13th Apr 2007, 11:18

I purchased a new 2003 Acura MDX Touring and have loved the car up to now. My transmission will slip into neutral without any warning or at any speed. My SUV has 70,600 miles on it so it is out of warranty or so I was told by the Service Department where I purchased the vehicle. Upon searching the internet that Honda Acura was aware of the transmission problems on 2001-2003 MDXs and have extended the warranty to 7 years or 100,000 miles. Now the Service Department said that my vehicle had the wrong VIN#, but said they would replace it at 50/50 percent. I disagreed and called Honda Acura and was told that the VIN# did not apply. The vehicle just had to have the transmission problem and when I asked the cost that would be involved I was told upward of $3,000. I then asked if the cost of the 50% was Honda supplying the transmission and the other was the fee being charged to install and was told "yes", but it is my understanding that when a car is under and extended warranty that there should be no charge. I am very disappointed since I love my car and Acuras in general. Including business cars and personal, we have purchased 11 Acuras in 15 years and were about to buy another, but are reconsidering.

19th Sep 2007, 20:27

I have a 2001 MDX and the clangs and noises keep on coming. My car has the break noise, the gas sloshing noise, the wiper motor whining noise, wind noise from the passenger door, the car pulls to the right and it is on the 3rd transmission. I currently have 120K and the transmission is acting up again. Acura cannot compete with the high end cars. This will be the last Acura I purchase.

16th Jul 2008, 13:23

We have a 2003 Acura MDX, and just found out that it needs a new transmission! We are under 5 years since purchase, but unfortunately are 10,000 km over warranty. It has had regular scheduled maintenance, and we have never towed anything, as we did not purchase the towing package. Through research and conversations with Honda/Acura customer services, they admitted this is a problem with their 2000-2003 MDX models. The US has extended their warranty to 100,000 miles or 7 years. (see consumerguideauto.howstuffworks.com/2001-to-2006-acura-mdx-2.htm)

Although all MDX models are produced in the same factory, this extended warranty does NOT apply to Canada! Our dealership has supported us and is willing to pay cover up to $1,300. However, Honda/Acura Canada, at this point is prepared to nothing to take any form of shared responsibility for their faulty product. Previous to this, we also experienced the other common complaints of this vehicle - brake clunking, noisy gas tank. I will never buy another Acura vehicle again.

6th Dec 2008, 04:01

I had bought a 2002 Acura MDX about two years ago. The vehicle had 65000 miles and I purchased an extended warranty.

I noticed the brake clunking noise immediately and bought the vehicle back to the dealer several times. The dealer replaced motor mounts, brakes, shocks, and tried lubricating the undercarriage. The problem had never been resolved.

Recently I used the Internet and discovered that this was a common problem with these vehicles. I called Acura and the company told me they have never heard of this problem, however I found a technical service bulletin by Acura dated March 2004. It was sent to all Acura dealers with a so called "fix" with the shims on the brake system. The Acura company has had troubles with this particular model, is there anyone out there who knows how to get the company to pay for all the money spent on trying to fix this problem? I have spent my own money on non covered expenses due to this problem. Please reply to f22j56c@aol.com.

9th Dec 2008, 18:15

Spoke to an engineer at Honda concerning this and he told me they kept the brake pads "loose" to alleviate the drag when the brakes are released. Apparently most disc brakes ride on the rotor even when not applied. They have alleviated the clicking noise in newer models. I traded my 2003 MDX for the 2008 MDX Sport and I love it! No extra noises here.

2nd Jan 2009, 20:07

I have a 2003 MDX with 92,000 miles. I was at the beach and the tranny was making a vibration noise at around 30-40 mph. I took it to AAMCO transmissions. They flushed the transmission fluid and put in something called shutter guard to try and fix the problem. I haven't had any problems yet, crossing my fingers. Any one else with these tranny issues?

5th Feb 2009, 17:28

I also had the SAME problems as everyone on this site. I just took my car in for a new transmission at a cost of $3200. I think I will be putting it up for sale after this fiasco. I am very upset that Acura is not doing anything about this but if anyone is part of a law suit please include me reis.surfgirl@yahoo.com. I already filed a complaint but don't feel that this will resolve any of our issues.

8th Feb 2009, 06:15

I am so glad I found this website! I am going prepared with info on this related issue b/c my 03 MDX with 77K miles, tranny went out of service. Same scenerio as other owners here, slippage or not locking into gear, etc. Acura just picked up my truck. Through GEICO coverage being repaired but I want to make it known to Geico and Acura this is the second time it went for service. First time it was supposedly corrected by "reversing" the tranny cooling lines that supposedly the body shop failed to properly connect (had front body work done). Forward six months later, and here is the problem again! Keep ya posted!

19th Feb 2009, 09:14

I bought my 2003 MDX in 2006 with 42k miles. I've got 85k on it now.

This car has spent so much time at the dealer's service department that they literally know me by name. I have seen every problem outlined by others in these comments.

Luckily, I have not yet had to replace the transmission, but it's sitting at the dealer now getting a $150 flush to 'fix' the slow engagement into drive, and slow shift into second gear. I'm sure it's just a matter of time now.

This is my first and last Acura. My prior car (Explorer) was so much lower maintenance.

21st Feb 2009, 15:40

I bought my 2003 MDX in 2006 with 53,000 miles on it. I luckily bought an extended warranty, but have not used it until now in 2009 at 88,500 miles.

The motor mounts were bad, the struts were all leaking and my water pump was leaking. I had all these issues repaired, but the motor mounts were not covered, I paid for that $420 at the Acura dealer.

I never had a problem up till now because at 68,000, I changed the timing belt, and at 74,500 I did the transmission tune-up.

Ironically enough now, my MDX has been vibrating badly at 50 mph and higher. The dealer changed all those items above and it still did it. They finally took it for a road test and realized 5th gear was badly damaged and it was hitting the axle. They had just a week ago yelled at me for never changing the transmission fluid (which I did), but they didn't believe me because of the dark nature of the fluid. They now tell me I need a new transmission and the fight now begins because the warranty company is stalling in authorizing to repair it. They have asked me for my service records for my MDX, which I have gladly faxed to them, but still no answer.

It seems as though a lot of people have major transmission problems with this model 03 MDX. My warranty expires at 90,552 and I'm covered, but it looks as though the aftermarket warranty company is looking for loopholes not to pay!