2004 Acura MDX problems & reliability
171 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2004 Acura MDX, alongside 8 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
9 complaints report injuries (12 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 2004 Acura MDX vehicles were involved in 19 fatal crashes with 9 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Power Train | 77 | 45% |
| Air Bags | 26 | 15% |
| Electrical System | 21 | 12% |
| Engine | 13 | 8% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 13 | 8% |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 11 | 6% |
| Unknown OR Other | 11 | 6% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 8 | 5% |
| Service Brakes | 8 | 5% |
| Structure | 8 | 5% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Half of the failures with a reported odometer reading occurred by 96,000 miles (middle 50% between 78,973 and 131,000 miles), based on 127 complaints that included mileage.
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“I got in the drivers seat this morning and began to put my seatbelt on. I inserted the seat belt into the latch and it automatically came undone. I am able to insert in into the latch but once there is slight body movement or pressure, the seat belt unlatches and releases itself, leaving me unrestrained.”
Seat Belts · filed Jun 10, 2026
“Airbag light has been lit for a while now for my 2004 Acura MDX. I originally took the car to Courtesy Acura for them to check what causing it. They told me that the sensor should be replaced and I paid $260+. After replacing sensor, the Airbag light still lit. They told me that they need to replace the front seatbelt…”
Air Bags · filed Jan 6, 2025
“I was in a parking mode and was leaving the parking lot. I reversed my car lo leave, and the car went out of control and was not until it crashed on two other parked cars that came to a stop. Then, After reversing my car, when trying to put it into drive, it would not move. When I tried to turn it off, the engine (re)…”
Vehicle Speed Control · filed Apr 1, 2024
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Federal defect investigations
- Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture
Engineering Analysis EA21002 · opened Sep 17, 2021 · open
- Air Bag Inflator Rupture
Engineering Analysis EA15001 · opened Feb 24, 2015 · open · led to recall 22V945
- Air Bag Inflator Rupture
Preliminary Evaluation PE14016 · opened Jun 11, 2014 · closed Mar 2, 2015 · led to recall 15V226000
- Ignition Interlock Failure - Rollaway
Preliminary Evaluation PE12026 · opened Oct 2, 2012 · closed Jan 14, 2013 · led to recall 12V573000
Technical service bulletins
138 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 2004 Acura MDX. The 10 most recent:
Service Bulletin - Warranty Extension: Customer Support Program For Front Passenger's Airbag Inflator.
B18-023 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 30, 2026
These SKUs are Exhaust Manifolds with Catalytic Converters. The customer communication requested return of unsold inventory due to a loss of CARB certification. These SKUs can no longer be sold as they do not meet CARB…
DOR-M3J3F-07 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 3, 2020
Service Bulletin - This bulletin is a notification of a class action settlement relating to airbag inflators. American Honda is offering a Customer Support Program (Warranty Extension) to cover any manufacturing defects…
B20-010 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 10, 2020
Service Bulletin - This bulletin is a notification of a class action settlement relating to airbag inflators. American Honda is offering a Customer Support Program (Warranty Extension) to cover any manufacturing defects…
B20-007 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 10, 2020
Service bulletin - This bulletin is a notification of a class action settlement relating to airbag inflators. American Honda is offering a Customer Support Program (Warranty Extension) to cover any manufacturing defects…
B18-023 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 1, 2018
Service bulletin - This bulletin is a notification of a class action settlement relating to airbag inflators. American Honda is offering a Customer Support Program (Warranty Extension) to cover any manufacturing defects…
B18-018 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 24, 2018
Sending vehicle data to tech line.
BJA46167 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 1, 2017
Service bulletin - navigation system information.
B05-018 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Nov 23, 2016
Posters sent to hawaiian independent repair facilities, automotive part stores, car washes, and gas stations to remind owners of the takata recall and to schedule an appointment at their earliest convenience.
TAKATA_HAWAII PO · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 7, 2016
Flyer circulated to the residents of hawaii to remind owners of the takata recall and to schedule an appointment at their earliest convenience.
TAKATA_HAWAII FL · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Sep 7, 2016
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 2004 Acura MDX has 8 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 2004 Acura MDX?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Owners most often reported problems around 96,000 miles — budget accordingly if the car is approaching that mileage.