2012 Acura MDX engine problems
23 owner complaints filed with NHTSA name the engine on the 2012 Acura MDX — 30% of all complaints for this model year.
What owners report
“I have a 2012 MDX and it burns an extreme amount of oil. We took our MDX back to the dealership where we purchased it and had the oil issue fixed. Or so we thought. The problem was supposed to be fixed 3 months ago but the car is still burning a lot of oil. We have to add oil every 2 weeks. We did…”
filed Jul 16, 2026
“2012 ACURA MDX burns extreme amounts of oil between oil changes. Typically a warning indicator comes on about 1,000 miles before oil change is due. I continue to refill oil between oil changes.”
filed Jul 8, 2026
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Related service bulletins
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-M9J4S-07 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jun 3, 2020Service Bulletin - Due to high demand for repairs under this warranty extension, pistons and rings required to complete this repair are currently backordered. Acura has provided this service bulletin (19-052) as a…
B19-052 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Oct 2, 2019Dealer Message - On January 16, 2019, Acura announced a warranty extension for certain 2009-14 Acura vehicles equipped with a 3.7L V6 engine to address client concerns related to excessive oil consumption. Acura…
BBOM08312019 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 31, 2019Service Bulletin - The oil control rings may become clogged with carbon deposits. These deposits restrict the ring's ability to scrape and return oil from the cylinder wall to the crankcase, which can result in…
B19-006 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 10, 2019Service Bulletin - The oil control rings may become clogged with carbon deposits. These deposits restrict the ring's ability to scrape and return oil from the cylinder wall to the crankcase, which can result in…
B19-006 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued May 18, 2019
Engine problems in other MDX years
| Year | Reports | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 MDX | 47 | 64% |
| 2024 MDX | 5 | 14% |
| 2023 MDX | 1 | 3% |
| 2022 MDX | 9 | 7% |
| 2020 MDX | 77 | 37% |
| 2019 MDX | 46 | 25% |
| 2018 MDX | 35 | 22% |
| 2017 MDX | 76 | 31% |
| 2016 MDX | 154 | 42% |
| 2015 MDX | 7 | 10% |
| 2014 MDX | 26 | 15% |
| 2013 MDX | 9 | 31% |
Other reported problem areas on the 2012 Acura MDX
Counts are unique NHTSA complaints naming this component group. Complaints are unverified owner reports; mileage is computed only from complaints that included a usable odometer reading.