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2021 Acura Rdx

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Rdx years

Owner complaints for the 2021 Acura Rdx are substantially higher than the model-year median of 36.5.

About this comparison →

How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

Limited mileage data: 12 of 111 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Engine. Review the 20 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Service Brakes. Review the 15 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 13 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

3 crash reports0 fire reports1 injury reports

Power Train complaints

13 reports
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Mileage unknown · Sep 13, 2022
EnginePower Train

I was accelerating up a hill on a WV highway in a steady rain, the engine cut power, the check engine light flashed on and off, further throttle input did nothing, the car slowed on its own. I had to pull over from the left lane dangerously cutting in front of vehicles in the right lane as I could no longer maintain highway spee…

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I was accelerating up a hill on a WV highway in a steady rain, the engine cut power, the check engine light flashed on and off, further throttle input did nothing, the car slowed on its own. I had to pull over from the left lane dangerously cutting in front of vehicles in the right lane as I could no longer maintain highway speed. Shut the car down and waited to rekey. Vehicle has operated fine ever since. The dealer has not been able to duplicated the issue (two weeks afterwards)

NHTSA ODI #11484165

Mileage unknown · Aug 20, 2021
EnginePower Train

Driving at night in rain on interstate 81N in southern Virginia. I pressed accelerator all the way to pass and the car downshifted and then lost power. The engine light was flashing. I did not have enough power to maintain adequate highway speed while in the midst of a passing maneuver. While car was decelerating (with foot …

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Driving at night in rain on interstate 81N in southern Virginia. I pressed accelerator all the way to pass and the car downshifted and then lost power. The engine light was flashing. I did not have enough power to maintain adequate highway speed while in the midst of a passing maneuver. While car was decelerating (with foot on accel pedal with no apparent response) I activated hazard lights and made my way across traffic to the shoulder. 70mph speed limit. I dropped to 50mph or so rather quickly amid traffic that put me and the traffic around me in a dangerous situation. Once stopped on shoulder (again in a dangerous situation that I'd prefer to avoid), i turned ignition off for 10 seconds and then restarted car. Situation seems to have cleared up; no engine light flashing and full? power. It did not happen again when I pressed accelerator to floor to recreate situation. This vehicle has 3800 miles on it.

NHTSA ODI #11429814

Mileage unknown · Jun 22, 2021
EnginePower Train

Brand new 2021 RDX - bought 3 days ago, only 128 miles. Driving on highway and it suddenly loses power. Was able to get to shoulder, but unable to get enough power to exit the highway to find a safer place to park. Check engine light and several transmission warnings indicating I should see dealer immediately. As vehicle came cl…

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Brand new 2021 RDX - bought 3 days ago, only 128 miles. Driving on highway and it suddenly loses power. Was able to get to shoulder, but unable to get enough power to exit the highway to find a safer place to park. Check engine light and several transmission warnings indicating I should see dealer immediately. As vehicle came close to a stop, it shuddered and clunked so badly it seemed like I ran something over, but nothing was there. Tried to shut vehicle down and restart, but constant error messages and would only lurch a little. Had to have vehicle towed to dealership, but of course they said they never heard of this happening before.

NHTSA ODI #11421931

Official recalls

3

26V332000 · Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification:front Passenger

May 21, 2026

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2018-2021, 2023 Acura TLX, 2019-2024 RDX, 2017-2020, 2022-2026 MDX, 2017-2021, 2023, 2025 Honda Ridgeline, 2017-2022 Pilot, 2019-2021 Passport, 2018-2026 Odyssey, 2019-2022 Insight, 2019-2021 HR-V, 2018-2020 Fit, 2020-2022 CR-V Hybrid, 2017-2022 CR-V, 2017-2018, 2021 Civic Type R, 2017-2021 Civic hatchback, 2016-2020 Civic coupe, 2016-2022 Civic, 2017-2022 Accord Hybrid, and 2016-2022 Accord vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, which can cause the air bags to deploy unintentionally during a crash.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: Air bags that deploy unintentionally during a crash increase the risk of injury.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 7, 2026. Owners may contact Honda's customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are BOL, WO9, OOA, WOM, XOH, NOC, POD, BOE, UOF, POB, EOG, AOI, QO8, TOJ, DO7, and SOK. This recall expands previous NHTSA recall number 24V064. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning May 29, 2026.

24V064000 · Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification:front Passenger

Feb 1, 2024

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Pilot, Accord, Civic sedan, HR-V, Odyssey, 2020 Civic coupe, Fit, 2021-2022 Civic hatchback, 2021 Civic Type R, Insight, 2020-2021 CR-V, CR-V Hybrid, Passport, Ridgeline, Accord Hybrid, 2020 Acura MDX, 2022 Acura MDX, 2020-2022 Acura RDX, and 2020-2021 Acura TLX vehicles. The front passenger seat weight sensor may crack and short circuit, failing to suppress the air bag as intended.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: An air bag that deploys unintentionally during a crash can increase the risk of injury.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the seat weight sensors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 28, 2024. This is a phased recall. Owners may contact Honda customer service at 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for these recalls are XHP and VHQ.

21V939000 · Power Train:driveline:driveshaft

Dec 2, 2021

Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) is recalling certain 2021 Acura RDX and 2022 CR-V Hybrid vehicles. A component in the right or left front driveshaft may have been improperly heat-treated, which could result in driveshaft failure.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: Driveshaft failure can cause a sudden loss of drive power, or cause the vehicle to roll away when parked if the parking brake is not applied. Either condition can increase the risk of a crash or injury.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the right or left front driveshaft as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 24, 2022. Owners may contact Honda customer service 1-888-234-2138. Honda's numbers for this recall are BBY, NBW, and OBX.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.