2015 Acura MDX: check engine light

Filed Jul 15, 2026 · Engine · TX

My 2015 AcuraMDX engine seized while driving creating an unsafe condition as it occurred on a busy roadway. I suspect a rod bearing failure. It has been reported to Honda. The same parts listed in the 2015 RDX recall are used in my MDX but the 2015 is not part of the recall. My engine had a knock and had taken it for inspection at an independent Honda specialist. I had learned that the recall covers the 2015 model year for the Acura TLX, the official recall documentation only includes the 2016–2020 model years for the Acura MDX. There were no check engine lights prior to the stall and seizure of the engine.

Filed Mar 5, 2019 · 65,925 miles · TX

On particularly cold days in texas between 30 and 45 degrees fahrenheit, my acura will not start. The electronic components work, but the engine revs up for about 5 seconds then it turns off. After that the warning lights for stability control, power steering eps, lane departure assist, check engine light, emission systems, hill start assist, come on and stay on but the engine is off. After I try to turn it on and turn it off completely for over five times, then the engine came on and the mdx was driveable. While we drove, the warning lights stayed on. When we got to our destination, which was about 3 miles, turned off the car, and then turned it back on, all the warning signs were gone. This is the second time it happens, the first time it happened was about three months ago. The night before, the blinkers were acting up. The left blinker signal inside, was solid green and the signal light outside was flashing very dimmly and slow, the clicking sound to alert that the signs light was on was not clicking. The right blinker signal inside flashed but did not make the clicking sound to alert that it is on, the light outside blinked normally. Today everything is back to normal.

Filed Nov 10, 2018 · Electrical, Engine · 60,000 miles · CO

Vehicle stops accelerating while driving and loses power without warning. Multiple engine lights go off: check engine, emission system problem, all wheel drive system problem, power steering system eps problem, vehicle stability assist vsa problem, hill start assist problem, trailer stability assist problem. Car starts smoking excessively. Returned to the dealer several times in just a few days and they have not been able to diagnose the problem. Problem appears to resolve and then returns after driving no more than 10 miles. Incidents have occurred while operating the vehicle in 45 MPH speed zones where we had the ability to pull over and get out of traffic. This will be catastrophic if driving on the highway as the effect of this malfunction is equivalent to hitting the breaks while traveling at high speed. Car is currently back with the dealership for the 3rd time in 4 days. Acura mdx drivers should be alerted to this problem immediately - it happens with no warning.

Filed Nov 5, 2018 · Transmission · 79,500 miles · GA

Car started to drive 'jumpy', the local shop did diagnose a transmission issue about which acura had a service bulletin- at low speed or at sudden acceleration car would drive uneven, interrupted; at constant hwy speed there would not be a problem; check engine light turned on emission system problem. Local shop did regular maintainence as the service light had turned on, diagnosed the fault in concordance to acura's own service bulletin however upon travel to acura dealership this was 'not reproducible'. Upon returning home car started again to interrupt without check engine light on. Dial of RPM jumps up and down without remaining even ata constant speed. Car has new spark plugs, oil, filters, however the local shop has deferred the rest for the dealership. Acura dealer in savannah explained that the issue is in fact not a 'recall' and I should bring the car back if it does the same. However per bulletin the coverage lasts for cars up to 80k miles and mine started this at 79+ and by the time I would drive back to the nearest dealership it would probably exceed 80k miles, which they said they would take into consideration should this recur. Obviously the issue is known but because it is not a official 'recall' they would do nothing.

Filed Nov 8, 2016 · Engine · 12,000 miles · NC · fire

While driving on the highway (morning traffic moving at speed limit - 65-70 MPH) I smelled smoke. Immediately following this there was a thud and then the check engine, ldw and other lights illuminated on the dash, along with audible alarm sound. Smoke was now visible, coming from the engine (under the hood). I was able to move from the middle lane to the right lane/exit lane as I knew I needed to pull over immediately. Since I was in an exit lane there was no real shoulder and I started down the exit ramp. The smoke was very strong at this point. I went to depress the brakes to slow down on the exit ramp and try to pull the car over but I had no brakes. The brake pedal went right to the floor. I had limited steering control and was driving erratically trying to keep control of the car while on the exit ramp. I tried to put the transmission in park - no effect to slow the car. I tried to power the car off - did not work. I had to depress the emergency brake to stop the car. It took over 100 feet to stop the car (luckily no other cars on the exit ramp) at which point I could pull over on the side of the road. At this point there was smoke billowing out of the engine area, smoke coming in to the car. I called 911 and they responded in about 5 minutes. After I got a safe distance from the car I could see flames coming from the bottom of the engine. From there I could see the fire start to grow in the engine compartment and once the fire dept arrived it was engulfed in flames. The car has been deemed a total loss by my insurance company. This is a very concerning situation as the car had a major, catastrophic failure with essentially no warning, including complete loss of braking and significant loss of steering, followed by a fire. The car had less than 12k miles and was about one year old. No issues or service other than standard maintenance.