U.S. public vehicle records

2002 Acura MDX problems and owner complaints

Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.

Key facts

204 owner complaints analyzed

4 distinct recall campaigns

98,000 mi median reported failure mileage

Scope: 2002 model year. Data snapshot: 2026-09-12 (September 12, 2026). 161 complaints include usable failure mileage.

Owner-reported patterns

Most common problems

Power Train:Automatic Transmission is the most frequently named component, appearing in 84 of 204 complaints (41.2%). A complaint can name multiple components.

Recurring terms in complaint narratives
Topic	Matching reports	Share of complaints
Transmission and shifting	119	58.3%
Braking behavior	19	9.3%
Engine operation	14	6.9%
Steering behavior	7	3.4%
Electrical and battery issues	5	2.5%
Fuel system concerns	1	0.5%

Topic matches use published keyword rules. They describe mentions, including negations or comparisons, and do not confirm a diagnosis. Read the matching rules.

Component breakdown

Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.

Power Train:Automatic Transmission

Power Train

Air Bags

Electrical System

Vehicle Speed Control

Engine And Engine Cooling

Engine

Structure:Frame And Members

Component breakdown data
Category	Count
Power Train:Automatic Transmission	84
Power Train	37
Air Bags	21
Electrical System	12
Vehicle Speed Control	11
Engine And Engine Cooling	10
Engine	5
Structure:Frame And Members	5

Power Train:Automatic Transmission: 84; Power Train: 37; Air Bags: 21; Electrical System: 12; Vehicle Speed Control: 11; Engine And Engine Cooling: 10; Engine: 5; Structure:Frame And Members: 5

Reported problems by failure mileage

Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.

Under 25,000

25,000 to 49,999

50,000 to 74,999

75,000 to 99,999

100,000 to 149,999

150,000 and above

Under 25,000: 10; 25,000 to 49,999: 11; 50,000 to 74,999: 21; 75,000 to 99,999: 43; 100,000 to 149,999: 45; 150,000 and above: 31

100,000 to 149,999 miles has the most reports with usable mileage (45). 43 complaints have missing, zero or invalid mileage.

Complaints over time

Year the complaint was filed, not the vehicle model year or incident year. The snapshot year is partial.

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

2025

2002: 3; 2003: 9; 2004: 11; 2005: 11; 2006: 11; 2007: 13; 2008: 16; 2009: 13; 2010: 24; 2011: 22; 2012: 6; 2013: 7; 2014: 12; 2015: 6; 2016: 13; 2017: 5; 2018: 4; 2019: 3; 2020: 7; 2021: 1; 2022: 3; 2023: 2; 2024: 1; 2025: 1

Pattern summary

Power Train:Automatic Transmission leads the component reports. Transmission and shifting appears in 119 complaint narratives. Braking behavior appears in 19 complaint narratives. Engine operation appears in 14 complaint narratives. Use these patterns to inspect individual reports and prepare questions for a mechanic.

Calculated from recorded counts. An AI narrative has not been published for this selection.

Complaint evidence

Examples provide context, not a representative sample or a verified diagnosis.

Owner report 10020775 · 2003-05-30 (May 30, 2003)

2002 ACURA MDX WITH APPROX. 17K MILES REPEATEDLY FORCIBLY DOWNSHIFTED FOR NO APPARENT REASON ON THE EVENING OF 5/28/03. DEALER REPRODUCED THE BEHAVIOR ON A TEST DRIVE ON THE MORNING OF 5/29/03 AND IS REPLACING THE TRANSMISSION WITHOUT ANY FURTHER DIAGNOSTICS.*AK

Owner-reported narrative. 17,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10020775 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10050450 · 2004-01-15 (January 15, 2004)

UPON STARTING THE VEHICLE, THERE WAS A NOISE WHICH ALSO OCCURRED WHILE DRIVING. THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION HAD TO BE REPLACED BECAUSE IT FAILED. ALSO, THE RACK AND PINION HAD TO BE REPLACED AT 12,000. *AK THE VEHICLE IS STILL HAVING PROBLEMS WITH THE RACK AND PINION. *JB

Owner-reported narrative. 13,770 miles reported. Look up ODI 10050450 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10045285 · 2003-11-02 (November 2, 2003)

REAR BRAKE MAKES NOISE. *LA

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10045285 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10047977 · 2003-11-14 (November 14, 2003)

WHILE DRIVING AT ANY SPEED INTERMITTENTLY WITH BRAKES ENGAGED VEHICLE ROLLED FOR AN EXCESSIVE DISTANCE BEFORE COMING TO A STOP. VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER ON THREE OCCASIONS FOR THE SAME PROBLEM. DEALER INFORMED THE CONSUMER THAT THE BRAKES WERE WORKING NORMALLY.*AK

Owner-reported narrative. 400 miles reported. Look up ODI 10047977 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10160051 · 2006-06-16 (June 16, 2006)

