICLE THEN CRASHED INTO ANOTHER VEHICLE. THERE WERE NO INJURIES AND A POLICE REPORT WAS NOT FILED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INSPECTED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 2,000. *TR
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
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