The contact owns a 2018 Acura MDX. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle went into LIMP Mode and failed to exceed 35-60 MPH. The check engine warning light was flashing. The driver pulled over to the side of the road. The vehicle was restarted, reset, and operated as intended. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the failure could not be duplicated, and the failure persisted. The contact's brother, a certified technician, advised the contact not to turn off the vehicle after the failure occurred to prevent the system from resetting. The contact followed the instructions, and the contact's brother retrieved DTC: P0304, indicating a cylinder 4 misfire. The vehicle was not repaired and would be taken to the dealer. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 87,000.
2018 Acura MDX: stuck in gear or won't shift
5 of the 169 complaints about the 2018 Acura MDX describe stuck in gear or won't shift.
- owner complaints
- 5
- of this car's complaints
- 3%
- recalls
- 0
Stuck in gear or won't shift by model year
What owners say
While accelerating, the vehicle to decelerated rapidly, the gas pedal became unresponsive when pushed down. Numerous warning lights started Additionally, the vehicle shifted into neutral while the vehicle was being driven and would not shift out even after stopped. I was on a very busy 6 lane highway going 80 mph in thanksgiving traffic, my wife, 1 year old and 3 year old were in the vehicle. This appears to be a known issue from Honda, please see [XXX], et al. v. American Honda Motor Company Inc., et al., Case No. [XXX], INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
This car has repeatedly had issues with delaying to take off when I touch the gas pedal. Once the pedal is depressed there is a long delay before the car actually moves. Two days ago as I was driving at around 35mph all warning lights came on and the car started jerking as it was trying to slow down or stall. I was able to get back to my home luckily I was only up the street and was able to drive under 30mph and had to pull off the road several times because it kept jerking almost as if someone was repeatedly slamming on the brakes. I had a mechanic hook a reader up and was able to determine it was the high pressure fuel pump. Acura claims my car has no open recalls but I believe although it may not be currently it obviously should be part of the recall involving the same exact issue. The warranty expired 3k miles ago ironically, but given this issue has happened to other cars of the same make and model and given the recall for this same part on other cars like mine just with a different vin I believe it should be covered as it is a major safety concern. The car jerked very hard and luckily I did not have my kids with me and luckily no one was too close to me when my car starting stopping in such an forceful way. If I was on a Highway I would have probably been involved in an accident as the car was attempting to go into limp mode due to the failure of the fuel pump and was aggressively shifting down when I was only going 35mph I can only imagine what could happened if i was traveling double that speed.
While driving downhill a car approx 1000 feet ahead of me was slowing down to turn right while the car was still turning but completely out of the intersection the automatic brakes came on and came to a complete stop. The car that turned right was down the street it had turned on completely out of sensor range and the automatic brakes would not let off, when trying to accelerate it got stuck in gear but would not budge. Like when you dont shift a gear for too long in a stick shift car. Finally the brakes let off and I was able to drive but further down the same hill the automatic brakes did the same thing again while trying to accelerate to change lanes, there was not a single car infront of me at this point and no reason for the automatic brakes to do this. Both incidents almost caused me to be rear ended.
Starter failed with auto start/stop while stopped in traffic. Since engine wouldn't start, car shifted to park automatically and can not shift to neutral with the engine off and unable to start. The battery was fine and could go into aux mode, but still won't shift to neutral. Aside from quality issues related to starter, significant safety design flaw.
Service bulletins that may apply
- The transmission has intermittent harsh or jerky upshifts with steady acceleration.
- The vehicle may exhibit several of the following symptoms
- The transmission end cover leaks on vehicles with 9-speed A/T. During assembly, the transmission end cover...
- When adjusting seat height or tilt, the power seat does not move or moves just a small amount and clicks...
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 2018 Acura MDX won't shift
Is stuck in gear or won't shift a common problem on the 2018 Acura MDX?
5 of 169 owner complaints about the 2018 Acura MDX (3%) mention stuck in gear or won't shift. The model year with the most reports is 2016.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2018 Acura MDX?
There are 0 recalls and 4 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2018 Acura MDX
Hesitation 18Stalling 16Adaptive cruise 15Lane assist 12Fuel pump 11Collision warning 10Jerking 9Knocking 8Backup camera 7Headlights 6Sudden acceleration 6Warning lights 6Engine failure 5Loss of power 5Won't start 5
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