FROM THIRD GEAR INTO FOURTH GEAR, THE TRANSMISSION SLIPS, IT DISENGAGES LIKE IF IT'S IN NEUTRAL FOR JUST A FEW SECONDS, AND THEN GOES INTO THE NEXT GEAR WITH A JERK. NOW IT SEEMS LIKE THAT IT'S ALWAYS JERKING. ABOUT A YEAR OR TWO AGO, I HAD A MUCH LESS NOTICEABLE LOSS OF POWER INCIDENT WITH THE VEHICLE WITH THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMING ON. THE DEALER CLEARED THE WARNING LIGHT AND ADVISED THAT THERE WAS NO PROBLEMS. ON 06/16/06 I BROUGHT THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION FLUID, BUT THAT DID NOT RESOLVE THE PROBLEM. THEY …

Owner-reported narrative. 61,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10160051 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10259797 · 2009-02-24 (February 24, 2009)

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 ACURA MDX. THE CONTACT NOTICED THAT WHENEVER THE SPEED REACHED BETWEEN 20-35 MPH, THE GEARS WOULD STICK. IN ADDITION, THE CHECK ENGINE INDICATOR BEGAN ILLUMINATING ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE TRANSMISSION WAS DEFECTIVE AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE REPAIR, THE GEARS BECAME EVEN MORE DIFFICULT TO SHIFT THAN BEFORE THE REPAIR WAS PERFORMED. THE VEHICLE WAS DRIVEN BACK TO THE DEALER, BUT THEY COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE FAILURE. THE FOLLOWING DAY…

Owner-reported narrative. 61,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10259797 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10021454 · 2003-06-12 (June 12, 2003)

STEERING WHEEL VIBRATES WHEN DRIVING BETWEEN 70-75 MPH. TRIED SEVERAL SOLUTIONS WITH NO SUCCESS: A) TRIED RE-BALANCING TIRES B) TRIED NEW TIRES C) DEALER VISUAL INSPECTION NEGATIVE. *NLM

Owner-reported narrative. 12,700 miles reported. Look up ODI 10021454 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10091597 · 2004-09-08 (September 8, 2004)

WHILE DRIVING POWER STEERING FAILED, MAKING IT HARD FOR THE CONSUMER TO STEER THE VEHICLE. DEALERSHIP WAS NOTIFIED, BUT DID NOT RESOLVE THE PROBLEM. *AK

Owner-reported narrative. 78,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10091597 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10078385 · 2004-06-17 (June 17, 2004)

1.) THE AT SHIFT GEAR SLIDES OUT OF PARK EVEN WHEN VEHICLE IS TURNED OFF. VERY DANGEROUS FOR CHILDREN SHIFTING GEARS OUT OF PARK WHILE KEY IS OUT OF THE IGNITION! PER CONVERSATION WITH CONSUMER, THE DEALER HAS IDENTIFIED THAT THE SHIFT-INTERLOCK SOLENOID ASSEMBLY WAS DAMAGED AND REPLACED UNDER WARRANTY TO CUSTOMER'S SATISFACTION. ALSO LEARNED THAT 4-YR OLD BOY INSIDE VEHICLE POTENTIALLY DAMAGED GEAR SHIFT RESULTING IN FREE MOVEMENT FROM PARK TO OTHER GEAR(S). *MJJ 2.) ATF TEMP SENSOR REMAINS ON IN DASHBOARD EVEN WHILE TRANS IS COOL. ELECTRI…

Owner-reported narrative. 19,436 miles reported. Look up ODI 10078385 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10306624 · 2010-02-05 (February 5, 2010)

I HAVE A 2002 ACURA MDX. EVERY TIME IT RAINS, THE CARPET ON THE FRONT DRIVER AND PASSENGER SIDE GET SOAKED WITH WATER. I CANNOT VISUALLY SEE WHERE THE WATER IS COMING FROM. I CALLED THE DEALER AND I WAS TOLD THAT ITS NOT A MANUFACTURER DEFECT. I WENT ONLINE AND I FOUND OUT THAT ALOT OF PEOPLE HAVE THE SAME ISSUES WITH THEIR CAR. I BELIEVE THIS SHOULD BE MANUFACTURER DEFECTS IS SO MANY DRIVERS ARE HAVING ISSUES . NOT ONLY THAT THE WATER CAN REACH THE ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS WHICH CAN BE DEADLY. PLEASE ADVISE IF THE DEALER SHOULD BE RESPONSIBLE IF…

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10306624 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10037868 · 2003-08-28 (August 28, 2003)

WHEN FILLING THE FUEL TANK TO ITS MAXIMUM CAPACITY FUEL WOULD SPILL OUT ONTO THE CONSUMER AFTER REMOVING THE NOZZLE. *AK

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10037868 at NHTSA ↗